Glenda Daniels - glenda.daniels@oxfordshireuserteam.org.uk
James House, Oxfordshire User Team, 47A
Mobile No. - 07986816955/ 01865 209111
Consultancy Programme – Training Available
OUT
Oxfordshire User Team will direct its activities to the creation of better, safer and quicker treatment for people living with serious drug problems in Oxfordshire
- Helping individual members to grow
through peer training, education and support.(informing)
- Speaking as an independent voice and
acting as a watchdog on all issues related to the care and treatment of
people with drugs problems. (campaigning)
- Organising the team to speak for each
other to agencies concerned with drug use, individually and as a group.
(advocacy)
The OUT team will seek and give assistance to similar groups elsewhere and maintain the highest standards in its work in Oxfordshire.
OVERVIEW OF OXFORDSHIRE USER TEAM
INTRODUCTION
Oxfordshire User Team (OUT) is an independent, innovative
charity working with drug users and user groups in Oxfordshire and the South
East of
ORGANISATIONAL AIMS
- Encourage user involvement in drug
treatment provision
- Promote harm reduction and self help
through peer education and support
- Provide a route into employment for
ex-offenders and the long-term unemployed
- Represent drug users in national
policy making and local decision making
- Act as a treatment watchdog in
Oxfordshire
- Share good practice and provide
ongoing support to emerging user groups
BACKGROUND
OUT was set up in 2002. It evolved from peer education sessions which proved a useful forum for conducting consultations with users on a wide number of issues that were then fed into local treatment provision and the local Drug Action Team. OUT gained charitable status in October 2003. The team currently has three full time staff (Service Coordinator, Harm Reduction Worker and Project Support Worker) and eight volunteers. OUT is Managed by the OUT Service Coordinator.
OUT ACTIVITIES
User Involvement
OUT gives input to decision making, represents the users’ voice, and conducts consultations with users, on drug related issues involving OUTat all 3 levels of User Involvement within the treatment system in Oxfordshire. OUT aims to improve drug treatment provision and related services by acting as a watchdog and consultative body. A few examples:
- OUT inputs a user perspective to
annual treatment planning and commissioning processes conducted by
Oxfordshire Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT)
- OUT is currently conducting a needs
assessment exercise on the uptake of Hepatitis B vaccinations, as an
initial stage in the development of a county-wide Oxfordshire DAAT
strategy on blood borne viruses
- In September 2004, OUT consulted with
drug users on the specifications for a new aftercare service, to be
provided by a local voluntary sector agency, for people leaving prison or
structured drug treatment
- OUT takes part in yearly reviews of
all the drug treatment services in Oxfordshire funded by D(A)AT, ensuring
that users voices are heard and that any issues that are uncovered through
in depth user consultation, are acted upon and dealt with to improve
service provision
- OUT has recently completed a project
funded by
Peer Education Workshops
OUT peer educators deliver three workshops each month in different venues throughout Oxfordshire. The aim of the workshops is to promote harm reduction messages on topics such as overdose prevention and response, and blood borne viruses. Peer education is effective in facilitating the dissemination of credible and up-to-date information through wider informal peer networks. OUT’s peer led workshops are regarded as a model of good practice by the National Treatment Agency (NTA) in the South East region.
- Monthly workshops on overdose are held
in partnership with Oxfordshire Ambulance NHS Trust and are attended by 12
drug users and/or carers. An ambulance service Training Instructor
delivers training on basic life skills, and peer educators discuss risk
factors and prevention. In the first two years of this workshop series 235
people attended the sessions. It is anticipated that over 100 will attend
during the current project year, this project has been running since 2002
(Annual project reports are available)
- As part of the wider OUTlive Hepatitis
C project fortnightly workshops are delivered by peer educators to drug
users. Participants are invited to consider preventative techniques,
testing, treatment options and healthy living. During the first year of
the Hepatitis C workshop series 201 people attended. This project has been
running since 2003(Annual project reports are available)
- OUT also offers staff training to
agencies working with drug users. OUT peer educators have delivered a
series of training sessions to
Peer Advocacy
Trained peer advocates represent users experiencing
difficulties with drug and alcohol and related services. Advocates are
supported by and seek advice, when necessary, from a local independent advocacy
service, Allied Advocacy, and a national organisation, The
OUTlive Hepatitis C project
In 2004 OUT successfully bid (in partnership with Oxfordshire DAAT) to the Department of Health for funding to enhance its existing OUTlive Hepatitis C project. The extra funding allowed OUT to:
- Develop its peer education workshops
on Hepatitis C
- Run a promotional campaign to
encourage safer injecting techniques and safe disposal of equipment
- Provide training on blood borne
viruses to pharmacists, General Practitioners, and front-line staff, and
- Create information resources for dissemination
- Train further peer educators to
deliver the OUTlive Hepatitis C workshops
The aims of this project are to raise awareness and encourage preventative techniques, encourage people at risk to present for testing, and signpost those affected by Hepatitis C to appropriate helping agencies.
Peer Support
A monthly self help group attended by a Hepatitis C Specialist Nurse and OUT volunteer with personal Hepatitis C experience is held for those affected by Hepatitis C. The group has developed a website with an email address for queries, and, along with peer support, provides information on prevention, testing and treatment.
Short Term funded projects carried out in Oxfordshire and other areas of the SE Region
OUT Criminal Justice Research Project
In 2005 OUT carried out a three-month project with
Users were invited to one-hour focus groups. The initial 30 minutes was spent conducting a questionnaire to collect views on CJ interventions- the questionnaire was put together with TVP staff members and OUT volunteers who all had experience of the criminal justice system. The second 30 minutes were spent educating users on the proposed changes withinthe CJ system coming into effect in April 2006.
OUT Manual – entitled “A Practical Guide to User Involvement and Peer Education”
This was written by OUT in December 2003 for the National Treatment Agency (NTA) to accompany a six month contract to effect better user involvement in the SE Region. OUT worked with six D(A)AT areas over a six month period. The aim was to help emerging user groups to professionalise their groups and begin to get involved in the planning and delivery of drug treatment provision in their local areas. This project led to:
OUT/NTA Contract 2004-2006
Following the success of the 6 month project detailed above, the NTA has contracted OUT to deliver training to five D(A)AT areas per year, for two years. Working for 2.5 days per week to fulfil this contract, the OUT Service Manager (Glenda Daniels) is working to assist user groups in setting up and to support existing groups, helping them gain office premises, computers and running costs to enable them to become fully involved in all areas of the drug treatment system and their local DAAT activities. This work includes offering training to group members on user involvement, explanations of the NTA, D(A)AT’s, government drug strategy, advocacy, setting up a user groups, sustaining that group and how to ensure your DAAT area carries out REAL user involvement fulfilling their obligations to involve users in the way their treatment system is run through involvement in partnership working with services and D(A)ATs.
If a whole group cannot be set up due to demographics or no users coming forward wishing to take U/I further in their area, then she will ensure all 3 levels of U/I are carried out and that users voices are being heard in the strategic level planning and evaluations of services and will gather feedback from users to take to the highest level to iron out problems that users experience within the treatment system.
OUT is also supporting members of the South East User Group Forum to create a newsletter. This will be produced and disseminated through treatment services and other agencies in the region.
Development and Distribution of Information Resources
The OUT team has produced a number of information
leaflets/booklets on overdose, safer injecting and service directories for
Oxfordshire,
OUT Volunteers
OUT Volunteers are recruited from the local community. The team is made up of current and ex-users who are encouraged to take on roles within the group and be trained to deliver OUT services, peer education workshops, advocacy, and help in running the OUT office. This enables the volunteers to work towards personal goals and to gain work experience. They receive a minimum six month work placement and are encouraged to move on to paid employment or full time education when ready. The work experience includes comprehensive training on the drug treatment system in the UK, the politics behind it, local service provision, and other training needed to work in the ‘drugs field’. Volunteers are also encouraged to enrol at local colleges to gain specific work related qualifications, computer training and any other training they express an interest in.
Volunteer Activities in OUT
Volunteers working with OUT will be involved and supported in inputting to all core activities:
- Delivering peer education sessions
- Promoting self help
- Acting as a treatment watchdog and
representing user views in decision making(user involvement)
- Providing practical advocacy for drug
users (with the support of trained advocates)
- Delivering training highlighting the
experience of the user to agency staff
- Undertaking research and needs
assessment projects
- Disseminating harm reduction
information to drug users
- Assisting with group work and training
activities
- Conducting drug user consultation
- Providing a role model to encourage
more positive lifestyles
- Providing general and administrative
assistance to the organisation
- Supporting professional staff in a
range of activities
- Undertaking a college training
schedule and other training offered, as part of their ‘volunteer
plan’ to encourage personal development
Other Time Limited projects
OUT take on ‘time limited’ research projects to give our volunteers meaningful, credible voluntary experience and to offer privileged access information to DAAT’s. OUT team members use their experience of drug use and privileged access to gain knowledge to pass onto the agency funding the project.
OUT has examples of this type of project carried out, in 2004, OUT volunteers carried out consultation with 100 crack users in Oxford City, the results of these questionnaires led the set up of a crack specific service in Oxford City.
OUT is available to carry out similar projects elsewhere in
the
Website produced by Steve Thomas
Contact details-