Our aim was to nurture and develop collective and individual professional practices in the field of residential addiction care (RAC). To achieve this, we sought to encourage interaction and the sharing of expertise between RAS professionals at European level. We also wanted to develop sustainable quantitative and qualitative links between RAS organisations in Europe, in order to strengthen the skills of professionals and improve the quality of care. Another key objective was to implement a collective Franco-Belgian voice on the European medico-social scene, to influence decision-makers and secure political support for therapeutic communities. The project has achieved these objectives by creating tangible synergies between the players in the sector.
We applied for this project in order to respond to the specific challenges of residential addiction care (RAC), a sector facing numerous challenges (social, financial, political, etc.) which required the formalisation of exchanges of professional practice on a European scale. In France, although some initiatives existed, they were often isolated and lacked visibility on an international scale. There was an urgent need for RAS professionals to share their knowledge, improve their skills and adapt proven practices from other countries to their local contexts. Thanks to the Franco-Belgian partnership between the Fédération Addiction and Ecett-Networks, the project met this need by facilitating the exchange of knowledge between European professionals in the sector, while incorporating teaching tools adapted to its specific features, such as the management of ethical issues and organisational constraints. We have also sought to increase recognition of therapeutic communities among political decision-makers, particularly in France, in order to guarantee their support and sustainability in the face of the challenges posed by addiction.