To
Mr. Stephan Valk
president of the Board of Panassia Groep
s.valk@parnassiabavogroep.nl
Athens, 9 March 2014
Dear Mr. President,
We are worried to hear that Panassia Groep is considering shortening the stay in
Emiliehoeve and Triple-Ex to a maximum of three months and also planning to
move Emiliehoeve into the premises of an alcohol clinic, due to the economic
crisis. It should be stressed that Dutch TCs are highly regarded in Europe and
have provided a model for similar organizations in many countries, including
Greece. Any decision that is in conflict with the Therapeutic Community model,
would adversely affect the function of these TCs and would be a loss to Dutch
society and the European TC movement.
The data from multiple experiences and surveys worldwide clearly suggest that
the outcome effectiveness of therapeutic communities is directly linked to the
duration of treatment. The longer a person stays in a TC the better is the
outcome as far as substance abuse, criminal activity and unemployment is
concerned, and the less danger there is of a possible relapse. If length of stay is
dramatically reduced, Emiliehoeve and Triple-Ex will not be able to sustain their
comprehensive approach and deal efficiently not just with drug use itself but also
with the legal, educational, vocational, family and psychological problems of their
members.
Although drastic budgetary reductions may seem an obvious solution during
times of financial crisis, cutting the budget for substance abuse treatment will
have negative effects on society. Both Emiliehoeve and Triple-Ex are not only
effective in improving the lives of individuals, but also produce impressive cost
benefits to society. Studies from all over the world have shown that the
investment in these types of services result in long term cost savings through
reduced crime and drug use. This investment becomes even more topical during
economic recessions which have negative consequences on existing drug related
problems and over the years may increase drug use and accentuate social
exclusion of drug addicts.
International community
is becoming increasingly aware of the costeffectiveness of treatment and rehabilitation programmes and urge policy
makers to ensure that adequate investment is made in these programmes, even
in times of financial austerity (See attached Annual Report of the UN
International Narcotics Control Board-INCB for 2013 and UN Draft Resolution
E/CN.7/2014/L.14/Rev.1 “Providing sufficient health services to individuals
affected by substance use disorders during long term and sustained economic
downturns”
We therefore urge you to spare Emiliehoeve and Triple-Ex from the above
mentioned negative changes and to preserve their funding and good
operation.Thank you for your consideration.
With kind regards,
Dr. Vasileios Gkitakos, PhD
KETHEA* Director
Cc:
Mr. E. Kwidama, Member of the Board of Parnassia (e.kwidama@parnassiabavo.nl)
Mr. R.H.R. van Beest, Psychiatrist, Member of the Advisory Board of Parnassia
(r.vanbeest@psyqbusiness.nl)
Mr. Gert Jan Tupker, Director Brijder Verslavingszorg (GertJan.Tupker@brijder.nl)
Mrs. Els Govers, psychiatrist, regional manager addictioncare (E.Govers@brijder.nl)
Mrs. Marian Verschuure, Director Palier (m.verschuure@palier.nl)
Mr. Bas van der Hoorn, Director Care Palier (b.vanderhoorn@palier.nl)
Mrs. Ellen Rosenberg, psychologist Emiliehoeve (E.Rosenberg@Brijder.nl)
Mr. Kees van Eendenburg, Secretary Assiciation of Friends of Drug Free Programmes
(eenden@ziggo.nl)Dr. Martien Kooyman, (martienkooyman@planet.nl)
*KETHEA (Τherapy Centre for Dependent Individuals), NGO in special consultative status with the
United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), is the largest Greek network of addiction
treatment and rehabilitation services and one of the principle implementation bodies of the Greek
national strategy.