Hospitals and Institutions (H&I)

Hospitals & Institutions Subcommittee

If you are interested in participating in an H&I meeting at one of the facilities below, please contact the H&I secretary at naboulder.handi.sec@gmail.com and / or attend the subcommittee meeting.

H&I Meetings coming up:

Next Subcommittee Meeting:

Tuesday March 12 6:30pm MT
United Methodist Church
355 Ponca Place Boulder, CO (Same location as Boulder Wednesday and Saturday meetings)
Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82276247981?pwd=cUE5OTNIODlCL0Y1OHlOMjh2SythZz09

Meeting ID: 822 7624 7981
Passcode: 161122

Regular H&I subcommittee business meetings are held every other month (odd numbered) on the second Tuesday of the month at 6:30 pm. Please see the Boulder Area NA meeting list for the location.


Link to recorded H&I speaker meetings: http://b.link/na-co-speaker

 


Hospitals & Institutions (H&I)

If you would like to contact the Boulder H&I subcommittee or need historical subcommittee meeting minutes, please email us at naboulder.handi.sec@gmail.com

Boulder Area Hospitals & Institutions

What We Do

The Boulder Area Hospitals & Institutions (H&I) Subcommittee is a group of service members of Narcotics Anonymous (NA), which exists for the purpose of carrying the NA recovery message to addicts in hospitals, recovery houses, prisons, and related facilities. H&I members are governed by the general rules of the facilities in which we operate. The H&I Subcommittee is accountable to the Boulder Area Service Committee of NA.

Our H&I subcommittee exists to share the NA message, our experience, strength and hope in accordance with our Fifth Tradition which states that we have, “but one primary purpose, to carry the message to the addict who still suffers.”

Regular H&I subcommittee business meetings are held every other month (odd numbered) on the second Tuesday of the month at 6:30 pm. Please see the Boulder Area NA meeting list for the location.

A full report of the H & I Guidlines can be found here.

What You Need to Know

Clean Time Requirements

  • No clean time required to attend subcommittee meetings
  • 3 months clean time required to attend meetings and 6 months clean time required to speak on panels (outside of jails)
  • Centennial Peaks Hospital (CPH)- 3 months clean time to attend and 6 months to share. Members must not have been a patient at the hospital for two years.
  • Boulder County Jail- 3 years off paper and 1 year clean
  • Jails require H&I members to attend orientation and submit a volunteer application, which includes a background check

Where You Can Serve

Please see our Help Wanted Announcement at the top of this page, email the H&I Secretary at naboulder.handi.sec@gmail.com, and/or attend our subcommittee meeting for more information.  

Boulder Area of Hospitals and Institutions (H & I) Do’s and Don’ts of H & I Service:

DO’s

  • Do Remember that this is a “we” program. No addict should feel that he/ she is being preached to.
  • Do Remember that an addict is an addict, regardless of age.
  • Do Tell them that there is fun in recovery, i.e., social events, fellowship, etc.
  • Do Acknowledge and validate their feelings and emotions.
  • Do Make directories of outside meetings available to residents.
  • Do Clarify the facility’s rules with anyone you bring in.
  • Do Start and end on time!
  • Do Briefly explain what H&I is.
  • Do Make it clear that NA is separate and distinct from the facility as well as other fellowships.
  • Do Try to get residents involved, especially those in long-term facilities (i.e. literature person, coffee maker, readings, etc.)
  • Do Obey all dress codes. Exercise common sense and dress appropriately.
  • Do Keep staff aware of your whereabouts at all times.
  • Do Stamp all literature you bring into a facility with the local helpline number.
  • Do Screen all panel members carefully, especially regarding the clean time or other requirements.

 

DON’Ts

  • Don’t Glorify your past.
  • Don’t Say, “I feel like I’m talking to my kids.”
  • Don’t Compare your bottom to theirs.
  • Don’t Patronize adolescents.
  • Don’t Use profanity.
  • Don’t Break another person’s anonymity or tell their story.
  • Don’t Debate any issues involving facility rules or regulations.
  • Don’t Get involved in discussions on outside issues; remember why we are there.
  • Don’t While sharing; put too much focus on what it was like. They already know.
  • Don’t Debate which drugs are acceptable. NA is a program of complete abstinence from all drugs.
  • Don’t Discuss conditions within the facility, or opinions about staff members.
  • Don’t Carry excessive cash or wear expensive or flashy jewelry.
  • Don’t Show favoritism to any resident(s).
  • Don’t Take messages in or out of the facility.
  • Don’t Give out contact information for you or anyone else.
  • Don’t Carry in any contraband items, such as cigarettes (if applicable) or weapons.
  • Don’t mention any specifics about your higher power, (it keeps the NA message clear)

Remember at all times that you have a responsibility to the facility, to the residents, and to NA. If you observe the above suggestions, and follow the Twelve Traditions, you will uphold your responsibilities to all three.

H & I Do’s and Don’ts (PDF)