An emergency board meeting of the drug counselling service Focus will be held today to discuss the embattled organisation's future.

Focus closed its doors last week citing a lack of funding, however, the National Drug Commission (NDC) stepped in on Friday with an offer of assistance to put the drug treatment programme back on its feet.

Focus is jointly funded by both the NDC and the Council Partners Charitable Trust (CPCT) but recently monies have been withheld to encourage the organisation to adopt recommendations which arose from an assessment carried out by Dr. Jacqueline Butler last month.

The financial crunch led to the cancellation of the Camp Spirit three-month treatment programme intended to start last week.

Under the current NDC proposal however, $60,000 would be immediately freed up for Focus operations and the NDC would take over the running of the organisation for a period of three to six months.

If the plan moves forward it is thought the Camp Spirit programme - a critical pillar of currently available drug treatment options - could be re-opened as soon as May.

The board will be deciding today whether to accept the NDC's offer and the conditions it carries - one of which could lead to the replacement of executive director Sandy Butterfield.

The board's meeting was meant to take place last weekend but Mrs. Butterfield said scheduling problems prevented it from occurring.

It is now scheduled for 5.15 p.m. According to recent communications between Focus and its funding agencies, the board is deeply divided over the issue of Mrs. Butterfield's leadership.

Factions - including board chairman Rory Gorman - would like to see Mrs. Butterfield's role within Focus change in order to meets increased demands on the programme under the Alternatives to Incarceration initiatives.

Mr. Gorman has suggested that a new executive director be hired for Focus to whom Mrs Butterfield would report and The Royal Gazette understands that suggestion is backed by both the NDC and CPCT

While, Mr. Gorman has categorically stated that he will resign as board chairman if his proposals are not accepted, the intent is not to force Mrs. Butterfield out of the organisation altogether but to re-organise.

"We all agree that Sandy (Butterfield) brings founder's passion to Focus," Mr. Gorman wrote to fellow board members before leaving the Island last Friday.

"She is dedicated to our clients. She works long hours for modest pay (and with, for too long now, considerable stress), driven by the vision of helping people break their enslavement to drugs.

"But we need someone at the helm that not only shares that vision but who has the ability to recognise and implement the operational steps required to take us to that vision from where we are today."