Drug Advice Support going strong

Looking back at how the project has grown not just in number of subscribers but also our advisors on the Drug Advice Support (DAS) is so encouraging. Today as the guys were setting up (see image above) and getting ready to run DAS it is so exciting to see the passion that our advisors have to reconstruct the lives of thousands of people accross our nation. I know that the sacrifices the advisors have made are not in vain and we are seeing the fruits of their labour.

A year ago the team offering advice support on DAS
Well done to the Reconstructed Team for changing the world of citizens of our nation using technology.

A year of Drugs, Sex & Mobile Phones

One year has passed and so many things has happened since we "officially" launched Drug Advice Support (previously known as idmtalk). Drug Advice Support (DAS) is one of our large projects, part of our Living Lab activity, and it emerged out of a need in a community that were experiencing the scourge of drug addiction and violence. Using men and women from the community we started a journey that will change our lives and thousands others forever. This service uses mobile phones as a medium to connect with people all across South Africa offering advice and support to those in need (Mobile Active description of DAS).

Since then we've been in more than 50 articles (that we are aware of!!), 3 television appearances, more than 20 radio interviews and we still believe that we have so much to offer of how technology can be used to make a difference in the lives of many. We've had our server crash, got a team from UWC (Wesley and Paul) using the Chisimba platform as a basis for DAS to co-develop with the community a system that could support the large number of requests. With 19 registered advisors (4 Full time)who all come from the local community of Bridgetown, Cape Town, South Africa the following are some indication of what was achieved during 250 hours online (31 July 2009):

- Number of Subscribers: 9,193
- Number of Messages: 746,440
- Number of Conversations : 30,685
- Number of Conversations related to drugs: 18,963
- Average number of conversations per session: 30,685 / 250 hours = 122.5 per hour or 245 per session
- Maximum number of conversations 473 and the Minimum 21
- Average number of Messages = 1422 per session (Max 3678, Min 234)
- Average number of conversations per Advisor in a session = 24 (Min 4, Maximum 56)

Other interesting statistics were:

- TiK (Crystal Meth) was the most popular drug with 6637 related conversations followed by Heroin with 3223.
- 13% [1211] of subscribers were using this service to get support for a family member.
- 4% [403] of Subscribers are getting offline help/support or counselling after using the service (This is known cases through feedback conversations).




This clearly shows us an example of where mobile phones can be used for social good and make the difference in the lives of literally thousands in a nation. Bare in mind that all this was done with very little resources bu a group of extraordinary individuals passionate about reconstructing their communities.
So through all of this we cried and laughed together, celebrated when DAS subscribers were victorious and saddened when they were struggling, but we've made it and we are still standing. So what makes this year so special that others want to read or hear about it? Simple it is about people caring about other people and giving the little that they have to see lives being Reconstructed. A special thanks to the team of DAS who makes this more than a project of Drugs, Sex and Mobile Phones, but one of where we united can make a difference in our communities and nation.

A True Hero

This evening as I was reflecting an exciting day presenting at the SAFIPA conference and being part of this year's Mail & Guardian Young South Africans to take to lunch I realised who are our true heroes.



With so many extraordinary individuals around us, I would like to commend and honour one of our Reconstructed Team members for putting others before himself. Craig "King" Ross lost his father yesterday and the sudden loss of a father, husband and friend is a very traumatic experience. Craig selflessly came to offer support today via our Drug Advice Service (DAS) helping many people (1293 messages today alone) across the nation even though he lost his father. The manner which he serves his community and others in South Africa is incredible. Yet very few people would give credit to the work he is doing and the lives he is touching and this without expecting anything in return. Therefore this post is to honour Craig for showing us what true Reconstruction is all about that he would put others before himself in the midst of a time of mourning for the Ross family.

He is a true example of a son for his father the late Mr. Ross and we know that he will carry on a legacy through the work he is doing reconstructing communities. Craig "King" Ross you are a true hero to many and your father is proud of you. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family during this time.

DELL SA Development Fund

Last week Friday DELL SA Development Fund came to our rescue by delivering our Servers and laptops for the Drug Advice Support project. This donation means that we can extend our service hours now from Monday to Thursday (4-6pm)and Saturday (4-6pm). The Athlone Living Lab (ALL) would like to thank DELL SA Development Fund for this contribution that would make a difference in the lives of many individuals who are impacted by the scourge of substance abuse.

Drug Advice Support (DAS) celebrates 20 000 conversations

Yesterday DAS celebrated 20 000 conversations since its inception. What makes this such a great achievement is that it was done by young men and women who many thought had no hope for a changed life, but whose reconstructed lives are now touching a nation. We are not just celebrating the fact that we've reached another milestone in this project but also the lives of the reconstructed team, who against all odds conquered the fight against drug addiction and crime. Today they are beacons of hope in our communities and to many others who feel all hope is gone. This is a testimony that a Reconstructed Life leads to a Reconstructed community. Well done to the DAS team on this great achievement. Follow us on twitter @reconstructed

Using Free and Open Source Software to fight drug abuse

An article appeared in the UWC campus newsletter...

"An increase in gang and drug activity on the Cape Flats in the Western Cape Province has been causing tension within communities. These activities have a negative impact on citizens in these communities and contribute to a sense of helplessness. Reconstruction or rehabilitation of ex-drug addicts and ex-gangsters are challenging due to communities with tension not being able to empower these citizens or the addicts themselves being unwilling to be rehabilitated. This presented the opportunity for the use of technology as part of the helping substance abusers to rebuild their lives.

A project called DAS@Mxit was the brain child of Marlon Parker, an IT lecturer from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). The project uses mobile and web technologies, including the popular cell phone chat application Mxit. In collaboration between CPUT and UWC's Free Software Innovation Unit in ICS, a system was developed to offer counselling, advice, frequently asked questions for people impacted by drug and substance abuse. DAS@Mxit is aimed at (but not limited to) MXit users. This allows a user to send and receive text and multimedia messages to and from PCs and phones via the Internet, rather than with standard SMS technology." ...

Paul and Wesley, key architects and developers on the DAS project (Source:dkeats.com)

Drug Advice Support Stats

Today we had another successful session with DAS using MXit. In our two hour session we managed to get more than 1400 messages. The good news is that we are moving in the right direction with the development of the system as it seems to be more stable in recent sessions. We definitely excited of the prospects of what lies ahead with this project.

More interesting stats on this is that since our inception of DAS on MXit we've had over 8000 conversations and more than 20 000 messages. This is really indicating that what we're doing is needed in our communities. Special thanks to all the men and women who works endlessly on this system ensuring that many people accross our nation are being assisted.