The Červený Dvůr Psychiatric Hospital specialises in treating patients with drug and alcohol addictions, as well as pathological gambling. With a capacity of over 100 patients, the hospital has helped men and women from all over the Czech Republic to cease substance abuse.
The hospital staff has however long been concerned for the female patients' safety in the mixed treatment setting. In addition, women's substance use and treatment differ from those of men, and the hospital saw a need to establish all-female treatment groups responsive to women's distinctive needs. Thanks to support from the EEA and Norway Grants, the renovated building welcomed its first patients in the summer of 2008, providing accommodation for 30 female patients.
According to hospital director Jirí Dvorácek, the new facility offers a dignified space for treatment for the female patients. "Without the support, the building would have had to be demolished. Instead, we now have a drug rehabilitation centre for women, which we are very proud of, and grateful for," Dvorácek said. While individual recovery and rehabilitation periods vary, the majority of the women are discharged after three to six months.
Drub abuse has traditionally been a male problem in the Czech Republic, but the proportion of female drug abusers has increased rapidly in the last decades. Concurrently, a growing need for specialised treatment facilities has emerged. There are however few rehabilitation centres for women, and where they exist, waiting lists are long and the accommodation often not ideal for female patients.
The Červený Dvůr Psychiatric Hospital is located on the outskirts of the picturesque town of Český Krumlov, in the very south of Bohemia, the Červený Dvůr Psychiatric Hospital is situated on the grounds of a historic castle complex. The medical facility opened already in 1966.