PROJECTS
AREA OF Consumption and dependencies

Oltre il muro (Beyond the Wall)
Prevenzione rivolta ai giovani dai rischi connessi all'uso di sostanze psicotrope ed alcool

Oltre il Muro Mobile Unit — Service Profile

The Oltre il Muro ("Beyond the Wall") Mobile Unit, funded by ASL Roma 2 (Local Health Authority Roma 2), works across the ASL's territory with young people aged 14 to 34, with the aim of preventing and reducing the demand for — and the risks connected to — the use of psychotropic substances and alcohol. Outreach workers make contact with young people directly in their gathering places, prioritising proximity within their everyday settings of life and social interaction.

TARGET GROUPS

Young people aged 14 to 34.

The Mobile Unit also addresses parental figures, education and socialisation agencies and, more broadly, the adults who have an influence on the shaping of lifestyles and behaviour within the main target population.

FUNDING ARRANGEMENTS

The service is funded by ASL Roma 2 and authorised under Regional Determination G05124. With reference to Resolution 607/25 and subsequent amendments, the Street Unit will be accredited.

AREA OF INTERVENTION

ASL Roma 2.

OBJECTIVES

The general objective of the project is to promote, across the various segments of the population concerned, the protection of health and the emergence of needs connected to the use/abuse of substances — supporting and enhancing the social skills of the people involved, facilitating (where deemed useful) access to the system of services and to the opportunities available in the area, and helping people understand their own rights and duties. The project provides the target populations with preventive and risk-reduction information on specific topics, valuing the worker–service-user relationship; it encourages people to make use of services by informing them about existing local options and resources; it seeks to change behaviours carrying a risk of infection (HIV, hepatitis, STIs, TB, etc.) and of harm/mortality linked to the use of alcohol and psychotropic substances; and it facilitates access to the local network of services.

INTERVENTION METHODOLOGY

The key word in outreach work is relationship, understood and built as the bond between workers and young people. The relationship thus becomes a space for exchange and recognition, a vehicle for information and an arena for discovery, in which the worker represents the adult world bringing a message of prevention, self-care and scientific knowledge. It is therefore essential for the worker to understand the codes, symbols and languages of the young people contacted, and to open up a space for reflection with them so that — through encounter and exchange — they can be recognised, restoring to them dignity, identity and subjectivity.

Equally fundamental in outreach and prevention work is fostering peer-education programmes that stimulate the autonomy, resources and skills capable of promoting active and informed citizenship.

SERVICES PROVIDED

• Afternoon street outreach aimed at making contact with informal peer groups
• Setting up information stands and administering alcohol/breathalyser tests inside venues and social centres, during evening hours
• Counselling and psychological support to clarify doubts and questions about direct or indirect experiences with psychotropic substances and alcohol, for both young people and family members
• Organising and running in-depth informational group sessions on narcotics and alcohol and on topics related to sexuality and STI prevention
• Participation in student assemblies and workshops on the topic of psychotropic substances, at the young people's request
• Organising and running cycles of peer-education meetings in schools and in youth gathering settings
• Telephone and e-mail consultations and information
• A website and an online forum

NETWORKS AND TERRITORY

The Mobile Unit naturally situates itself within a network of collaborations that opens both to formal, public services and to the broad and complex informal network, especially within the area's youth scene. It maintains daily relationships of exchange and cooperation with: schools, youth centres (Centri di Aggregazione Giovanile), low-threshold services, associations, cooperatives, local parishes, family-counselling clinics (consultori), health facilities, nightlife venues, youth associations and music groups.

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Legal representative: Dr Maura Muneretto — tel. 06 86209991 Health Director: Dr Barbara Guadagni — tel. 339 8727697 Administrative Manager: Dr Paolo Cassetta — tel. 340 2729437

The team of the Oltre il Muro Street Unit works in a shared and integrated way and draws on the professional expertise of psychotherapists, psychologists, sociologists and professional educators. It is made up of a coordinator, 4 outreach workers, a supervisor, and consultants for training and evaluation.

CONTACTS AND ACCESS PROCEDURES

The fundamental feature of the Mobile Unit is making contact with young people in their own aggregative settings. It is therefore possible to meet the workers directly on the street or in nightlife venues, but also to request information and consultations and to report gathering places and events by phone or e-mail, or by using the forum on the website.

tel. 339 8727697 website: www.oltreilmuro.it e-mail: info@oltreilmuro.it Facebook: Oltre il Muro

The Street Unit is active in the area either in the afternoon or in the evening. Hours are flexible according to needs.