Home / Latest Info
Get Involved
About Us
Therapeutic
Community
Client Pathways
Institute Of Studies
Publications
Donate
Contact Us
Education & Training
The Spirit of Odyssey Sponsorship Program
On November 12th 2006, Odyssey launched our Spirit of Odyssey Missing Link program. This campaign is designed to speak to the general public and the corporate sector with a view to raise funds to cover our $5,000 short fall for each and every bed at Odyssey House. Outlined here is a brief summary of the message we will take to the community come November.
Introduction: Odyssey needs your support to continue our valued work. We are asking organisations and individuals to sponsor our drug treatment beds for $5,000 per year. This contribution will not only leverage existing government and client contributions, but also make a real difference in the lives of drug users, their families, and the broader community.
Odyssey Today: Currently our 85 bed facility at Lower Plenty is under pressure to deliver the quality services that we have always provided due to a shortfall in funds. This shortfall remains a recurring problem that we find ourselves facing each year. The Spirit of Odyssey Missing Link programme will help us train and maintain our specialised staff who can build our capacity and expertise in areas such as the Family Programmes, Employment Initiatives, and the Community Services areas, all of which are vital to our client’s growth and development.
What your sponsorship buys: Odyssey is seeking $5,000 from each sponsor to support a drug treatment bed for a year. This is the actual shortfall Odyssey faces in providing residential drug treatment services to our complex and demanding client group.
To maintain a bed at Odyssey House Victoria costs $40,000 a year. On average, three clients a year will receive treatment for each bed (average length of stay is four months). Of the $40,000 costs, State and Federal governments contribute $30,000 per bed. The clients themselves are asked to contribute $100 per week or $5,000 per bed, as well as play a key role in maintaining and running all aspects of the House. This leaves a shortfall of $5,000 per bed per year.
The bed costs include not only the expenses associated with the provision of a bed, food, transport and recreation, but also the costs of providing quality drug treatment programs including individual, group and family therapy as well as specialist programs such as music therapy, vocational training, job placement, parenting and children’s programs, and other support services provided by highly skilled therapists and specialist counsellors available 24 hours a day to all residents.
Conclusion: Investing in successful drug treatment saves government and the community huge costs in prison and hospital beds, not to mention pain and suffering. By any measure the outcomes achieved through successful drug treatment far outweighs the costs.
In recent years the community contribution to Odyssey has not kept pace with costs and our need to meet the increasingly complex needs of dependent drug users. It is unrealistic to expect government to meet everyone’s increasing needs.
By purchasing one or more beds through this sponsorship program, you will be leveraging the existing support of governments and matching the financial and in kind contribution of clients themselves. This sponsorship investment of $5,000 per bed will enable us to further increase the health outcomes of individual drug users who come into our care.
Contact
For other Donation options - see our main donations page or directly donate using your credit card.