Fundacja im. Stefana Batorego

Regional Alcohol and Drug Program

The purpose of this Program, in operation since 1996, is to cooperate and exchange experience with specialists and organizations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia in the field of fighting addictions. We provide a variety of forms of training specialists in the field of prevention and treatment of alcohol and drug addiction, as well as of educating families of the addicted. A crucial field of regional cooperation involves the transfer of our experience gained in managing the Atlantis alcohol addicts’ treatment program, which – thanks to our initiative and assistance – for the past 12 years has been run with great success in Polish prisons. Over the past years, we have also been sharing our experience in setting up therapy programs for perpetrators of crime of violence, both in and out of inmate communities.

In 2005, our Program helped establish two penitentiary dependency treatment centres and a treatment and training centre in the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek. Penitentiary officers from other Asian and Trans-Caucasian states interested in adopting a similar criminal rehabilitation method visit these treatment centers. Advanced cooperation in this domain is also ongoing with penitentiary authorities in Armenia, Georgia and Siberia. In the framework of the Program, we conduct trainings for physicians, psychologists and therapists specializing in treating dependency patients. Last year, we organized a series of seminars and workshops in Eastern neighbour countries, including: Armenia, Bulgaria, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Russia (in Petersburg and Chita, in Siberia), as well as in Poland. Like every year, we conducted trainings regarding the specific aspects of treating the addicted in penitentiary facilities (Kikity/Barczewo) and a seminar for alcoholics and drug addicts overcoming their dependencies who learn to help others as therapists. In September, for the twelfth time, we organized an International Summer School for Central and East European and Central Asian representatives, entitled Addictions and Violence. In total, we conducted 10 trainings abroad and 3 in Poland.

With our support, 28 people from 8 countries were able to participate in internships and study visits and were acquainted with the dependency treatment method based on cooperation with Alcoholics and Drug Addicts Anonymous groups. Some interns also participated in re-education classes with perpetrators of domestic violence (e.g. at the Olsztyn Addiction Prevention Centre), a Program element initiated 5 years ago with the collaboration of Marek Prejzner, a specialist from the Polish American Association in Chicago.

In 2005, we published two issues of the ArkA bulletin (in Russian and Bulgarian). In Georgia, Ukraine and Russia, we published translations of Polish titles dealing with dependency treatment. Several supplementary titles appeared in Russian: 12 Functions of the Dependency Therapist by Stan Kulewicz, Manual for Working with Perpetrators of Violence by Dariusz Skowroński and Agata Skorupska, Coming Out of Addiction and I Choose Freedom by Ewa Woydyłło. The publications are used as didactic materials in training specialists.

Program funded from a grant by the Open Society Institute.

Program costs

Project implementation: PLN 556 291,44
On top of that, the Open Society Institute Institute forwarded to our partners in the countries of the region funds amounting to USD 95 509,18 to cover costs of publications, specialist trips and local trainings.