Staff from the Essex Specialist Treatment and Recovery Service (STaRS) work alongside Open Road to hold the fortnightly at The Nest in Colchester, a supported accommodation unit provided by Next Chapter, a charity supporting women to lead lives free from domestic and substance abuse.
The new clinic, which opened on 31 March, offers one-to-one support and advice, counselling and relapse prevention from addictive substances such as alcohol, heroin, and crack cocaine.
It is staffed by female healthcare professionals wherever possible and builds on a female-only community clinic recently opened by Essex STaRs in Colchester.
Gareth Thomason, Essex STaRs team manager in north east Essex, said: “Feedback from the women’s clinic has been overwhelmingly positive. Many of the women who use the clinic have experiences of domestic abuse, and they have told us that they feel safer in a separate, female-only location.
“Holding a clinic within the supported accommodation means women who have escaped domestic abuse don’t have to leave in order to travel to a community clinic.”
Sally Harrington, Director of Adult Services and Deputy CEO at Next Chapter said: “We feel very fortunate to be able to host an in house clinic for our residents. Not only does this provide a safe and secure environment for our women who are all domestic abuse victims, it also enhances the partnership working between ourselves, Open Road and STaRS which really enhances the joint working approach for the benefit of all.”
In addition to more tailored support for women, the north east Essex STaRS team is planning to develop new clinics to provide drug and alcohol support for people with mental health issues, and experiencing homelessness.
Gareth said: “We hope to make it as easy as possible for people using services to speak to someone from our team and mental health or homelessness services if they need to.”
Anyone with substance misuse issues in Essex can access support via Open Road, who work alongside Essex STaRS. People can be referred by healthcare professionals or call or walk in to their local centre to be assessed and supported. Find out more at www.openroad.org.uk.