Why is aftercare important?

Many people think that once a person has completed a stay at a rehab centre they will be “cured”. This is not the case. Residential rehab is just the first step on the journey to recovery. Whilst in treatment the person is completely shielded from the outside world which is extremely beneficial at the time, but means that when they return home they sometimes struggle to cope without the additional support they have been used to. This is where aftercare plays a vital role.

Aftercare is particularly vital for those individuals who are only able to take away enough time to complete a detox program. These people have not had the benefit of the psychological support offered in longer programmes and so will be particularly vulnerable once they return home. Aftercare will help the person to understand the nature of their addiction, the reasons behind it, and will aid the development of appropriate coping strategies vital to successful recovery.

Triage Healthcare recognises that it is often impractical for a person to travel back to the treatment centre for aftercare appointments. Often people will have travelled some distance from home to get some time away, or to access the best value options. Therefore, when a treatment programme is arranged through us we will arrange aftercare in the home location. This means that the person has one-to-one support available to them from an experienced counsellor near to their home.

We realise that life goes on when you return home. Therefore, our counsellors will be flexible with appointment times so that you may fit them around work and family commitments. In some circumstances it may not be possible for the person to travel to their counsellor and so we can also arrange home visits or telephone aftercare. For those who plan to go abroad after treatment, many of our counsellors will also be happy to provide aftercare over Skype, so that the support can continue no matter where in the world the person resides.

The advantage of Triage Healthcare aftercare is that it takes place on a one-to-one basis. We encourage people to attend the relevant fellowship meetings such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous, but also recognise that there may be personal matters that are not suited to the nature of group meetings. Therefore, the role of the aftercare counsellor is to focus on matters that are personal to the individual. There is also the benefit of knowing that the support is coming from a highly trained professional, rather than from a peer group.

What is a Primary Treatment Worker?

Triage Healthcare assigns every individual a Primary Treatment Worker. This means that there is someone who remains in contact every step of the way. It can be harrowing for an individual to constantly go through all the details of their experience. Therefore, they can call their Primary Treatment Worker safe in the knowledge that this person knows everything that has happened up until that point. This means that the individual and their Primary Treatment Worker can focus on what else can be done to support the recovery process.

The Primary Treatment Worker should be the first point of contact if the person has any questions, concerns, or wants support when others are unavailable. Triage Healthcare offers an immediate response service. Our helpline is open 7 days a week, and has a 24 hour messaging service which will be responded to as soon as possible should the call be made out of hours.

The Primary Treatment Worker will often be a point of contact for families as well and can arrange support for the family in knowing how to cope with the situation. Families will often be concerned about doing “the right thing” and our advisors can provide support and advice over the phone as well as arranging face-to-face family support meetings if required.