User:Tkastrioti

KETHEA  KETHEA (acronym for Therapy Center for Dependent Individuals) is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation that has been operating since 1983, when ITHAKI, the first Greek therapeutic community for drug addicts was established. On a daily basis, KETHEA offers its services to more than 3.000 persons (addicts and family members), thanks to a nation-wide network of services, which includes more than 90 units. KETHEA is also active in the fields of primary prevention, education and research. KETHEA has special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and is one of the principal organisations to implement the National Action Plan on Drugs.

Staff

The greatest proportion of KETHEA's staff are working in the "front line", offering counselling and support to addicted individuals and their families. They are usually mental health professionals, social scientists or graduates of recognised treatment pogrammes and have received training in order to work in the area of treatment and prevention. Specialized professionals also run KETHEA's research, professional training and administration units. KETHEA does not employ service staff. Daily tasks in the therapeutic programmes are performed by groups of programme members, as an integral part of the therapeutic process. At 31-12-07, 481 employees were working at KETHEA.

Those who wish to contribute to KEΤΗΕΑ's work can be employed on a volunteer basis and under the continuous supervision and support of the staff. KETHEA's supporting associations also provide invaluable services to the organisation through activities such as raising public awareness, fund raising, reshaping buildings for housing new units etc.

Financial Resources

KETHEA's financial resources lie in the following: Annual financing from the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, European Union Programmes and self-financing activities (donations, subsidies from third parties, income deriving from its own production units or other). The Ministry of Health and Welfare approves KETHEA's annual budget. KETHEA employs external auditors to compile a yearly audit of its finances, which is then submitted to the Ministry of Health and Welfare and to the General Government Accounting Office.

Network of Services 

The KETHEA network of services extends all over Greece, in order to cover the special needs of different groups of drug users and support their families and friends. Currently, KETHEA network includes: 24 Counselling Centres 14 Counselling Support Programmes for Prisoners 2 Therapeutic Communities in Prison 2 Low Threshold Programmes, 1 Street-work Programme, 4 Residential Therapeutic Programmes for adults 6 Non Residential Therapeutic Programmes for adolescents/young adults 2 Special Therapeutic Programmes for women An Alcohol and Gambling Therapeutic Programme 12 Re-entry Centres 4 Transitional Schools for members of the therapeutic programmes 2 Specialised Social and Vocational Integration Centres An Intercultural Therapeutic Programme for immigrants and refugees 2 Reception and Re-entry Centres for Released Prisoners 18 Family Support Programmes. A Help-line for drug users, their relatives and friends A Prevention Sector A Sector of Education and Staff Training A Research Sector A printing unit

See here all KETHEA programmes  Institutional Framework KETHEA is a self-governed legal entity of private law. It operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Health and Welfare (Laws 1729/1987 and 3204/2003). Ministerial Decisions A2β/οικ 3983/87 and οικ 245/94 concern the organisation, operation and management of KETHEA.

The institutional bodies of KETHEA KETHEA's eleven member volunteer Board (plus 3 non-voting members) has the general supervision of the organisation. Nine of the board members plus the three non-voting members are elected every two year by the General Assembly, whose members, with a voting right, include KETHEA's staff, all former members of the KETHEA Board, the Boards of Directors of KETHEA's supporting associations and the members of KETHEA's re-entry centers. The two non-elected board members come from national agencies (National Council of Public Health and Pedagogic Institute). KETHEA Director (appointed by the Board) is responsible for both administration and treatment within the organisation. To co-ordinate KETHEA's undertaking the Director works closely with the heads of KETHEA's therapeutic programmes and other sectors. Regular meetings also take place among senior officers in each therapeutic programme or sector, as well as between peers from across Greece.

 Therapy  ΚΕΤΗΕΑ services are offered to many cities and prison settings all over Greece. In addition, through street work programmes and other kind of public interventions KETHEA reaches users that are deprived of any kind of social welfare. KETHEA programmes are offered free of charge and there are no waiting lists. The main services that are offered are: counselling to drug users and their families, immediate intervention programmes, therapy, education and vocational training, social integration and employment. As the years went by, KETHEA in its efforts to meet the needs of the ever changing community, extended its services to new groups of users. Today, adolescents, adult users in different stages and degrees of addiction, addicted mothers and their children, drug users who are having a job, prisoners and released prisoners, immigrants, alcohol and gambling addicts and more recently adolescents and their families that are facing Internet addiction problems are benefiting from KETHEA network of services.

 Outline & Objectives  The path to recovery is marked by different stages. Each of these stages corresponds to a different therapeutic programme unit with its specific goals: Counselling Centre, Therapeutic Community, Re-entry Centre. The Family Support Centre functions at a parallel level offering its services to the relatives and close family environment of the addicted individual.

Some of the therapeutic programmes also offer services to specific categories of addicts with special characteristics and needs, such as imprisoned addicts, parents and workers. The Educational Department and the Research Department, together with administrative and financial support services, complete the structure of a comprehensive therapeutic programme. The duration of a KETHEA therapeutic programme is of approximately two years.

 Therapeutic Programmes  KETHEA provides its services to drug addicts and their families free of charge and without regard to race, color origin, gender, creed etc. The only prerequisites for entering the programme are voluntary admission and active participation in the therapeutic procedure. KETHEA's therapeutic programmes do not employ pharmaceutical substances or substitutes for the threatment of addiction. Depending on the needs of the population they are addressed to, KETHEA's interventions are aimed at adults, adolescents, prisoners, addicted mothers, migrants etc.