This past week, CCCADA Intern Aniah attended the Professional Advisory Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (PACADA) meeting. PACADA has been a long standing meeting of professionals to to improve communication and collaboration among the county’s mental health and substance abuse continuum of care. Aniah writes more about her experience at PACADA below:
“During the PACADA meeting, I became considerably aware of all of the outreach agencies in Camden County that provide substance abuse prevention, treatment, and recovery services. It was amazing to see so many different representatives in one room.”
One topic that was discussed lengthily at this month’s PACADA meeting was the use of abstinence as a method of addiction treatment. Currently, people looking for treatment may be hesitant to receive abstinence-based treatment, because there is an assumption that abstinence is not successful and in some cases misconceptions as to what abstinence-based treatment can mean.
“The general proposal was to uplift abstinence as an effective method of addiction treatment because everyone’s path to getting clean is different. Though abstinence may not work for all, it works for some and should not be discouraged. Overall, the topics discussed during the meeting were engaging and informative. I look forward to more experiences such as this!”
CCCADA, Inc. 