SUMMARY
Recommendations concerning the quality of services for substance abusers. Helsinki,
2002. 61p. (Handbooks of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, ISSN 1236-116X;
2002:3)
ISBN 952-00-1198-6
The consumption of alcohol in Finland has grown exceptionally fast during the last few
years and will according to the available predictions continue to grow also in the coming
years. With it the amount of damage caused by intoxicant abuse will also increase, in
proportion even more rapidly. The use of intoxicants increased in Finland during the
entire 1990s. Other substance-related damages, such as the misuse of tranquillisers and
anodynes as well as social and health-related problems due to the mixed use of intoxicants
are also unfortunately quite common.
The direction of services for substance abusers has proved to be difficult also at
local level and the total amount of costs caused by intoxicant-related damage will rise
very high if the responsibility for the care of substance abusers is increasingly laid
upon specialised health care, as has been the case during the 1990s. Social welfare and
health care services as well as special services for substance abusers that function
successfully at a basic level are a sensible and important investment from the point of
view of the clients, municipality and entire society.
The joint recommendation concerning the quality of services for substance abusers of
the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Association of Finnish Local and
Regional Authorities forms a base for high quality services for substance abusers. The
recommendations have been drawn up by the broadly based expert group appointed by the
Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (Stakes) which included
representatives of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Association of Finnish
Local and Regional Authorities, Stakes, municipal and private service producers as well as
client representatives.
The national recommendation on developing the quality of services for substance abusers
is a part of the government-approved Target and Action Plan for 2000 - 2003. The
aim of the recommendation is to support planning, decision-making, organisation,
production and development with regard to services for substance abusers. In drawing up
the recommendation the point of departure has been the idea that the prevention of damage
caused by intoxicants should be taken into consideration in all municipal decision-making.
Furthermore, the recommendations regarding the service system aim to guide and support all
substance abuse work done within the social welfare and health care services, not only in
special services for substance abusers. They concern services produced by the state,
municipalities and private enterprises or organisations.
Already in its present form, the organisation of special services for substance abusers
in particular requires social structures. This can be seen as an important possibility in
securing the quality and availability of the services. In the detailed recommendations of
the actual client work, a stand has been taken concerning the points of departure of the
substance abuse work and the necessity of strategic planning, the systematic use of the
entire service system, the wishes, rights and special needs of the client, standard of the
operational environment, dimensioning, know-how and coping of personnel, the actual
process of client work as well as the need for monitoring and evaluation.
Attention has been paid separately to special growing groups, such as the needs of
minors or women who are substance abusers and especially of mothers and families with
substance abuse problems. The demand for services for substance abusers who are immigrants
or belong to other minorities as well as those who are unfortunate in other ways is also
increasing. Included in the handbook, in addition to the recommendations, is background
information on the service system, the special characteristics of substance abuse work as
well as the principles for the proposed evaluation of the recommendations. The
implementation of the recommendations is promoted as a part of the Target and Action Plan
for Social Welfare and Health Care.
Key words: Alcohol, intoxicants, narcotics, recommendations, rehabilitation,
quality, social welfare and health care services, substance abuse work, treatment