MESON DE DIOS

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Meson de Dios was established in 2000, by the former Director of the Teen Challenge Rehabilitation Centre, Nilo Mercedes, in the Dominican Republic. He was keen on helping people who could not adapt to the Teen Challenge regime and also had the desire to provide assistance to current drug users living on the streets of Santo Domingo.

Meson de Dios, aside from running residential faith based treatment centres, opened in 2001 one of the first Drop-In Centres in the Caribbean Region. The Drop-in Centre, located in the well known slum of Capotillo in Santo Domingo, provides health and counselling service to current drug users living in the street, including sex-workers, who are heavily affected by drug abuse and related health problems, in particular HIV.

The Drop-in Centre in Capotillo supports about 150 clients per week and has also started a "HIV Positive Living Group" among the Drop-In Centre clients with the support of REDOVIH, an NGO working with people living with HIV-AIDS.

 

From 2007 Meson de Dios teams up with volunteers who have been expanding the outreach services to other nearby slums to Capotillo.

The Dominican Republic is the first Island state in the Caribbean region where heroin injecting has been reported. Today the country is witnessing a considerable growth of its drug injecting population.

This is confirmed by Treatment Centres and government institutions. Meson de Dios is committed to promote a harm reductive approach to drug users and slum dwellers. The organisation, aside from providing harm reduction services, offers networking and expertise to the Dominican Republic government and National Drug Council with a view to improve and scale up the provision of harm reduction policies and services in the country.