Dr Pat Troy of Dublin was responding to a warning recently issued by the Tallaght Drugs Taskforce that any reduction in spending in light of the recession could undo all the hard work of campaigners resulting in a return of the 1980s, when no services existed. Dr Troy told IMN that while it was rumoured there would be rolling cutbacks of up to five per cent with effects of this likely to be felt next year, he did not think the quality of services would be affected.
“There will be a rationalisation of the services and I think that greater efficiency is what might be demanded,” he said. “I would be loath to say there will be a return to the 1980s.” Dr Troy commented: “It has been a fairly well-funded service over the years. It’s a success that in some ways is very difficult to quantify. We have one of the best drug treatment services in the EU. Our services are far more superior to the UK and most of Europe.”
Tallaght Drugs Taskforce’s acting coordinator, Ms Grace Hill, had warned the drug problems of the 1980s which decimated communities particularly in Dublin, took more than a decade of hard work and substantial funding to turn around. The downturn could also create conditions for increased levels of drugs misuse and dependency due to unemployment, financial problems and associated low morale, Ms Hill said at the launch of the Taskforce’s Strategic Plan for 2008 to 2013, to consolidate its programmes.
Source: Lloyd Mudiwa, Irish Medical News, 16/12/2008
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