Addiction in Australia: Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre

This report discusses the problem of addiction in Australia and analyses the Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre in Richmond, Melbourne. It also suggests policies and procedures necessary to control the problem of drug addiction in the country.

Running head: CONTECTS OF ADDICTION
Contects of Addiction
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary:
One of the most serious issues that Australia is facing in the current times is the
problem of addiction. It is because of addiction that people are becoming dependent on
products that are causing them to rely on them very much. It is said that every year, more
than 6,000 people die in Australia due to the reasons of Alcohol abuse and drug abuse. This
report aims to look at the organisations that provide drug and alcohol abuse service to those
who need such services in Australia.

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Discussion..................................................................................................................................3
Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre................................................................................4
Organisational Background................................................................................................4
Workings............................................................................................................................4
Interplay between the Individual, the drugs and the environment.........................................6
Review Policies or procedures in relation to Substance Abuse in Diverse Populations........7
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................8
Reference List............................................................................................................................9

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Introduction
Australia is one of those countries of the world where the level of alcohol and drug
addiction is at an all-time high. People were generally getting addicted owing to the fact that
drugs and alcohol were once legal in the country. This made the level of addiction to drugs,
alcohol and other substances increasing on a large scale in the country. It has been estimated
that around 6,000 people die almost every year due to alcohol and drug consumption. Even
teenagers and children are indulging themselves in using drugs nowadays which is affecting
their education and their social life as well. The Australian government has been taking steps
to make sure that the drug and alcohol addiction in the country is controlled so that it is not
harmful for the future generations of the country. Drug and alcohol addiction can prove to be
fatal for the future generation as it might stop them from growing up healthy and making
contributions to the society. Therefore, steps must be taken to control the use of drugs in the
society. The purpose of this report is to have a look at the addiction problem affecting
Australia, analyse the organisation looking to provide help to victims of addiction as well as
suggest the policies and procedures necessary to control the problem of drug addiction in the
country.
Discussion
Australia in the current times, is severely facing the problems of drugs and alcohol
abuse among its people. As stated by Connor (2015), every year, more than 6,000 people die
in Australia due to such substance abuses in the country. As stated by Livingston (2015),
people generally tend to overlook the dangers of alcohol and drug addiction on the grounds of
its legality in the country which ultimately can turn fatal for them. According to the World
Health Organisation (WHO), Australia is said to be the 20th drunkest nation of the world.
Various organisations are, however present which provide services to people who need such
help (Connor 2015). These organisations are trying their level best to provide different kinds

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of help to people who depend on drugs and alcohol addiction in their daily life. One such
organisation is the Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre in Richmond in the suburbs area
of Melbourne.
Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre
Organisational Background
The Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre is one of the alcohol and other drug
addiction organisations which can be found in the inner Melbourne suburbs of Richmond.
The organisation provides clinical treatment to alcohol and drug abuse patients by following
the medical procedure of treatment. As stated by Rowland (2017), the organisation provides
various methods in their treatment of the patients which includes group therapy, counselling
the patients face to face, counselling through telephones as well as counselling. The
organization has been providing healthcare services in the area for a couple of years now.
Apart from this, they also provide specialist consultancy services and pharmacotherapy
programmes to special patients who needs such services. The company has strong ethics
which focuses on providing the best possible treatment to the patients who suffer from
addiction using the best ethical principles. It is the belief of the company that patients should
come out of addiction problems and live a healthy life.
Workings
Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre is dedicated to providing the best possible
treatment to the patients who needs emergency services. They offer both primary and
secondary forms to the treatment to the patients like counselling, case management and other
health care services. It has been said that patients more prefer Turning Point Alcohol and
Drug Centre as they have a number of physicians, general practitioners, psychologists as well
as nurses present in the centre at all times. They not only help individuals suffering from
addictions of drugs or alcohol but also helps people suffering from gambling addiction. They

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pay attention to the problems of the individuals and try to treat them by the best means
available to them.
When the organisation hears about a particular patient and his/her problems, they
appoint various experts available to them who try to help the patients by utilizing various
means such as help the patients during the counselling, provide helpful treatment services that
would allow the patients to be cured of addiction. The organization finds out the various ways
by which it can help these patients to overcome these problems so that they can lead a happy
and healthy lifestyle for themselves and their families. As stated by Fry (2015), these
strategies can help an individual to overcome their addiction and live a healthy life. Apart
from these above-mentioned services, they educate their patients on how to live a healthy life
free from drug, alcohol and other forms of addiction for them. Turning Point has made it their
mission to provide the best services available to the countrymen who are suffering from
addiction. It is the belief of the organisation that not a single patient should be suffering from
addiction problems.
The organisation has a number of doctors, psychiatrists and consultants present who
are always ready to listen to the patients and help them with their problems.
Meeting the needs of specific diverse group of population
Few of these diverse population includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island People
(ATSI), CALD, youth and old people. Turning Point has introduced various strategies so that
they can come together to meet the demands and help various target audiences who need help
with their addiction problems. They have started providing free clinic centres so that victims
of addiction problems feel more interested in enlisting themselves under their care with their
problems. Another strategy that the organisation has adapted include keeping the prices of the
treatment services as low as possible. These strategies would help the patients to feel more

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comfortable in sharing their problems with the doctors and consultants who are present in the
clinics (Fry 2017).
It is the aim of the organisation to make sure that the patients get completely cured of
the problems of addiction which would help them to live a happy and healthy life. This would
be helpful to both the patients as well as their friends and families.
Interplay between the Individual, the drugs and the environment
As stated by Lancaster, Duke and Ritter (2016), when an individual start getting
addicted to alcohol or drugs or any other substances, it is primarily because of a few sources.
One of the major sources that forces an individual gets addicted to alcohol and drugs is
because of the fact that he/she is stressed out. As an individual is stressed out, he/she needs
something for support for which he starts using drugs or alcohol. All these problems faced by
the individuals might lead him to becoming addicted on the substances daily. An individual
might also use drugs for other effects such as concentration for studies during the exams, or
for getting sleep.
The Environment also plays an essential role that leads to individuals getting addicted
to drugs and alcohol. According to Van Wormer and Davis (2018), the Environment pays an
important role in determining whether the individual will become addicted to drugs or
alcohol or not. Various social determinants of health like inequalities of income, housing,
sanitation and health can affect people in the way that their price will be increased for people
earning low amount. Because of this, young people will be exposed to smoking cigarettes and
drinking alcohol from a very young age whose consequences can include HIV/AIDS,
Hepatitis C, Homicide or Incarceration.
In addition to this, there are other factors in the environment which causes an
individual to become victims of addiction. These include trauma and stress. As identified by

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Adverse Childhood Studies (ACE), people depending on alcohol and drugs are subject to
childhood trauma which includes physical, sexual and emotional abuse. The Australian Early
Development Census (AEDC), is responsible for nationwide data collection among children
beginning from the time when children first start attending schools in the fields of physical
health and well-being, social competence, language and cognitive skills and emotional
maturity. In a study conducted in 2015, it was found socioeconomic status can affect a child’s
development and much of the aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were not
considered to be developmentally vulnerable with more than 42.1% vulnerable in all
domains. From the findings, it was concluded that it is mainly children with low socio
economic backgrounds who are dependent on drugs, alcohol and other forms of addiction.
Review Policies or procedures in relation to Substance Abuse in Diverse
Populations
Since the addiction problem in Australia is at an all-time high, The Australian
Government has reviewed various policies and regulations in the country with respect to the
diverse population. Few of these diverse population includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Island People (ATSI), CALD, youth and old people. The Registered Nurses National
Practice Standard involves nurses working with the Aboriginals and Torres Strait Island
people to improve their living conditions to make sure that they refrain from addiction to
drugs and alcohol. These nurse s should also regularly check on these natives to make sure
that they can enjoy a healthy life style. Activities of the ATSI includes delivering their
services in a culturally appropriate and respectful manner which includes consulting with the
health workers on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people. According to Marel, Mills
and Kingston (2016), other policies for diverse populations include forensic and criminal
justice clients who should be aware about the judgements that they make, understand what
factors contribute to people becoming addicts and to be aware of the treatment methods

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available for this problem (Slade 2016). In the case of youth, the government must have
knowledge of child protection legislation within their territory, they must know the difference
between treating children and adults. CALD includes respecting cultural diversity and to
actively participate with community agencies providing support to the individuals from
CALD background. For the older people, the government must provide care services in
collaboration with other care providers to make sure that they do not become addicted
Thus, it can be concluded that by following these policies, the government can keep
the problem of addiction at a control.
Conclusion
Addiction is a serious problem the world is currently facing. It is present not just in
Australia only but also in several other major countries of the world. Addiction is a serious
issue that needs to be controlled as soon as possible. The Governments of the world must
make attempts to improve their strategies to make sure that the people of Australia are
keeping themselves free of addiction. It should be expected of them to make strict laws for
keeping the country addiction free. They must make various rules and regulations as well as
policies to make sure that the people of the country are abiding by these rules and regulations
and anybody found to be in possession of drugs should be severely punished. Apart from
these, steps should be taken to make sure that the victims of addiction receive proper
treatment so that they can overcome the problem of addiction and can live a happy and
healthy life. These people needed to be treated with care so that they are able to overcome
their problems of addiction easily. Kids and teenagers must be checked regularly to make
sure that they have the right kinds of friends in schools and colleges. Only then, can the
problem of addiction be brought into control successfully by the government otherwise they
can prove to be dangerous for the future generation of the country.

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