About Us

 

Background

In 2019, the Government launched 12 Initiatives aimed at tackling drug and alcohol misuse around the country. The Community Alcohol Detox Project was one of these 12 Initiatives aimed at improving access to Community Alcohol Detox for individuals in specific South Dublin areas. These areas included: Ballyfermot, The South Inner City, Dublin 12, and The Canal Communities.

Community Response a service providing support to individuals around alcohol in Dublin South Inner City were responsible for the roll out of this project.

Community Alcohol Detox is a non-residential treatment option where a GP prescribes medication to support someone to manage withdrawal symptoms as they start to cut down in combination with community support in the form of key-working, groups, or counselling to support them in the process. Individuals generally access Community Detox through their GP and get referred/self-refer to community supports.

Make the Change: An Alcohol Reduction Resource

Part of this project involved speaking with service users to identity their experiences of accessing supports for alcohol. We also spoke with professionals to find out their experiences of providing supports around alcohol. As we began speaking with individuals and professionals in the community we began to notice that there was a huge lack of awareness of what type of supports were available for alcohol within the local communities and people did not always know how to go about accessing these supports.

It was as a result of this feedback that we developed Make the Change: An Alcohol Reduction Resource. Make the Change recognises that not everyone looking to explore their relationship with alcohol is seeking residential treatment. This website has been designed to provide information on the range of options available for individuals and their families who are looking for support around alcohol. We want to provide specific information on where and how to access these supports in specific South Dublin Areas.

We recognise that some individuals will go to their GP or local Primary Care Centre or hospital around their alcohol use. Make the Change also aims to provide information to professionals who are supporting individuals to access support by providing information on where and how to access the supports available in the local communities.

We are committed to ensuring that anyone seeking support around alcohol should be made aware of the range of support options available and be offered information on where and how to access these supports. Community Response are the organisation who will maintain this vision through the up-keep and promotion of all Make the Change resources.

For more information contact Community Response at info@communityresponse.ie or call 01 454 9772