Agenzija Sedqa yesterday celebrated 12 years of prevention programmes and care services in the field of substance abuse. 26 June is also the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.
On this occasion, President Edward Fenech Adami paid a visit Sedqa’s residential rehabilitation centre, Komunita’ Santa Marija, where he attended a discussion about Sedqa’s operations and the latest trends in substance abuse, and also met with members of staff and clients of the drugs and alcohol residential programmes.
Speaking during this visit, Joe Gerada, chief executive officer of the Foundation for Social Welfare Services, said that Sedqa will be focusing more on the younger generation, namely by accentuating the public campaigns, consolidating the prevention programmes in schools and dealing with juvenile delinquency in a wider and more comprehensive way than before.
Furthermore, Jean-Claude Cardona, reiterated that Sedqa will be moving its prevention services to a central place in order to make it more accessible to children and youths while the Agency together with Agenzija Appogg will be introducing a specific programme for youths.
Set up in June 1994, Sedqa’s ultimate aim is to offer health promotion, prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation services to persons with drug, alcohol, and/or gambling problems, and to their families.
Some 800 individuals per day made use of the services offered at sedqa’s Detox Centre in 2005.
Other services offered by the Agency to persons with drug-related problems include the community services, with over 500 clients making use of this service in 2005; 166 started the residential detoxification programme at Dar Impenn, and 69 of these moved on to residential treatment at Komunita’ Santa Marija, during the same year.
Sedqa offers a wide spectrum of services, both to the individual having a substance abuse problem, and also support to the family members/significant others.
This is the holistic aspect of the services provided by the Agency, including psychological services and family therapy among others.
Support to family members and significant others is offered at all stages and in various forms, particularly to children of service users since they often require more support and assistance, as the latter would be legally responsible for their underage children but often feel helpless and not in a position to control the situation.
A sculpture of the Sedqa logo, done by one of the service users currently undergoing treatment, was presented to Dr Fenech Adami.
For further information on the services offered by Agenzija Sedqa, one can access the website www.sedqa.gov.mt or the website of the Ministry for Family and Social Solidarity, www.mfss.gov.mt.