Meth rehab beds receive funding

Methamphetamine users in Kwinana and Rockingham will have improved access to treatment after the State Government announced 18 new residential rehabilitation beds in the south metropolitan region.

Eight beds at Palmerston Farm in Wellard and 10 beds at Serenity Lodge in Rockingham will be available from January as part of the $14.9 million WA Meth Strategy.

Rockingham’s Palmerston Association chief executive Sheila McHale expressed her delight at receiving the funding.

“Having experienced an 18 per cent increase in client numbers over two years and a 9 per cent increase in meth as the problem drug over the same period, these beds will be filled as soon as they become available,” she said. “We have 35 people ready for a bed and another 68 people currently in preparation for our residential service.

“Meth is definitely the major problem.”

Mrs McHale said the new beds would be part of a more comprehensive response that Palmerston was developing with the support of the State and Federal Governments. “Our service will be expanding its community response with additional dedicated experienced meth counsellors, and family support,” she said.

Palmerston Association manager Bram Dickens said there were plans to trial a Saturday clinic and he was interested to hear from community members to see if this would help them access services, particularly for working people in need of support. “The eight beds are part of a continuum of care but they are at the more ‘pointy’ end of therapeutic intervention,” he said.

“If we could support people earlier on in their drug use then we might see better outcomes for everyone involved.”