2.000 individuals
Every year around 2.000 individuals are admitted to treatment clinics for alcohol and drug addicts in Iceland in addition to those seeking help in outpatient units. In this group of 2.000 people, 1.606 individual patients, or 80%, were admitted to SAA Medical Clinics in 1995. The needs of these patients are evaluated at Vogur Hospital and those seeking help are then directed to the appropriate treatment venues. Thus around half the patients went on to an outpatient unit after a short stay at Vogur Hospital, but the other half continued their treatment program at the two SAA Rehabilitation Clinics, at Vik and Stadarfell.
For some patients it is sufficient to attend interviews and group therapy in outpatients units, especially if they have participated in the treatment program previously. Hundreds of SAA clients have made use of this option in 1995. Outpatient units can, under special circumstances, replace traditional treatment programs where the patients stays in an institution for the course of the program. But in most instances a stay in an outpatient ward without other treatment measures is out of the question because of the social circumstances or the medical condition of the patient. In such circumstances the outpatient ward is necessaryto ensure the success of the treatment program and patients who are treated at an outpatient ward after treatment are twice as likely to abstain from addictive substances. It is therefore necessary that most of these patients have a ready access to outpatient treatment over a period no shorter than three moths after completing the treatment program. This arrangement has been highly successful and has helped SAA to cut enormous costs. Almost all SAA lectures and therapy programs for the families of addicts take place in the outpatient units. Around one thousand individuals participated in the family therapy program in 1995. This service has been very comprehensive and has been run in conjunction with the program for addicts since 1978. Medical clinics and outpatient units therefore support each other in attaining a common goal as the one is essential to the other. The clinics and centers run by SAA, including the outpatient units, therefore work together and operate as one unit. Patients are offered versatile treatment options according to every individual´s needs and situation. Therefore treatment can consist of a single interview in the outpatient ward or involve an extended stay in the inpatient ward with support from the outpatient ward followed by a stay in a recovery houses after completing the treatment program.
Five options
In short, there are five different options for those patients who have not participated in a treatment program recently. The first option is that the patient return to his or her home after a short stay at Vogur Hospital and receive informal support from the outpatient ward according to need and requirement.
The second way is to send patients on to Stadarfell or Vik for a four-week rehabilitation program. These patients then receive support from an outpatient ward for a few weeks.
The third possibility is to send relapse-prone male patients to Stadarfell for a special four-week treatment program. These patients then receive support from the outpatient ward over a period of one year.
The fourth choice is to send women seeking treatment to the Vik Rehabilitation Center for a special four-week program for women. They also receiver support from the outpatient ward for a year after completing the program. A new and powerful outpatient treatment program was established in 1995. This program can be considered the fifth and final treatment option after the patients complete the treatment program at Vogur Hospital. This treatment program is run from an outpatient ward in Reykjavík and is an ideal option for those who are in good health and live in favorable social conditions. Patients participate in the program four evenings every week for the first month, then once every week over a period of three months.
Halfway-houses
SAA started a cohabitation center (halfway house) for women in1995. This arrangement allows the women to take children with them to the cohabitation center. Prior to this, SAA has been operation a halfway-house for men for two years. SAA has also purchased a house in Akureyri in Northern-Iceland, where the organization now runs a cohabitation center for recovering alcoholics (men).
The operation of these cohabitation centers is a relatively new facet of SAA operations. The three cohabitation centers are capable of housing up to 60 individuals. SAA supplies the actual properties and pays all maintenance costs involved. The patients themselves, on the other hand, pay the actual operating costs of the SAA Cohabitation Centers themselves. However, SAA has borne some of the operating losses ot the cohabitation centers. This social service for patients who have completed treatment has been a decisive factor in attaining better restults and is already an important and necessary part of SAA activities.