National policymakers and key stakeholders in Central Asia increase their knowledge of the quality assurance system related to drug use disorders through UNODC trainings

The UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia (ROCA) conducted a series of national trainings on "Quality Assurance (QA) of Drug Use Disorder Treatment Systems", which took place from 27 to 28 February 2023 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, from 2 to 3 March 2023 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan,  and from 9 to 10 March 2023 in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

The main objective of these three (3) trainings was to increase the capacity of key national stakeholders to develop national quality assurance system standards in line with the UNODC-WHO International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders. In addition, an implementation strategy was developed at the trainings. This series of trainings also aimed to familiarize participants with the challenges of drug use and drug use disorders, highlighting evidence-based responses and, ultimately, building national expertise in quality assurance of drug use disorder services and treatment systems.

"During these trainings, participants will have a unique opportunity to discuss important issues related to the development and institutionalization of quality assurance mechanisms for drug treatment. The introduction and implementation of these mechanisms will improve the quality of drug dependence treatment and care delivery in the region," said Mr. Borikhan Shaumarov, UNODC ROCA Senior Programme Officer, who coordinated this series of trainings.

The event in Uzbekistan brought together more than 26 professionals and experts from all regions of Uzbekistan. These are representatives of institutions and departments responsible for quality assurance services, including representatives of the Department of Medical Care Organization and Drug Policy of the Ministry of Health, members of the National Working Group on Quality Assurance of Narcological Services, heads and coordinators of the Republican Specialized Scientific and Practical Medical Center for Narcology and its regional branches.

The event in Tajikistan brought together 29 specialists from the Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Tajikistan (MOHSPP), republican and regional clinical narcological centers under the MOHSPP, the National Center for Monitoring and Prevention of Drug Addiction under the MOHSPP.

The national training held in Kazakhstan was attended by 28 participants representing specialists from the Ministry of Health responsible for organizing and financing medical care for people with drug use disorders, as well as leading specialists from all twenty regional Mental Health Centers of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

"Improving the quality of treatment for drug addicts in Tajikistan is a priority. Thus, during the training, the specialists, having received useful information, conducted a number of group works to assess the existing system of drug treatment in the context of each region and at the national level, thereby conducting a review and brief analysis of the services. It should be noted that such trainings are important for us. They will serve to improve the quality of medical care, help plan and form the basis for monitoring the quality and assessing the availability of services, as well as service providers for the treatment of drug use disorders," said Mr. Naimjon Malikov, Narcologist of the Republican Clinical Narcological Center of Tajikistan.

The training was conducted by the UNODC international trainer in an online format. Local national co-trainers provided support to the lead coach.

The online training replicated the nature of the in-person training participation and included plenary presentations by the lead trainer, a series of group exercises with feedback, and large group discussions in the plenary. This capacity-building exercise aimed to review the standards of the national system and compare the quality of the local system in accordance with the UNODC-WHO International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders. 

"Recent studies of the drug treatment situation in Kazakhstan show that despite the fact that the number of people addicted to psychoactive substances, according to official statistics, is decreasing, the level of prevalence of current use of psychoactive substances remains high. Of particular concern is the active involvement of young people in drug use. The growing problem is also directly related to the increase in drug supply and demand. At the same time, the range, volume and quality of services implemented in the system of drug treatment for the population of the Republic of Kazakhstan are not in demand: the percentage of coverage of the specialized contingent does not exceed 10-15%. The questions voiced at the training aroused great interest among the audience: the development of national standards for quality assurance of the system in accordance with the UNODC-WHO International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders and the discussion of the strategy for their implementation were the main topic of the event," said Gulmira Sadvakkasova, Head of the Information and Analytical Monitoring Department of the Republican Center for Mental Health of Kazakhstan.

These three capacity-building activities were carried out within the framework of the UNODC global project GLOJ71 "Treatment of Drug Dependence and its Health Consequences: Treatnet II" in collaboration with Subprogramme 3: Addressing Drug Use, Scaling Up Treatment for Drug Use Disorders and HIV/AIDS Prevention of the UNODC Programme for Central Asia 2022-2025. UNODC Headquarters with financial support from the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).