Drug and Alcohol Recovery and Treatment New England Northwest is one step closer to achieving its dream of having a dedicated detoxification centre in Tamworth after Council voted unanimously to write a letter supporting turning into an alcohol and other drug detox facility.
The support Council offers will involve Council writing to the NSW Premier, NSW Minister for Health, and local State Member, Kevin Anderson to advocate for the repurposing of the NSW Health facility, who has already spoken in Parliament about the need for DART’s plan to be fulfilled.
Addressing the Council, Uniting Pastor and DART member Geoff Flynn, repurposing old Banksia House is a unique opportunity “that makes good economic sense to use Banksia House, which is now becoming surplus to New South Wales Health, as a suitable detox centre, and presented a rare opportunity to help meet the addiction treatment needs of the region.
“It’s in the hospital precinct, and it is a residential accommodation unit,” Flynn said.
“If we don’t have something shown ready and there before the Health Minister, it will be repurposed for something else, or perhaps sold off, and the money will go into general revenue.”
While the new mental health facility attached to Tamworth Hospital is well on its way to completion, no plans for what would happen to the old Banksia House building have been floated yet, but DART says that a detox centre offers a chance to keep a valuable asset in community hands while offering a much-needed service.
The motion was put forward by Councillors Ryan Brooke and Charles Impey.
“Members of DART,” Brooke said, “have been making approaches to local politicians, both councillors and our local member.”
“[Kevin Anderson] is supportive of it, and after they made representations to Council, myself and Charles Impey, who’s been a long-time supporter of it, we figured it would be a good initiative for Council to put it up.”
While TRC supports DART’s plan, the final decision will be held by Hunter New England Health, which both owns Banksia House and would be responsible for delivering treatment.
“It’s a question for Hunter New England health and the State government,” Brooke said, saying that now represents the ideal to start to lobby for Banksia being repurposed as the new Mental Health unit comes online and as Banksia is deprecated.
Detoxification services desperately needed in Tamworth
DART NENW has been calling for a dedicated facility in Tamworth for nearly four years, and for Tamworth Aboriginal Medical Service Case Manager Sandy Hawley, last night’s decision represented a step forward.
“We’re really happy about it,” Hawley told New England Times after the vote.
“It’s important we have Council behind us.”
In her position as both a case manager and member of DART, Hawley said that the demand is there, and would fill a gap in services in New England, and especially in Tamworth.
“We’ve got a jail, but we don’t have a detox or a rehab in our area,” Hawley said.
“When you’ve got a high percentage of criminality, which is driven by drugs and alcohol, that, in itself, tells a story.”
At the moment, Hawley says, it’s not easy for people seeking treatment to find it when they need it – and that it’s vital that as soon as those suffering from addiction seek help they get it.
“If you’re lucky, you might get a bed at Armidale,” Hawley says.
“Quite often it’s a six to twelve month wait for rehabs and detox, and it’s wherever you can get them in.
“There’s no guarantee, and that’s the worrying thing, because if you have someone rock up to get help from you, they want to get in now.
“They’ve made a decision, and they want it now, and if you can’t offer that now, it means that they go back out and then they start their cycle again.”
Currently, the services offered to addiction sufferers in Tamworth are “soft” services that aim to minimise the harms caused by addiction, like financial or domestic violence counselling, which Hawley says are still important, but not treating addiction directly, and for that, Tamworth residents often have to leave the region.
This deprives patients, Hawleys says, of the vital social and family support if they’re taken off-country.
Hawley has spoken with NSW Health Minister Ryan Park’s policy advisor about the need for detox services in Tamworth, making the point it’s about “access and equity.”
If completed, a Tamworth detox facility would be one of the rare detox facilities west of the Great Dividing Range.
“Just because we live in a rural setting, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have access to those facilities.”
The support from Council is a small step forward, but Hawley and DART are still calling on further community support by circulating a petition, which would force the proposal to be debated in State Parliament.
A copy of the petition to sign can be found at TAMS on Peel street, or for anyone who’d like a copy to distribute can contact DART via their Facebook page or emailing dartnenw@gmail.com.
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