DDN/Alliance service user involvement conference

[admin]

The first DDN/Alliance service user involvement conference is taking place in January. This one-day event will bring together service users, politicians, DAT co-ordinators and treatment providers to make sure user involvement stays at the heart of drug treatment and policy. Speakers include service users from all over the country, Paul Hayes from the NTA and a Home Office minister (Vernon Coaker invited). The event will be interactive and produce a consensus statement to make sure essential service user issues are not lost in the turbulence of new drug strategy. This is an essential event for service users, DAT co-ordinators, service providers, and all those involved in service users' welfare.
Plus! Evening benefit gig featuring The Nightingales and special guests (to be announced) will raise funds for The Alliance - e: info@cjwellings.com. Please go to http://www.drinkanddrugs.net/Events/ConfBrochure_Booking05.pdf for conference brochure and booking form.

[February]

How can users attend with travel, accommodation and conference fees?

[admin]

Hi February,

You will need to contact DDN (who are running the administrative side of things) to discuss possibilities.  Information on how to get in contact with them is available on the brochure.  I know that they are committed to trying to find ways for people who do not have DAT support to attend the event.
 
Regards,

Ursula

[Jim]

wasn't the National Drug Treatment Conference supposed to have this remit.   It always used to be referred to as the alliance conference

[simon]

Pester your DAT/PCT share rooms if you can to keep costs low I know a Nurse who had a campervan so he saved on Hotel costs.
Some conferences have reduced fees for service user reps no doubt some may have some free places.
I often have the same problems but as a Nurse I can plead poverty to drug companies who are sometimes helpful but they wouldn't be able to sponsor service users I think.

[dusty]

wasn't the National Drug Treatment Conference supposed to have this remit.   It always used to be referred to as the alliance conference

Hi Jim - ypu're right in that the NDTC was always referred to as the Alliance conference, but as I understood it the remit was always about highlighting best practice and innovation within the wider drug treatment field and not the strategic importance and future direction of user involvement. For years there have been requests from activists to have a national conference devised and run by users for users, and we thought it was a perfect time to host such an event and try and produce national consensus endorsing this essential component of drug policy as the Government drug strategy consultation document and current NTA Business plan appear to have airbrushed the phrase out of existence. Thankfully DDN agreed with us.

We feel that user activists need an event that values themand keeps them politicised, energised and focused in a time of political antipathy and financial uncertainty, and as inspiring as the NDTC can be (and as proud as we remain to have our name associated with it), it has never been about doing that.   

Cheers

Daren

[steve]

maybe at the conference you can come up with ideas on how to embarrass doctors{i know not all}into giving methadone patients the same treatment and service they give the rest of their patients instead of believing the hype which they {i know not all}contribute to.

[Jim]

in my experience embarrassing doctors does not usually work, it just makes them angry and defensive.  Also to be fair I have come across as many examples of bad attitudes from specialist staff as I have from doctors.  And I would say the attitude of doctors with an interest in this field is, on average, better than specialist drug workers.  Have you ever been the the RCGP annual conference, a conference for 700 people, mostly GPs who are fantastically keeen and with agreat atttitude. Also one of the best conferences for user/patient attendance

[steve]

no i haven't Jim but i took my name off the sick because getting a sick note meant i had to see my doctor or one of his colleagues who seemed to go out of his way to point out that being on a meth script means I'm still a drug addict and when going to India felt he had to tell me not to party to hard on the cheap drugs of cause i can only comment on my own experiences here in good old rural wales

[Jim]

Hi Steve
I'm sorry you've had such a negative experience, and I was not trying to stand up for all doctors. I did qualify what I said by using the term 'doctors with an interest'.  In my experience doctors without an interest have little knowledge of this field and their practice can often be informed by personal beliefs and out of date medical perceptions.   

[steve]

James apology accepted

[Tony.B.]

Hi Steve

I have a lot of empathy esp Re the rural situation and the service you seem to rec in Wales can be a real lottery.

That said i don't think Jim is, or should be expected to, apologise for the whole GP community.

He also makes a valid distinction between GPs and GPs with Special Interest ( GPwSI pronounced Gypsie ). the latter having specialist training and continued professional developmaent in the field of problematic substance use and the treatment of pll suffering in this way. These are the converted and thank the heavans for them.

Unfortunately i totally empathise with you Steve, having in the past 'been at the mercy' of a GP belonging to a 'non prescribing practice'. you know the sort of stuff mate.....'Oh my partners just will not put up with me treating the likes of you'. etc etc.

I hope that this conference will be so different from most. One where service users/members will begin to truly influence the strategy of the future. You never know we may have a bit of fun too.

We need to encourage more GPs to take on this special interest to improve the lot of ppl in the future. So whilst i understand, empathise and have too been on the wrong end of poor primary care provision it is paramount that we do not make all GPs pay for their narrowminded colleagues, especially those attending such events.

My Best

Tony B





 

[mikey]

I could point out that I deal with GPs who are really quite special and some who are atrocious and give examples of those who flatly refuse to assist in shared care or those who will go out of their way to personally drive miles and then hand deliver scripts during their lunchtimes to pharmacies to recover from situations brought about because of the service users own errors.
But I think the better argument is ...

"When an argument for being treated as individuals rather than as a group all tarred with the same brush itself uses generalisations such as declaring all of another group to always treat them in this unfair way, then the whole thing becomes pointless and without meaning since it is merely a case of the pot calling the kettle black".

and you can quote me on that.

[bp]

Mikey

I might well quote you on that; well said.

B

[simon]

I could point out that I deal with GPs who are really quite special and some who are atrocious and give examples of those who flatly refuse to assist in shared care or those who will go out of their way to personally drive miles and then hand deliver scripts during their lunchtimes to pharmacies to recover from situations brought about because of the service users own errors.
But I think the better argument is ...

"When an argument for being treated as individuals rather than as a group all tarred with the same brush itself uses generalisations such as declaring all of another group to always treat them in this unfair way, then the whole thing becomes pointless and without meaning since it is merely a case of the pot calling the kettle black".

and you can quote me on that.

Mikey, Well said!