NEIC Dual Diagnosis Project

‘Dual diagnosis’ is the term used when a person experiences both a substance abuse problem and a mental health issue such as depression or an anxiety disorder. (Department of Health, 2020)

Background

The NEIC Dual Diagnosis project is a capacity building project based in the North East Inner City area. Between January and May 2021 a series of Dual Diagnosis Awareness workshops and Train the Trainers workshops were delivered to people and organisations living and working within Dublin North East Inner City by the Dublin North, North East Recovery College.

The need for a community response to Dual Diagnosis was informed by both the Mulvey Report and the NEIC Strategic Plan (2020-2023). This particular Dual Diagnosis Awareness intervention is internationally viewed as a first stage in preparing communities how to best respond to complex needs associated with Dual Diagnoses. As a result of the first phase which included the above workshops, the participants expressed an interest to move to another level of capacity building, where groups would work collaboratively together to create a joined-up response to Dual Diagnosis within the community.

The aspiration was to create capacity within the community, by the community through relationship development and dialogical engagement. In September 2022 the Recovery College partnered with the Recovery Academy Ireland and a Dual Diagnosis Project Coordinator was given the role to facilitate this next stage of community Capacity Building.

Collectively, the staff and members of Dublin North North East Recovery College and partner organisation The Recovery Academy (RAI) have a track record with participatory approaches to research and community development, to empowering community recovery education approaches and in the area of substance use and mental health difficulties. The range of expertise includes: experts by experience, professional practitioners, academic researchers, community development workers and experienced educational providers.

Using a community development approach, the aim of the project is to enhancing community capacity to respond to dual diagnosis in Dublin North East Inner City by creating a trauma informed recovery community.

What we have achieved so far:

Monthly Community Forums

Five monthly open dialogue forums with topic discussions such as barriers to care for dual diagnosis, how can we work together and what is needed to better support people and families;

26th October - Ballbough Community Centre
24th November - St Agatha's Hall
18th January - St Laurence O'Toole Recreation Centre
28th February - St Agatha's Hall
29th March - Pavee Point

Community Engagement Session

Half-day session with 28 community stakeholders working together to co create an integrated community care pathway for people experiencing Dual Diagnosis.

Trauma Informed Community Workshops

Two 2-day workshops that work towards building the capacity of the community to become a trauma informed community of recovery – 60 participants;

22nd/23rd March - The Sanctuary, Dublin 7
18th/19th April - The Hub Café, Kings Inn Street

Dual Diagnosis Enhancement Skills Workshops

2 full-day workshops establishing and building on the existing skills in the community to work with Dual Diagnosis. Co-facilitated and delivered by local community experts and experts by experience – 50 participants;

22nd/29th May - St Laurence O’Toole Recreation Centre
23rd/30th May - The Hub Café, Kings Inn Street

Integrated Pathway Tool

The formation of an integrated pathway tool that can be used as a resource to support the coordination of care within the community. Created by the community, for the community.

Interactive Map

The development of an interactive map of services that supports the integrated community care pathway resource consisting of details of services on offer in relation to mental health and substance use.

Useful Resources

Interactive Community Care Pathway

This interactive infographic is designed to represent the different stages of support for an adult or young person experiencing Dual Diagnosis. The main graphic layouts out the journey of care from prevention, intervention, treatment, and Recovery, and by clicking on the icons in the bottom right-hand corner you can explore the different ways of working that encourage a coordinated response to supporting a person or family experiencing the challenges of mental health and substance use issues in the community.

Community Care Services Map

The goal of the map is to:

Act as a user-friendly resource for finding information about services that can support an individual or family's journey through mental health and addiction recovery
Encourage community organisations that can offer support to become more integrated in their approach through networking and collaboration

If your service is listed below and would like to be added to the map, please fill out this Microsoft Form

Services that can be included on the map:

Youth Services,
Childcare Providers,
Afterschool supports,
Early Learning Education,
Youth Justice Services,
Sports and Wellbeing, Community Social Supports,
Advocacy Services,
Youth Residential Services,
Counselling Services,
GPs,
Psychology Supports,
Treatment Clinics,
Community Addiction Support Services,
Family Support Services,
Psychiatry Supports,
Peer Support Workers,
Detox Services,
Outreach Services,
Recreation Centre's,
Social Prescribers,
After-prison Supports,
Alcohol Specific Services,
Homeless Services,
Education and Employment services etc

Printables for Your Services

QR codes that can be placed in your services to redirect service users and staff to the Care Pathway and Map that can be used on their phone or device

If you would like to find out more you can contact the Dual Diagnosis Project Co-Ordinator at triona.byrne@dcu.ie.