THE Opposition will move a motion in the Legislative Assembly today (December 2) calling for better integration of the ACT’s drug and alcohol rehabilitation system with the acute mental health system.
Canberra Liberals health spokesperson Giulia Jones said many of the people admitted to the acute mental health system are suffering from both a drug and alcohol addition.
“The comorbid drug and alcohol issue is not dealt with in our adult mental health system; meaning that, upon release, patients are susceptible to relapsing into substance abuse,” Mrs Jones said.
“My motion is calling for an integration of drug and alcohol rehabilitation into our adult mental health system so that both conditions can be simultaneously treated.”
Ms Jones said there is often a six or more week gap between discharge from an acute mental health service and admission into a drug rehabilitation program.
“People admitted into mental health services lose their place in the queue for drug and alcohol rehabilitation; the transition from one service to the other service should be seamless,” Ms Jones said.
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