The National Drug Commission is setting up its own residential treatment centre for women drug addicts to be open within the next few months.

The Bermuda Treatment Centre for Women is expected to be up and running within the next few months and is being designed by the NDC to accommodate residential clients and to offer outpatient, aftercare services and family counselling.

A Press release sent out on Friday by Government says the centre will offer transitional living and extensive grounds for therapeutic and recreational purposes. A spokesman for the NDC, who is unnamed in the press release, says that while other treatment programmes are currently being developed to assist women to go overseas for treatment, the NDC intends to provide services to clients within the environment ?in which they must eventually learn to live, work and maintain a drug-free lifestyle.?

The statement reads: ?The NDC anticipates that it will work in tandem with other treatment providers to provide treatment options that best suit the needs of chemically dependent women and their families.?

The Press release does not detail where the facility will be located and how many women can expect to receive treatment. The NDC says the new centre will offer facilities to accommodate children and to incorporate extended parenting skills services. ?The Bermuda Treatment Centre for Women will also build on the process which will enable it to seek accreditation within a period of time,? added the spokesman.

Fair Havens, the Island?s existing residential treatment centre for women, is currently treating three residents and has been renamed Fair Havens Christian Care Facility. Board chairman Terry West recently outlined his treatment plan last month which outlines a set of procedures to help local women combat their addiction through treatment in Toronto and in Bermuda. The 18-bed unit is located in Smith?s and has been funded by the National Drug Commission with $25,000 a year to help with operating costs.

Mr. West says it is questionable if Fair Havens will continue to receive funding from Government. ?We don?t know what they?re doing, we hope it is good because the women of Bermuda deserve a higher standard of care than what they?ve been receiving,? he said.

With so many organisations in Bermuda competing for the same piece of the pie, Mr. West said private funding holds an organisation accountable to both donors and members of the community and functions outside of Government bureaucracy.

?Private funders expect certain level of accountability and transparency that you don?t have with Government funding,? he said. Mr. West said Fair Havens aims to run itself as a financially self-sufficient centre by introducing a service fee to give women a financial stake in their recovery.