On Tuesday 17th January, the Newport Alcohol Service held their second volunteer evening.

The evening was lead lead by Lisa Barnfield and Jim Henton who covered a case note workshop and supervision training.

The evening proved to be a success and they would both like to thank all those who attended.

Monmouthshire and Torfaen Alcohol Service held a Christmas CoCo party for clients in Abergavenny on 14th December.  There was fantastic attendance by clients from both counties, so a big thank you to all staff for their efforts in making this a successful afternoon.  A special thanks to Steve for arranging most of the entertainment and Sally and Sarah for sorting the food.

CoCo Groups (Coffee and Company) start back across Monmouthsire and Torfaen in the New Year.  These groups are open to current, past and future clients who wish to meet up for peer support, find out more of the service we offer or just to get out of the cold with a nice cuppa!  

Please ring 01291 635355 if you would like dates and times/more info.  

If you wish to contact any of our Alcohol Services during the Christmas period, please note the following opening times:

The Lighthouse (Pontypool) will be closed until the new year

The Junction (Chepstow) is open Wednesday- Friday  09:15-17:00  Tel:  01291 635355

Pentonville (Newport) is open Thursday  09:00- 17:00 and Friday 09:00- 16:00  Tel:  01633 252045

On 13th December, the Newport Basement team hosted a carol service led by St Briavels People's Choir.  The choir, led by Board member Martin Pagnamenta, sang a selection of carols both old and new.  Staff and service users were encouraged to join in.

The successful afternoon finished with tea and mince pies for the choir, before they made their way back to the Forest of Dean.

In December 1991 the first computerised on-site methadone dispensing system in the UK went live.  John Lipscomb and Ulrich Kohler of Kaleidoscope, who had painstakingly put the system together, switched it on with considerable trepidation as Home Office inspectors looked on.  They would determine if we would be given a licence for this controversial approach to dispensing.  The positive role the Home Office played was crucial for us due to hositility from some other bodies at the time.

We opted for computerised on site dispensing due to the numbers who came every day - about 300 from all over South London.  Adele Blakebrough went with colleagues to New York to look at systems there, seeking out a software company so we could run such a system.

John Lipscomb is a keen advocate of computerised dispensing, saying that the main point of computerised systems is to maximise interaction with a client and to integrate medical and care plans.  He is surprised that there are not more agencies offering on-site systems in the UK.  When you manually dispense methadone, all your concentration is on the transfer of the medication from the bottle to the cup.  When you dispense using a computerised system you have time to meet the client eye to eye.  The importance of such programmes is to enhance the clients' treatment experience.  A computerised system is safer, more accurate, provides better time with the client and proper records where there is information sharing.  

On-site dispensing means workers can deal with a client's crisis immediately.  A good computerised dispensing system means key workers and nurses share information and case management is properly integrated.

John also says that having worked for over 20 years in this field, he recognises that a drug service needs to offer medication but that is just a small part of care.  He believes care must also include housing, education, training, employment opportunity, counselling, spirituality and, above all, human interaction.