30 / 68
Continuing its fight against addiction, as a common problem of humanity, and active also in the field of
rehabilitation, Green Crescent is setting an example for the world through the implementation of the models
it has developed. Sultan Işık, General Manager of Green Crescent, which has touched the lives of many
people through the projects it has carried out at home and abroad, said, “Green Crescent is a world leader in
intervention and prevention, as well as rehabilitation.”
Green Crescent is a non-
governmental organization that
continues to provides services
in the fight against addiction,
while also operating in the field of
rehabilitation. Can you tell us about
the rehabilitation activities of
Green Crescent?
Addiction is a problem that affects the
social functioning of the individual,
but that concerns society as a whole.
The increase in addiction in recent
years has seen it become one of
the most serious global and social
issues. There are many factors that
push people to addiction, including
biological factors, socioeconomic level,
family communications, educational
attainment and hereditary factors,
which
are
often
interrelated.
Accordingly, this problem and the
treatment processes need to be
assessed from various points of view
and addressed in conjunction with
the medical, psychological and social
aspects of the disease. So, it is safe to
say that addiction is a problem that
requires holistic and multidisciplinary
approaches.InTurkey,thereisasystem
that is focused on medical treatment
to resolve the addiction problem, with
services provided by the Alcohol and
Drug Addiction Research, Treatment
and Education Center (AMATEM) and
the Child and Adolescent Substance
Abuse Treatment Center (ÇEMATEM).
However, addressing the problem
merely from a medical perspective is
not enough if the problem of addiction
is to be eradicated. A person who has
started treatment and has managed
to rid themselves of their addiction
often returns to the physical, social
and psychological environment that
first pushed them into addiction, and
they may be unable to withstand the
temptation and start using substances
again. Accordingly, we need to make
people psychologically stronger, to
help them acquire skills to learn a
profession, to strengthen their intra-
family relations, to make them feel the
value of their existence and to keep
them in a clean environment. The
provision of rehabilitation support to
addicted people is of vital importance,
in that it helps them take confident
steps forward in their treatment
process and to avoid regression after
their treatment has been concluded.
For this reason, we established
the Green Crescent Training and
Counseling Center (YEDAM), which
provides alcohol and drug addicts
with psychosocial support, free of
charge, and we are now launching the
Green Crescent Rehabilitation Center
to strengthen the bond between
treatment, rehabilitation and social
integration processes.
Photo: Semih Akbay
SULTAN IŞIK,
GENERAL MANAGER OF GREEN CRESCENT:
“GREEN CRESCENT IS A
WORLD LEADER ALSO
IN REHABILITATION”
28