Plans to Reform Victorian Drug and Alcohol Services

A new plan for delivering better drug and alcohol services has been released by the Victorian Government.

Minister for Community Services Mary Wooldridge said the reform will address system weaknesses highlighted in a number of reviews, including a report last year by the Victorian Auditor General's Office.

“Consistently the message was that the current system is difficult to get into and confusing to navigate for clients,” Wooldridge said.

“At the moment there are over 20 different service types delivered by over 100 different agencies, which has made the system fragmented, rigid and complex.”

The Government says the reform priorities are to:

• Build models of care that are focused on recovery and family inclusion, particularly taking into account the needs of the children of clients
• Streamline treatment programs from over 20 different types down to six, and redevelop the funding model so that services are better able to provide individualised responses
• Develop consistent, standardised assessment and needs identification to achieve a more appropriate and comprehensive response for clients
• Foster more effective treatment pathways at the local level which are better connected into a full range of services; and
• Build a workforce that recognises the current skills and expertise of employees in the sector and develops good clinical, relationship and care-coordination skills

The new plan ‘New directions for alcohol and drug treatment services’ was outlined by the Minister recently at a conference in Melbourne and was attended by representatives from drug and alcohol treatment organisations.