Brisbane AOD Agency Forum report

Brisbane AOD Agency Forum report

Background

The Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) has determined it will hold a local agency forum, in conjunction with its meeting in each State and Territory. These forums form part of the Council’s strategy to fulfil its role of representing the views of non-government, community-based organisations and associated services working with drug and alcohol issues.

The intention of this summary is to provide a brief description of each of the issues raised by forum participants. This report is posted onto the ANCD Internet Site to enable forum participants and interested others to access issues discussed at the forums. The ANCD also provides a copy of this report to the Premier or Chief Minister, as well as the responsible Minister in each jurisdiction to ensure the Government is aware of the issues raised.

It should also be noted that all the issues raised at the forums are not necessarily areas that the Council agrees with or are able to address. They do however provide an important touchstone on community concerns and perceptions for Council members. In addition, the ANCD believes that it has an obligation to participants to report the issues and concerns raised in an unfettered manner.

At the first meeting of the re-appointed ANCD in March 2001, members agreed to also conduct youth forums in conjunction with each of its meetings. As a result, at the Brisbane meeting a number of ANCD members attended either the agency forum or the youth forum, which were held concurrently.

Brisbane Alcohol and Other Drug Sector Agency Forum

Approximately 85 people from the drug and alcohol field in and around Brisbane - including rural and regional representatives from as far as Cairns, workers from the non-government sector, police, universities, and state and federal government representatives - attended a forum hosted by the ANCD at The Carlton Crest Hotel, on Thursday, the 28th of June 2001.

The Forum commenced with the Chairman of the Council, Major Brian Watters outlining the role of the Council; it’s new Terms of Reference, and areas of activity and position within the National Drug Advisory Framework. Individual Council members briefly introduced themselves and their backgrounds to Forum participants though it should be noted that the ANCD also held a concurrent forum on youth issues, which some Council members attended.

Mr Gino Vumbaca, Executive Officer of the ANCD then invited forum participants to raise issues and questions for discussion with Council members.Council members in attendance at the agency forums were:

Major Brian Watters (Chair) – (attended both forums)
Deputy-Commissioner Jack Johnston (agency)
Mr Craig Thompson (agency)
Mr David Crosbie (agency)
Prof. John Saunders (agency)
Mr Garth Popple (agency)
Mr Gino Vumbaca (Secretariat) (agency)

Brisbane Forum

The following themes were raised and discussed throughout the forum:

Role of the ANCD
There was some significant discussion on the role of the ANCD and its ability to provide a voice for the NGO sector. In particular, there was clarification sought on how effectively the ANCD could represent the views of the NGO sector given members are appointed by the Prime Minister and not elected by the NGO sector.

There was a level of agreement that whilst the ANCD could declare itself to be a representative body of NGOs it did provide a formal avenue into the decision making process for the views of the NGO sector. The range of ANCD members with long associations with the NGO sector was acknowledged, as was the broader membership of the ANCD to include areas outside the alcohol and other drug NGO sector. Most participants were able to agree that the opportunities provided by the ANCD, particularly through these consultation forums, were important and unique.
Parents
The important role for parents in addressing drug issues and providing early intervention was recognized. The recent national campaign on illicit drug use, which was focused on families, was seen as an important part of this recognition process.

However, the demonisation of drug users as ‘bad’ because they use drugs was an issue that had to be guarded against because it was not helpful in creating a climate that allowed families or the community generally, to address drug use issues effectively.
Consultation with the NGO Sector
There was a high level of agreement amongst participants that greater consultation with the non-government sector (NGO) on drug and alcohol issues was wanted. In particular there were concerns with the level of government demands to control the independence of the NGO sector through restrictive service agreements. In addition, there was a perceived lack of transparency in the decisions made regarding allocation of funding for drug and alcohol programs and initiatives. This was seen as a further block to better a relationship between the government and NGO sectors.

The formal involvement of appropriate NGO sector representatives as part of an ongoing and meaningful consultation process with government was recommended as a way of beginning to address some of these concerns.
NGO Peak Body
There was agreement that the NGO sector needed to develop a formal and representative peak body to effectively pursue the resolution of a number issues affecting NGOs.
Role of Government
The concentration of the government on services that provide short-term or outpatient services, such as detoxification and pharmacotherapies, was perceived as a lack of recognition and support for longer-term services, such as residential rehabilitation.

Understandably the cost of these services made it difficult for direct government involvement but more support to increase the number of beds available, including some benchmarking of cost (as has occurred in other States), were issues that needed to be addressed. The lack of outpatient and residential services to deal with youth drug use was also raised.
National & State Targets
The lack of a co-ordinated national approach to drug policy and services was discussed, in particular the lack of targets as measurable outcomes.

This issue also led to discussion on the need for a strong strategic plan for Queensland that also including measurable targets, as well as a defined consultation and planning process.
Role for the ANCD
Participants raised issues they believed should be targeted by the ANCD in an effort to provide some direction on national policy, as well as increasing the understanding of the community. The main areas were as follows:
- Principles of harm minimisation
- Naltrexone implants
- The impact of the heroin drought
- Injecting room trials
- The level of treatment beds available
- Diversion centres for drug affected people
Regional Issues
The specific issues of isolation and the cost of providing services in rural and regional areas of Queensland were raised. The forum acknowledged that many participants had travelled long distances from regional areas to discuss the problems they face. An increased role for local hospitals in drug and alcohol issues was seen as a potential solution to these problems although it was acknowledged that hospital staff would require a significant level of assistance and training to accept a greater role in management and treatment of people with drug and alcohol problems and needs.
Funding Issues
The Commonwealth Government needed to recognise that the GST and new FBT arrangements had greatly increased reporting requirements on NGO agencies. The cost impact of these changes coupled with increased fuel costs and a lack of CPI increases in funding was placing extraordinary pressure on services to maintain their current level of service delivery, particularly smaller agencies with limited cash flow flexibilities.
Co-ordination Issues
The need for a national (and state) ability to refocus both budget and policy direction was raised by forum participants. There was a perceived lack of co-ordination across various portfolios on government policy regarding drug issues. In particular, the inability of the current structure to make changes regarding the level of funding allocations made to supply reduction and demand reduction services was raised.
Dual Diagnosis
A greater focus on the problem of dealing with clients affected by mental health issues and drug and alcohol issues was discussed. A greater level of co-operation and communication between the mental health and drug and alcohol sectors was seen as critical in dealing with this issue, particularly given the lack of expertise and resources available.
Other Issues
There were also a range of other issues and opinions expressed at the forum that can be summarised as follows:
- There is a range of views within the sector regarding the legal status of drugs and the implications of this status.
- The increasing use of amphetamines in Queensland (and nationally) is an area that needs to be addressed. There is widespread concern about the lack of treatment services with suitably qualified and trained staff available to deal with amphetamine users. The need for a national and state response was raised.
- A greater focus on prevention was seen as an important step to reducing the rate of problematic drug use in future generations.
- The need for a greater emphasis on tobacco control was raised, and specifically the need for national expert committees to have more freedom to recommend a range of strategies for ministerial consideration.
- The possible funding of an appropriate representative NGO peak body by the Queensland Government was also raised.

The Australian National Council on Drugs thanks all the participants for their contributions and participation.

ANCD Secretariat

July 2001

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