Anti-Stigma Network: New Toolkit
The Anti-Stigma Network aim to improve understanding of the stigma and discrimination experienced by all people affected by drug and alcohol use. They have just released their Stigma-Free Organisations Toolkit – a free resource designed to help organisations identify, challenge and reduce professional and structural substance-use stigma.
Too often, alcohol and drug-related harm is viewed through the lens of individual responsibility, while wider influences such as stigma, trauma, poverty, exclusion, policy and organisational culture receive far less attention. This toolkit helps organisations identify and address those wider influences.
The toolkit focuses on:
- Professional stigma – attitudes, behaviours and practices that can result in poorer care, withheld support or unfair treatment.
- Structural stigma – policies, procedures and organisational systems that limit opportunities, access or inclusion.
There are two resources –
- Interactive Online Learning: A guided introduction to professional and structural stigma.
- Full Stigma-Free Organisations Toolkit: For organisations looking to take a more comprehensive approach, the pdf toolkit includes:
- Evidence-based anti-stigma approaches
- Practical implementation guidance
- Planning, delivery and evaluation tools
- Organisational case studies
- Resources to support sustainable change
Both versions of the toolkit are free to access. Please share them with colleagues, partners and networks who may find them useful.
