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National Diversion Initiative jurisdictional workshopsIn collaboration with the Department of Health and Ageing (DHA) and the Inter-Governmental Committee on Drugs (IGCD), the ANCD has identified the National Diversion Initiative as being an area of significant importance requiring a broad base of knowledge to inform decisions on its current and future direction. The National Diversion Initiative was announced by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) in April 1999, with $110 million allocated to the initiative. Since that time, the Commonwealth Government has signed agreements with all State and Territory Governments on the implementation of the initiative. In addition to the proposed jurisdictional workshops, Health Outcomes International is currently contracted to conduct an overall evaluation on the Diversion Initiative for the Commonwealth Department of Finance and Administration. However, the ANCD, DHA and IGCD have recognised that because progress on the types of programs implemented has differed across each jurisdiction, as well as there being a wide variation on the type of diversion programs already in place prior to the introduction of the National Diversion Initiative, the current formal evaluation will have some limitations. In particular, the views of experienced service providers and other professionals at the ‘coal face’ are likely to be difficult to incorporate within the current evaluation. As a result, the ANCD, DHA and IGCD have decided to host 8 one-day workshops (one in each capital city) for alcohol, drug, and other professionals working with diversion programs. These workshops will focus on the experiences, needs and issues associated with the provision of diversion based services. The purpose of the workshops, which will be located in each jurisdiction, is to invite professionals to discuss current diversion policies and practices, as well as provide information on potential future directions for the initiative.
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