NUCF Minutes 12/11/2015

Date: 12/11/2015 

Location: Plummer Court 

Chair:  

Apologises: None 

Update on Client Advisory Groups and Events 

Trading Places – Usual update given to new members as to what Trading Places is. No issues on Sunday 37 people through the doors. Christmas party to be on Sunday 20th December.  

Monday and Wednesday Plummer Court – Good feedback from the clients and staff. Doctors coming into the day centre were encouraging clients to engage with the group and with the NUCF. Feedback from student doctor that he and his colleagues could benefit from session around D+A like we delivered in the Universities – Andy to speak to student doctor at Plummer. Times for the two groups were re communicated – Monday 11.00-1.00 and Wednesday 1.00-3.00. 

Recovery Clinic – Terry explained the recovery clinic and the fact that there are virtually no clients engaging with it. Clients are waiting on the ground floor when they should be sitting in the 1st floor waiting room. Also question around whether staff are helping the clients to engage with the forum members in the clinic. Andy to speak to Jan and feedback. 

Continuing Care – Andy gave the group an update on the session he had delivered to the continuing care group at Oaktrees. The session was around recovery in the community specifically explaining the NUCF and inviting people to engage. 3 of the con-care group attended the forum.   

Discussion on Naloxone 

Andy explained what Naloxone is and the effects of administering it. Also ran through the history of Naloxone and the change in legislation that have allowed for it to now be available in Newcastle. What the roll out would look like, who would have access to the Naloxone and what w3ould be involved in the training. 

The engagement is for any prisoner on any issue not just drugs and alcohol and is embedded in 20 prisons nationwide. For volunteers to be involved User Voice asks for them to currently be on probation themselves or to have been on probation in the last 2 years.  

The funding for the work comes from contracts into the prisons, the prisons value the work done and so are willing to pay for it.  

Questions for discussion: 

Some staff feel worried this could increase drug use – could it?  

It could increase drug use by enabling people to use then rely on naloxone to save them. It could create that feeling of being invincible and that Naloxone is the magic cure/antidote. 

Naloxone removes the effects but not the drugs in the system so if someone over doses, receives Naloxone and uses again they could be unaware of how much is still in their system and the effects could be even worse. 

May encourage people not to access services at all. Why do we need to go into treatment when we can use and then use Naloxone if I OD? 

Some staff feel worried that when people come round, they might be aggressive or angry or violent due to the perception that staff have put them into withdrawal - ??  

There will need to be safeguards in place to protect staff, what are in place now? Are staff fully trained in managing conflict/aggression? 

Will the police be called at the same time as paramedics? 

What do the paramedics do and can we learn from them as they have more experience? 

At the end of the day this will save people’s lives so anyone who has access to Naloxone has a moral obligation to administer it. 

Clients won’t go to Plummer court to get the naloxone  

Not seen as an issue  

Who needs to know about this scheme?  

All Health Care professionals, the drug using population, families and carers, the recovery community including volunteers, mutual aid groups.  

Everyone! Face to face communications would be best backed up by posters, leaflets and as much information as possible. 

Service User Charter and Responsibilities 

As a group we revisited and discussed the charter and the responsibilities. The forum agreed with the latest additions and were happy to sign off the charter to displayed in services.  

AOB 

Joint NUCF Christmas party is now on 17/12/2015 at St John’s Church, Grainger Street. 

Terry came back from rehab and then had to wait 2 weeks before he could attend the Recovery Centre. Can services be aware of people who are due to return to the area and have re-integration already set up? Andy to investigate. 

Next NUCF 26/11/2015  

Guest speaker: To be confirmed, Location: Plummer Court 

Chair: Chris