"Recover Manchester" Starts Conversation About Treatment August 23, 2002
Communities in Action Yesterday, members of the Manchester, NH, Demand Treatment! Partnership spoke to local leaders about the impact that lack of treatment for alcohol and other drugs has on their community. To make a convincing argument, the team developed a report of local data, titled Recover Manchester, that helps tell their story. "Having data made the case for what we knew was true but could not quantify to others," said Tess Gomes, project manager for the Manchester Demand Treatment! Partnership. "Anyone can see the impact of AOD problems and how the entire community bears the weight of it."
Data collected by the Partnership show the impact that alcohol and other drugs have on the economic environment, the social environment, health, education, and public safety. The team also analyzed the gap between Manchester's current treatment services and those of 1990, especially for special populations. Sources for the report include hospital discharge statistics, the local health department, the Center for Public Policy Studies at the University of New Hampshire, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, and the National Household Survey.
Importantly, the report also makes note of where there are no data available - for example, the impact of alcohol and other drugs on the elderly population. It illustrates the point that "no one is counting the impact alcohol and other drugs have in this area, at least on a community-wide basis," said Gomes. "We could look at national data, but that won't tell the story in Manchester as powerfully as if we had Manchester-specific data."
Kathy Mandeville and others at New Futures, an independent non-profit organization that develops strategies to reduce substance abuse in New Hampshire, played an instrumental role in gathering data and doing extra analysis when needed. Last year, under Mandeville's direction, New Futures developed WE NEED TREATMENT!, a statewide look at the impact of alcohol and other drugs. "I can't say enough about how important it is to connect with folks who know and love data and get them on board," remarked Gomes.
"The team's success in getting so much quality information is the result of groups working together, talking about the issues, raising awareness that the data did not exist a year ago, and keeping at it," she said. "It is the cumulative efforts over time that made this document possible."
For more information about Manchester Demand Treatment!, please contact Tess Gomes.
