Priory welcomed a delegation from the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Social Development in the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa to Priory Hospital Roehampton last week (26 March) to share expertise in addiction treatment and recovery.
The group, comprising eight Members of Parliament and two officials, visited the hospital to learn more about Priory’s approach to supporting people and their families experiencing alcohol and drug addiction.
The visiting delegation was led by Hon Bridget Masango MP (Democratic Alliance), Chairperson of the Committee, and included representatives from across the political spectrum, reflecting a shared commitment to addressing addiction and social development challenges.
During the visit, Priory colleagues shared their experience of delivering structured, evidence-based addiction treatment pathways, alongside the importance of therapeutic support, family involvement and continuity of care in supporting sustained recovery.
The delegation was hosted by Dr William Shanahan, Medical Director, Dr Donald Masi, Associate Medical Director, Ellis Frost, Addiction Therapy Programme Lead, Lettie Zulus, Director of Clinical Services and Alexandra Squire-Morrow, Hospital Director.
The visit provided an opportunity to exchange insights on how different health and social care systems are responding to addiction, as well as explore shared challenges around access to treatment, prevention and long-term recovery support.
Masango said: “The Portfolio Committee was very honoured to have such an insightful meeting with the Dr Shanahan and his colleagues. We learned important lessons, most importantly the need to understand a person’s background and context as possible underlying causes of addiction in order to provide appropriate treatment. We also learned a lot about the importance of family involvement in ensuring a successful long-term recovery.”
Priory is the largest independent provider of mental health, addiction and working-age adult social care services in the UK, supporting 24,000 people a year across 270 sites.