SY10-1 * THE EVOLUTION OF THE NATIONAL REHABILITATION CENTER ABU DHABI

Abstract

The National Rehabilitation Center (NRC) was established in 2002 with the directive of H.H. Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. A law was passed in 2010, signed by H.H. Sheik Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan enshrining the remit and the mandate of the NRC (Law No. 7, 2010). This includes treatment and rehabilitation of substance misusers, prevention, research, surveillance, advocacy and workforce development by education and training. The presentation will chart the developments in the area of treatment and rehabilitation providing cutting edge evidence based treatments and systematically increasing treatment capacity and the range of programs. It will also chart the development of the prevention programs, particularly those aimed at adolescents, and establishment of the surveillance and research departments. The NRC's efforts and plans to tackle one of the biggest problems in the area that of workforce capacity, by developing a training institute will also be described. Collaborations and partnerships with international organizations such as the UNODC, WHO and local institutes e.g. The United Arab Emirates University, to develop and deliver the agenda will be described. It is hoped that this experience and model developed would be of value and interest to other countries especially in the region.