UK - Scots on target with treatment time

[witchychick]

Scots on target:


Waiting time targets for drug treatment have been introduced in Scotland for the first time. Faster access to treatment for drug misusers is one of the new targets included in the latest NHS Scotland performance management targets.

The 29 HEAT (health improvement, efficiency, access, treatment) targets for 2009-10 are designed to set priorities and focus NHS boards and others on delivering better and more appropriate care, says the government. ‘We know that treatment works – between a quarter and a third of drug users entering treatment reach long-term sustained abstinence,’ said community safety minister Fergus Ewing. ‘For many drug users access to treatment is an essential part of their road to recovery. Where drug users are motivated and wish to seek recovery, we must be on hand to help them do that as quickly as possible.’


The Scottish Drugs Forum, which has long expressed concerns about long waiting times in parts of the country, said the announcement was ‘excellent news’. ‘Setting a target will ensure that we move to greater consistency of service access across Scotland,’ said director David Liddell. ‘However, treatment agencies also need to be assisted in improving the quality of their services so that people are given the best help to enable to recover from drug dependency.’


http://www.drinkanddrugs.net/news.html

( hope i did this right )