It’s a matter of life and death
“IT’S A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH”
URGENT APPEAL FOR FUNDING TO STOP CLOSURE OF VITAL CRACK COCAINE PROJECTS IN TALLAGHT ON DECEMBER 31st
Tallaght Drugs and Alcohol Task Force says outreach projects providing vital support for people in crack cocaine addiction will be forced to close on December 31st if Government does not provide more funding
Wednesday 28th December 2021
Two community drugs projects in Jobstown and Killinarden in Tallaght providing vital support to people using crack cocaine, some of whom are homeless, will be forced to shut down on December 31st unless the government provides the money they need.
In a report last month Tallaght Drugs and Alcohol Task Force (TDATF) revealed a “tsunami” of crack cocaine addiction and dealing in the area, with one third of those seeking help for crack cocaine addiction now being women.
The Killinarden project works specifically with women addicted to crack cocaine.
The November report said that €190,000 would be needed to maintain the two crack cocaine projects.
Grace Hill, Co-Ordinator of the Tallaght Drugs and Alcohol Task Force, said project workers based in Jobstown and Killinarden are helping dozens of people who have become addicted to crack cocaine, but this is only a small fraction of those needing help. Since September project workers in Jobstown have been visiting crack cocaine addicts twice a week with food supplies and clean equipment. Many of them are extremely vulnerable and at high risk.
“JADD (Jobstown Assisting Drug Dependency) have been going out to find people because they discovered that a growing number of those addicted to crack cocaine are just not physically able to come to their centre for help to treat their addiction. Crack cocaine causes such chaos and devastation in people’s lives that they often have no food in their homes, and some have become homeless and are living on the street. For every one person we meet we estimate there are four more needing help”, she said.
Funding for the outreach projects run by JADD and the Community Assisted Response Programme (CARP) in Killinarden will run out on December 31st and despite appeals to the Government, Tallaght Drugs and Alcohol Task Force has not yet received the funding it needs to meet the needs of a growing number of people addicted to crack cocaine and other drugs.
“The supports which JADD and CARP are providing are essential to keeping people alive. Our staff at JADD and CARP are meeting people where they are at with hot food, information, and clean equipment to reduce the risk of infection. The essential supports being offered by both services are in response to a public health crisis. Without this support, many people are at serious risk. It is literally a matter of life and death”, said Grace Hill.
ENDS
For more information or for interviews, please contact:
Grace Hill, TDATF Coordinator 087 239 5581
For more information on the Tallaght Drugs and Alcohol Task Force Report and “The landscape of substance abuse and its impact on the communities of Tallaght Drugs and Alcohol Task Force”, and the full report, see www.tallaghtdatf.ie
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