Women’s experiences with substance use are substantially different from men’s. They tend to have higher rates of childhood trauma, are far more likely to have suffered interpersonal violence and are six times more likely than men to have their children removed because of substance use. And yet, while women make up more than 50 per cent of the population, they represent just 33 per cent of service users.
In response, the Women’s Treatment Working Group has developed a list of recommendations for OHID, including making women-only spaces and services a mandatory requirement for all treatment providers, dramatically improved responses for mothers – including those without children in their care – and genuinely co-designed pathways and partnerships.
WOMEN-ONLY SPACES AND SERVICES
Women’s histories of trauma and male violence mean that single-sex environments are not an optional extra – they’re essential for women’s physical and psychological safety. For this reason there need to be women-only groups and drop-ins and female key workers as a default, says the group. Timely access to women-only residential services is also crucial, along with policies addressing domestic abuse, menopause and pregnancy. Minimum standards for women’s services need to be developed, with compliance a commissioning requirement.
Fear of losing their children is a significant deterrent to women seeking help, which is why the group is calling for specialist support for women at risk of child removal along with trauma-informed, collaborative safeguarding practices – these should be transparent, consistent and collaborative, the document states.
CO-DESIGNED PATHWAYS
The myriad barriers facing women need tailored responses, and generic tweaks to the system are no longer enough. What’s needed is a full redesign, the report stresses – one that encompasses flexible, trauma-informed access, effective childcare provision, and the co-designing of services with women. Services also need to develop robust partnerships with women’s centres, sexual health services and domestic abuse and sexual violence (DASV) services, it adds.
‘The Women’s Treatment Working Group is calling on OHID to co-produce a gender-responsive treatment system that reflects the realities of women’s lives,’ states the Womanifesto. ‘Through dedicated spaces, support for mothers, and co-designed pathways, we can build a system that is safe, inclusive, and effective for all women.’
Women’s Treatment Working Group: a womanifesto available here