The Origins of Conflict in Dependent Drug Treatment: Lessons for Partnership Working

AuthorDr Samantha Weston
Pages9-26
9
THE ORIGINS OF CONFLICT IN DEPENDENT DRUG
TREATMENT: LESSONS FOR PARTNERSHIP WORKING
Dr Samantha Weston, Lecturer in Criminology, Keele University
Abstract
Although p artnership working has been consistently recommended for the treatment of
drug dependency, such working practices often remain both fractured and limited (Heath,
2010). Through the analyses of drug policy and guidance documents develop ed since the
publication of the 1998 UK Drug Strategy and interviews with practitioners from the field,
this paper seeks to identify t he possible origins of such problems. The author illustrates
how the refra ming of drug policy, as documented by Duke (2013), has resulted in the
articulation of inconsistent messages that not only provide opp ortunities for the
development of varying interpretations but may have reinforced the polarised treatmen t
ideologies observed in professionals working with dependent drug users, ac ting as a
potential barrier to the achievement of ‘collaborative advantage’ (Huxham & Vangen,
2005).
Keywords
drug policy; drug treatment; partnership; inter-professional; multi-agency
British Journal of Community Justice
©2014 Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield
ISSN 1475-0279
Vol. 12(1): 9-26
Weston
10
Introduction
Partnership working has b ecome an inescapable feature of contemporary social policy
(Heenan & Birrell, 2006) but ‘nowhere is it more apparent than in the treatment of drug
misuse’ (Heath, 2010:185). Problematic drug users rarely present with issues relating only
to addiction; multiple and complex needs, including mental health, housing and
employment, are the norm rather than the exception (Mclellen et al, 1986; Drake &
Wallach, 1989; Hartwell, 2004). I f the diversity of these needs is to be addressed it is
perhaps inevitable that drug users will require support from a range of disciplines and
agencies. Therefore, over the last 20 years policy-makers in the UK and abroad have
consistently recommended that public sector agencies c ollaborate in order to address
drug users’ needs. However, as the 2010 UK Drug Strategy (HM Government, 2010:5)
acknowledges ‘although there has been some progress in tackling drug dependence, a n
integrated app roach to support people to overcome their drug and alcohol dependence
has not been the priority’.
The aim of this paper is to explore some of the possible origins of the difficulties
associated with partnership working in the drug treatment field. In particular, this paper
shows how the reframing of UK drug policy and guidance developed since the 1998 Drug
Strategy has not only failed to adequately acknowledge the problems associated with
partnership working but may have contributed towards them.
Background
Recognition of the multi-faceted nature of problematic drug u se and calls for collaboration
are nothing new. In an attempt to shift attention away from the narrow medical model of
treatment towards a more multi-disciplinary ap proach the Advisory Council for the Misuse
of Drugs (ACMD) in 1982 suggested that:
'individuals with whom the treatment/rehabilitation system is concerned
may have various problems ari sing from the misuse of drugs… These are not
solely physical or psychological problems, but also social and environmental
problems, being concurrently psychologically dependent on some drugs and
physiologically dependent on others, and at the same time having financial
or legal problems or difficulties over housing. The response to the needs of
drug misuse therefore requires a fully-multidisciplinary approach.' (ACMD,
1982:34).
Similar recommendations continu ed to be made into the 1990s. In 1993, both the
Department of Health (DH) and Home Office identified th e need for more effective joint-
working (Drake & Wallach, 1989; R eed Report, 1993). In 1995, Tackling Drugs Together
(HM Govern ment, 1995) reinforced the partnership approach to local drug strategy and
commissioning through the creation of Dru g Action Teams (DATs), comprising
representatives from agencies such as health, probation, police and local authorities.
Similarly, numerous subsequent policy and guidance documents the 1998, 2002, 2008,
and 2010 Drug Strategies (HM Government, 1998 2002; 2008; 2010), Models of Care for

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