Information for professionals

What A.A. is, in professional terms

A.A. is a self-supporting, non-professional fellowship of people recovering from alcoholism. It is free, available across the province seven days a week, and requires no referral, assessment, waiting list or funding. It is not a treatment programme and makes no claim to replace one. In practice it works best as long-term peer support running alongside whatever clinical care you provide.

What we can offer you and your client

• A meeting almost every day within reach of most KZN towns, plus online meetings — see the meeting finder.
• A helpline answered by members, seven days a week.
• A member to speak with your patient or client by phone, or to meet them and take them to their first meeting — often the difference between a referral that lands and one that does not.
• Speakers who will address staff, students, ward rounds, treatment groups or congregations about what A.A. is and how to use it.
• Meetings carried into hospitals, treatment centres and correctional facilities where they are invited.
• A.A. literature for your waiting room or programme.

What A.A. cannot do

It saves everyone time to be plain about the limits. A.A. does not diagnose, provide detox or medical care, prescribe, counsel, keep records, or take responsibility for a person’s attendance or outcome. We do not accept payment or outside funding, and we do not enter into formal service agreements.

On attendance letters: A.A. keeps no attendance registers, and the fellowship does not provide letters of reference to courts, parole boards, employers or agencies. Individual group secretaries will usually sign a card a person brings with them, as a courtesy — but that is a signature on your document, not a report from A.A.

Making a referral that works

1. Give the person the KZN helpline number, 031 143 5722, and the address of this site.
2. Where you can, look up a specific meeting with them — day, time and place — rather than handing over a general suggestion.
3. Ask whether they would like a member to phone them or meet them there. With their consent, we can usually arrange it.
4. Choose an open meeting if you or a family member intend to go along.
5. Let them know there is nothing to pay, nothing to sign, and no obligation to speak.

Medical note

Colleagues will not need reminding, but for completeness: abrupt cessation in a physically dependent drinker can be dangerous, and A.A. offers no medical supervision. We routinely encourage people with heavy daily use or a history of withdrawal symptoms to see a doctor first.

Anonymity in a professional setting

A.A. members do not disclose who attends, including to referring professionals. If you need to know whether somebody is attending, that has to come from them. At the level of press, radio, television and online media, members maintain personal anonymity — something to bear in mind when arranging coverage or public events.

Arranging a talk or a supply of literature

The KZN Intergroup can arrange a speaker for your team, ward, clinic, treatment programme, school or congregation, and can supply A.A. literature for waiting areas. Email kzn@aasouthafrica.org.za or phone 031 301 4959.