The community agency the meeting of which I have visited is the Palatine club. It holds monthly district meetings for people who have problems with alcohol. During the meetings, they share their experience and hopes. Nothing special is needed to become a member of the meetings at the Palatine club the only demand is the desire to stop drinking (Stoudemire, 2012). Except for that, members are not supposed to pay any fees or dues. It is not connected with sects, politics or any other institutions and does not want to be involved in any conflicts, which is also not encouraged among the members. The agency is self-supporting and non-professional. It does not discuss any outside issues.
The Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings are held to gather the members of the community who have particular problems. That is why the majority of them are closed. Still, everyone is allowed to attend open ones. AA a fellowship is for people of different nationalities and sexes. It has its own 12 traditions, which describe the way the Palatine club maintains its operations (The Palatine Club, n.d.). The mission of the agency is to stay sober. They help each other to be determined and follow the right way. AA wants to carry the message to those who still have problems with alcohol and suffer because of them. They believe in the authority of a loving God, who can help them in the recovery. As I saw, this faith makes them feel united and more empathetic.
Even though the Palatine club is not a professional organization that can gain support from the government to reach better outcomes, its work does contribute to the health of the community. AA designed a group of principles (Twelve Steps) that its members follow to cope with alcoholism and become happy. They are based on spirituality, which presupposes that no medical influence is present. Still, the agency presupposes that its service centers can hire social workers who can provide additional services to the clients. With their help as well as by agency’s own forces, the Palatine club helps the clients to expel the obsession to drink. Coping with alcoholism, the members are sure to improve their health and gain better living conditions, which also affects health positively.
On the basis of the mentioned information, it occurs to be clear that the Palatine club serves the clients who are willing to stop drinking regardless their nation, gender, age and status.
AA declines any outside contributions, but the potential role for nurses within the Palatine club can be considered. They can conduct tests and questionnaires to find out what health problems the clients have and which of them are caused by alcohol. They can also propose additional ways of treatment for those who need one and monitor the condition of the agency members. The nurses can also offer other people to refer to the Palatine club if they are willing to cope with such problem.
Personally I believe that attending this meeting was a great experience. I saw different people where who were searching for new information that could inspire them to continue following the path of recovery and the steps designed by the agency. While speaking, people were rather emotional, which proved that they are highly concerned. They reacted to the speeches and seemed to be very united. Thus, I believe that the Palatine club is doing good for the whole community and helps its clients to become healthier.
References
The Palatine Club (n.d.). About AA. Web.
Stoudemire, C. (2012). AA meeting [Video file]. Web.