For immediate publication

15 June 2017

Developing a substance use unit in Tanzania

It's changed the lives of hundreds of patients and helped bring about a step-change in the treatment of patients with substance use problems.

Now the latest programme under the Tanzania Link umbrella has come to an end, with work already underway to develop educational exchange programmes.

Tanzania Link is a link-up between CNWL (Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust) and Mirembe Hospital in Dodoma.

The latest programme, which lasted two-and-a-half years, saw the two organisations developing substance use services at Mirembe Hospital, prior to the opening of a new unit for patients with drug problems.

During this time eight members of staff from CNWL went to Tanzania four times and four Mirembe staff came to CNWL for two weeks each.

Much of the work revolved around developing a peer support programme as well as establishing income generation and skills development schemes for patients.

But it also included community education schemes that targeted mainly primary and secondary school age children and training 44 Mirembe staff in assessment and treatment of patients with substance use problems.

Tanzania Link Manager, Chris Bumstead, said: "This has been a fantastic success story that has built on the foundations of our previous work at Mirembe Hospital and allowed our staff to learn from their staff.

"Of particular interest to me have been the peer support and income generation schemes, which staff and patients alike have recognised as being major contributors to successful treatment and discharge.

"We have embedded peer support work into their rehabilitation programme, which from experience we know plays a vital role in helping someone not just come off drugs but stay free of drugs, and helped 163 patients learn craftwork and soap-making skills through two income generation schemes, which we hope they will be able to use to earn a living from once discharged from hospital.

"These have helped in dispelling the stigma and preconceptions about the abilities and potential economic contributions of patients with mental health and substance use problems."

In total, 123 patients took on the role of peer support workers with each taking on a small ‘caseload' of vulnerable patients during their stay in hospital.

These have also set up a literacy class for fellow patients to improve reading and writing skills for their peers.

The two income generation schemes generated a profit of 800,000 Tanzanian shillings, which is used to provide small ‘start-up' supplies to patients when they are discharged for them to carry on this work. These now have a community base, which is set to be the site of a brick-making business as well as a venue for ongoing support of patients in the community.

Editors' notes

The two photos show Occupational Therapist Haidary Makungwe outside the new annex and also a literacy class taking place amongst patients at Mirembe Hospital