1. Using Social Media to reduce Alcohol misuse
Birmingham City Council
19th March 2012
Steven Rose – Head of Strategic Research
&
Ravinder Bains – Customer Segment Manager

2. The Journey to date….
• Previous work through Total Place Pilot on Drugs &
Alcohol –supported by CLG Customer Led Transformation
fund identified:
– Service users to design recovery pathway.
– Using advocates / Champions
– Encouraging service user leadership and self support
– One size doesn’t fit all
• Raised questions on:
– Why are we very heavy skew towards tier 3
– Does system drive dependency?

3. Review of Services-
Could Social Media assist ?
• Researched into the level of SM accessibility?
• Consultation & Focus Groups
• Champions & Peer Support
– 87% trust a friends recommendation over a critics review
- Marketing Sherpa
– 3 times more likely to trust peer opinions over advertising for
purchasing decisions- Jupiter Research
– 1 word of mouth conversation has impact of 200 TV ads-
BuzzAgent

4. Appetite Social Media Support Network
Prevent Detect (incl. CJS) Treatment Positive Outcomes
Present
• Alcohol misusers develop dependency on Tier 3 service consumption
• Long term clients absorbing too much resource
Commissioning on Outcomes Social Media Self-Help
e.g. Mutual support network for the
• Bonus for anniversary of positive outcomes alcohol mis-user community
• Reducing payments for very long term
clients
Future
Benefits
Reduced dependency
based service cost
Effort

5. Landscape of Social Media

6. Phase 2
• Birmingham City Council in partnership with BDAAT were
successful in November 2011 to secure funding for the
development of a social media platform (phase 2)
• Raising awareness of treatment provision and encouraging
movement throughout the system
• Providing an alternative for those who may not want to
access treatment but still want information and support via
the peer support networks in place in Birmingham

7. Aims
• To seek to improve outcomes for substance misusers
and carers through increased support through social
media as an additional option for individuals
• To encourage those who may never have accessed
treatment to find out further information including harm
reduction advice etc
• To raise awareness of services and peer support
networks to encourage the recovery message to
spread far and wide
Recovery is contagious

8. Tools to assist
• Breaking Free Online licenses and training
• Website development raise the profile of recovery,
• Development of a Naloxone DVD
• “Truth about detox” DVD real life examples of
people who have been through detox and rehab
dispelling myths
• Enhancement and/or development of a text
network initiative
• Creation of a social media ‘brand’

9. Social Media Platform
Mylife4me.co.uk

10. Breaking Free Online

11. Expected Outcomes
• That a minimum of 360 substance misusers will
start on their recovery journey
• That a minimum of 60 substance misusers will be
tracked through the Breaking Free Online system
• Increase support networks for those who are
presently or have previously misused substances
• Increased user group awareness of social media
as a support mechanism for peer group supports
• Return on Investment :estimated savings of
£650,000 per annum

12. ,
There is a proverb which says
“If you’ve told someone a 1000
times to do something and they
don’t do it…it isn’t the person
that is a slow learner.”

13. Insanity
“The definition of
insanity is doing the
same thing over and
over again and
expecting different
results”.
- Albert Einstein

14. In other words….
If you always do what you’ve always done
your always gonna get what you always
get.
And let’s face it

15. You don’t have a magic wand!

16. So without magic we turned to science.

17. Thank You
Steven Rose
Head of Strategic Research
0121 675 9566 / 07776 014 046
steven.rose@birmingham.gov.uk
Ravinder Bains
Customer Segment Manager
0121 303 4054
ravinder.bains@birmingham.gov.uk

18. QUESTIONS ?