New PE drug rehabilitation centre
A new treatment centre for drug and alcohol addiction has opened its doors in Korsten following the demise of Sanca in the city.
The Port Elizabeth branch of the South African National Council for Drug and Alcohol Abuse (Sanca) closed in 2017 due to a funding crisis.
Social activist and abuse counsellor John Preller said on Tuesday that he and people he worked with could not let that be the end of affordable assistance for those in crisis.
“We had an amicable divorce from the national Sanca body,” he said.
The group had created a small board to launch a new organisation that included the decades of expertise gained by the former director of Sanca Port Elizabeth, Zarina Ghulam, and people with legal and medical expertise.
“We either don’t charge or charge on a very flexible sliding scale because the reality is that people who need help [have] often spent all their money on drugs.
“We even know of parents who are taking a second bond to help their children,” Preller said.
He said the new organisation, Nationwide Treatment Centre for Drug Addiction and Alcoholism, had been registered as a treatment centre with the departments of health and social development.
“We are recognised as a fully functional NGO,” he said.
Because managing an organisation such as this was really tough, the other members of the board met Ghulam regularly.
“She is an absolute treasure. Zarina has been working in this field for years without a salary.”
Preller said apart from her work in treating addicts, Ghulam also visited schools, NGOs and other organisations to speak about drug and alcohol addiction.
“I will also help out. I am a registered counsellor.
“We have a nurse working with us to do health assessments before we take anybody in,” he said.
Preller said the group also referred patients to other NGOs for specialist assistance with issues such as family dysfunction or abuse.
He said to address the barriers to seeking help, the offices had been based in Korsten.
“It is right in the middle of a very troubled area.
“Zarina also goes into the community to overcome the problem of having to find transport,” he said.
He said they were grateful to the owner of 1 Hiles Street where the centre was based.
“We were generously provided with the space at a very low rental,” he said.
Preller said it was worrying that substance abuse was increasing in the metro.
“Alcohol abuse is the most prevalent but we are also seeing children as young as eight progressing from cigarettes to dagga to tik,” he said.
“It is very sad to see children on drugs because you know that they are likely to have problems for the rest of their lives,” he said.
Ghulam was not available for comment.
● Support group meetings are at the Hiles Street venue every Friday from 9am to 11am.
Visits to the centre are by appointment only.
To schedule a visit, call 076272-3804.