Original Research Article
Year: 2020 | Month: September | Volume: 10 | Issue: 9 | Pages: 103-116
Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCA): Structure and Functions
Divita Sharma1, Sarita Gautam2
1MPH Student, School of Public Health, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh, India
2Assistant Professor, Department of Social Sciences, National Institute of Health and Family Welfare, Munirka, Delhi, India
Corresponding Author: Divita Sharma
ABSTRACT
Background: Drug addiction has affected several numbers of individuals and is associated with impairment in various aspects of physical, psychological and socio-occupational functioning. Drug abuse deteriorates the human health. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment introduced IRCA (Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts) in order to provide composite or integrated services for the rehabilitation of substance dependent individual. It aims for the whole person recovery (WPR) and has set certain guidelines for the structure and functioning of these centres. Time-to-time assessment of these centres is important to know about whether the guidelines are effectively implemented or not and how far the objectives of the center are being met.
Objectives: To assess the structure and functioning of Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCA), New Delhi.
Methodology: It is a qualitative study and case study, which was done with questionnaire tools, interviews and records of the center.
Results: The center was smoothly functioning with adequate number of staff for the respective tasks. There was adequate provision of infrastructure and material resources. There was lack of training activities for the staff and educational and vocational activities for the patients. There were inadequate funds by the government and was not allotted to the center on time.
Conclusion: The procedure of counseling was effectively done in order to spread the awareness and educate not only the drug users but also their family. The center failed to achieve its objective to make a patient gainfully employed after their recovery. Lack of training activities and lack of support from the government were the key factors that the center was unable to fulfill its objectives fully.
Key words: IRCA, structure, function, rehabilitation