Supporting young people to live free from drug and alcohol harm
ResetLife Youth is a free intensive outpatient Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) care program empowering people aged 11 to 25 years, to continue to live in their homes while receiving holistic treatment.
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Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) use can significantly impact a person’s quality of life, extending to their family, social connections and the community. It is estimated that approximately 40,000 Victorians receive treatment for addiction to alcohol and drugs each year. Wait times for AOD services across Victoria can be lengthy, with an average of 18 days to access complex counselling, 19 days for entry into day rehabilitation and 48 days to access residential withdrawal services.
Across south east Melbourne, levels of harmful alcohol consumption and illicit drug use mirror the Victorian average, however council areas such as Casey, Frankston and Port Phillip have been identified as ‘hot spots’ for higher rates of AOD dependence. Additionally, AOD misuse is a rising concern among young people living in south east Melbourne.
An in-community approach
Responding to this need, SEMPHN commissioned
ResetLife Youth – a free Intensive Outpatient Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) treatment program for young people aged 11 to 25 years. Delivered by Windana in Moorabbin and Frankston, the program structure is flexible so that young people can continue to live in their homes while receiving holistic treatment that’s adapted to their needs; whether they require early intervention, are experimenting with alcohol or other drugs, or have developed a mild, moderate, or severe substance use disorder.
Over sixteen weeks, participants attend three group sessions a week where they work on their early recovery skills, relapse prevention and social support groups. Family education and individual sessions are also provided. At the completion of sixteen weeks, graduate participants have access to a 36-week period of continuing care that supports them to live free of drug and alcohol harm. As part of this ongoing support, young people can attend social support activities that are run by peer workers.
What makes this program particularly unique is the Youth Hub space in which it is delivered. The space is open and relaxed, to reduce feelings of anxiety and welcome new participants. It includes a pool table and table tennis table, to encourage comradery and cohesion by allowing participants to interact socially before, during and after groups.
Many participants talk of feeling at home at the Youth Hub, with one recently sharing:
“It’s a very supportive environment. Nobody cares who you look like, what you look like, what you‘ve done. It’s about what you’re going to do. It’s like a family unit here.”
Over the past year, ResetLife Youth has supported 184 young people to live free from drug and alcohol harm, resulting in increased school attendance and improved family relationships. The program has also inspired some participants to study peer support work and psychology, in the hope to support others going through similar challenges.
A young male re-engages with life
After being diagnosed with depression, anxiety and bi-polar disorder, a young male struggled with this new information and refused to take his prescribed medications. He was taking various substances including benzos and oxycodone and had a history of self-harm, suicidality and overdosing. He hadn’t attended school in two years and had distanced himself from family and friends.
After engaging with the ResetLife Youth program, he began attending school and went on to finish his VCE last year. The program helped him establish a relationship with a psychiatrist he respects, resulting in an understanding of his mental health diagnosis and compliance with his medications. Outside of school, he began playing soccer again and looking to the future by volunteering as a peer worker.
His father wrote to staff sharing how the program has not only changed his son’s life but his whole family’s.
“Throughout the years that we have been seeking support from a range of health professionals and services, my wife and I have often felt left behind and ignored by these services and professionals despite being our son’s primary caregivers and having to deal with the daily challenges of coping with a child suffering an acute mental illness. While we appreciate that adolescents have an increasing need for independence and will potentially engage more meaningfully with health professionals when their privacy is assured, we have found the service and support that is offered by Windana (formerly TaskForce) to families to be a turning point for our ability to navigate what has been an isolating and confusing time.
The opportunity to meet with other families and people with lived experience of addiction is a powerful and humbling experience. Knowing there are others feeling the same way we do and going through some of the same challenges, and sometimes even worse, allowed us to shift the feeling of guilt that we had to a feeling of optimism as well as developing a level of understanding about what we could and could not control.
The service has proven invaluable for our family and the ongoing support for our son has also helped him to overcome some of the challenges he faces where he is currently showing a lot of positive signs of turning a corner in his illness.”
– Father of ResetLife Youth program participant
By providing free evidence-based AOD outpatient treatment for young people and their families, the ResetLife Youth program is addressing the demand for non-residential treatment across the SEMPHN catchment and providing flexible early intervention enabling youth to live healthy and fulfilling lives in their community.
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Delivering coordinated and integrated care for people living with complex mental illness
A holistic program offering coordinated, integrated and consistent care for an extended period of time (6 – 12 months).
South Eastern Melbourne PHN
Level 2, 15 Corporate Drive
Heatherton Victoria 3202
ABN 65 603 858 751
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South Eastern Melbourne PHN
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SEMPHN acknowledges the Bunurong and Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin Nation, the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the lands, waters, and skies in which we work. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present. We also acknowledge all First Nations peoples with whom we work. Sovereignty was never ceded!
We acknowledge and celebrate diversity in all its forms and recognise the contribution people from diverse backgrounds and life experiences make to a strong, healthy and resilient community. We welcome everyone in the community as part of the SEMPHN organisation.