Substance Abuse among the Underage Population in the City of Butler - Coursework Example

University affiliation

Justification of Chosen Topic:

The topic of the teaching plan entails the prevention of substance abuse among the underage population in the City of Butler. Based on a prior assessment of the community, the City of Butler has a population of 12, 885 people of whom, 21.6% are under the age of 18 years (QuickFacts, 2010). Another study revealed that drug and substance abuse is a problem that affects many people in their teenage years, whereby 14% of youths in the US abuse alcohol or drugs (HealthyPeople.gov, 2020). The data collected in the community assessment tool indicated that health and social services in the City of Butler are readily available to the community and that referrals to substance abuse and mental health treatments are available and they provide assistance to people struggling with drug and substance addiction (Butler County Outreach, n. d.). While there already exist functional structures for helping and rehabilitating people struggling with drug and substance addiction in the City of Butler, the satisfaction of the residents would also involve the realization of a healthy community free from drug and substance abuse. Currently, there are not adequate structures within the community for creating awareness with a view to deterring people below the age of 18 from engaging in or experimenting with drugs in the City of Butler.

As the population statistics show, about a fifth of the population in the City of Butler consists of people below the age of 18 (QuickFacts, 2010). The risk of drug and substance abuse on such a huge proportion of the community is high, and it could lead to significant damage to the welfare of the underage population and the community at large. The knowledge deficit among them regarding drug and substance abuse can increase the prevalence of experimenting on drugs leading to addiction, poor mental health, and other health problems later in their adult life. For instance, an assessment of the City of Butler using the community assessment tool revealed high rates of opioid drug abuse (Lord, 2018). There have been at least 92 fatal overdoses since 2014 in Butler's core ZIP Code, 16001. Although none of the overdoses were students, the district's reaction to the overdoses included the StandTall Program, in which some 250 students agreed to be subject to random drug testing, and march against heroin use (Lord, 2018). Such actions by the authorities indicate that underage students are not immune to the rampant use of drugs among members of the City of Butler community and that they need to be protected from engaging in such illegal and dangerous behavior.

The effect of dependency on drugs and substance abuse goes beyond poor health outcomes since drug abuse can lead to poor grades at school, absenteeism, or suicidal ideations (Justthinktwice.gov, 2020). For instance, 25% of tenth graders surveyed in the Butler Area School District admitted to contemplating suicide within the past year (Butler Health System, 2019). Therefore, efforts aimed at reducing underage use of alcohol and drugs through secondary prevention through community outreach and education, identifying affordable treatment and rehabilitation centers in the city of butler or Butler County or neighboring towns are worthwhile. Although some of the people in this target age group might decline to participate in the community outreach programs, it is necessary to create awareness among them to prevent them from falling into the trap of experimenting on drugs, thus securing a brighter future for themselves. As literature by Hawkins, Shapiro & Fagan (2010) reports, prevention strategies within a community such as community outreach or teaching programs are a useful tool for addressing problems such as drug and substance abuse and related health and social disorders. Further, breakthroughs within the community in terms of the underage population being free from drug abuse and its associated comorbidities will help the students benefit from the existing higher learning institutions and libraries within the community, thereby advancing their dreams and careers in the future. The school district's graduation rate of 83% has decreased from 89% over five school years. (Butler Area School District, 2020).

Site Identification:

The venue where the teaching can take place will be the Butler YMCA. This local YMCA is a commonplace located in the City of Butler, Pennsylvania, where individuals, families, children, and teenagers gather for recreational activities such as dance lessons, yoga, kids bowling, childcare, and dances (Butler YMCA, 2020). As such, the venue is well known in the community, it is easily accessible, and it is large enough to accommodate a large number of participants in a community teaching program. Since the venue is also family-friendly, it is acceptable to underage students, and it provides a suitable environment that most of the participants can identify with and feel free to associate with their peers (Butler YMCA, 2020). The Butler YMCA has a mission aiming at youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. Therefore, the theme of drug and substance abuse prevention aptly aligns with the mission of the facility (Butler YMCA, 2020). All in attendance would be pleased to know that the facility offers several recreation activities for underage students to engage in during their leisure time instead of getting involved in drug abuse.

The teaching program will be focused on underage students in middle school and those in high school. Since the two groups are of different ages, the teaching plan will be organized into sessions, one for middle school students and the other for high school students. This will allow the teaching material to be tailored according to the cognitive abilities and needs of each group of students. The Butler YMCA is an appropriate location to have discussions regarding drug and substance abuse since it's a serene environment for children and teenagers alike, providing them with an opportunity to socialize. Among the middle school children, recreation activities can be integrated between teaching sessions assisting the children in enjoying the forum. For high school students, the location is appropriate since it will provide them with an opportunity to identify mentors, social workers, counselors and other professionals they can reach out to when they need assistance to face the pressure on drug abuse.

Discussions regarding drug abuse in this location is appropriate since many people come across temptations to abuse drugs during their leisure time or when enjoying recreational activities. As a recreational venue within the community, the attendees will be pleased to know that the Butler YMCA is a drugs free zone and a place where people can enjoy wholesome recreational activities. The teaching program will be planned on the weekend on two separate Saturdays since that’s the day when many underage students are available. In the first session, middle school students will be invited while the high school students will be invited on the consecutive Saturday. Additionally, other children who happen to be passing by can gain interest in joining their peers who will have attended the program.

Marketing Plan:

Social media is the most appropriate and effective tool for marketing the teaching program. Among teenage students, literature by Lenhart et al. (2010) reports that social media usage has risen significantly therefore, advertising the event through social media networks will reach a majority of the underage students. In particular, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram will be utilized to pass information regarding the event. Captivating posts will be prepared that contain information regarding the event and shared in the social networking platforms. The post will highlight the theme of the event, venue, sessions, meeting time, contact information and attending speakers while additional details regarding the event will be accessed by clicking an online flyer that advertises the event which will also accompany the advert in the post. The venue in itself will attract many students to attend since most of them would be fascinated by the recreational facilities provided by the facilities. Additionally, all in attendance will be provided with free lunch and refreshments as other incentives that will appeal to them and make attend the event. For the subpopulations which might not access social media networks, other advertising channels will be utilized. Such channels include posters which will be put in the community, pamphlets and radio advertisement through Rock Radio station (Butler Radio, 2020). the advertisements will emphasize on the need of abstaining from drug and substance abuse while attracting parents to allow their children to attend the teaching program.

Objectives:

• The underage student will know what drugs are and what drug abuse entails.
• The underage students will be able to identify drugs that are commonly abused.
• The underage students will be able to identify how they can get exposed to drug abuse.
• The underage students will be able to know the negative effects of drug and substance abuse
• The underage students will be able to know how to decline offers to take drugs.
• The underage students will know the benefits of declining to engage in drugs and substance abuse.
• The underage students will know where they can get help on dealing with pressure to engage in drugs.

Content Outline:

-Definitions

(Drugs, drug abuse)

-Drugs of abuse

According to an assessment on the City of Butler using the community assessment tool, an opioid epidemic is looming in the area (Lord, 2018). Therefore, those in attendance should know how identify opioids and other drugs.

-Routes of drug administration.

(injections, inhalation, oral)

-Ways of exposure to drug ad substance abuse. (peer pressure, desire to experiment, second-hand exposure, influence from media personalities, and impact of degrading TV programs)

-Effects of drug and substance abuse

(Addiction, poor grades, weak immune system, nausea, abdominal pain, brain damage, cognitive problems, dropping out, lung disease and STDs)

-Benefits of saying no to drugs and substance abuse

(good health, better performance at school, good role model to other siblings, satisfaction)

-How to decline offers to engage in drugs and substance abuse

(being firm, reflecting on the negative effects of drug abuse, individual responsibility, strengthening personal convictions)

-Demonstrating a real-life example of how the attendees can face a temptation to try drugs

-Assisting the attendees to realize that there is no shame in looking for help from adults they can trust.

-Identify readily available sources of help

(emphasizing on the need to communicate with parents, teachers or caregivers, introducing mentors and counselors available in the school environment and in the community, and community support groups)

Learning Development & Activities:

-Handouts titled ‘Say No to Drugs in the City of Butler’ will be provided to the teaching assistants. Soft copies will also be made available.

-Tablets will be utilized to access justthinktwice.gov and campusdrugprevention.gov to show the attendees what drugs look like, and the consequences of abusing drugs.

-The students will be divided into two cohorts, middle school students and high school students. The two cohorts will attend the teaching sessions on separate days.

-The teaching content will be prepared and tailored to the needs, cognitive capacity and appropriateness of each cohort.

-Each of the teaching content will be taught in a different station and the participants will work through the information in groups.

-Therefore, in every cohort, the underage students who will attend the program will be subdivided into equal proportions in terms of number and before the sessions start.

-In every station there will be a question and answer session where attendees will be given an opportunity to ask questions and get clarifications.

- The teaching staff will demonstrate how to say no to drugs. Later three students in that station will be called upon to demonstrate how they would decline offers to take drugs.

-Invited speakers, comprising of counselors, religious leaders and support group representatives who will be in attendance will be allowed to talk the attendees as a way of allowing them to know their work and how they can help.

-Contact information regarding the local community agencies that can be utilized to reach out will be shared, especially for the underage high school students (Butler County Outreach, n.d.)

-Additional information will be provided regarding mentors, counselors, religious leaders and support group representatives in the City of Butler who will be in attendance.

-Helplines for hospitals will be shared to assist students to reach out in case of an emergency.

-Pre and Post tests will be completed by participants

-Upon completion of the teaching program, attendees will be allowed to participate in recreational activities in the venue.

-Also, the attendees will have an opportunity to socialize with the invited speakers as a way of networking with them and learning from them.

Evaluation:

-Pre and post tests will be used to assess the knowledge of the attendees after the teaching program. -The test will focus on drug abuse, types of drugs that are commonly abused, effects of drug abuse, benefits of saying no to drugs and people that one can reach out to for support.

-When demonstrating how to decline the temptation to try out taking drugs, the teaching demonstration will be repeated in different settings based on the local needs. Evaluation will be done through a teach-back method where participants will be encouraged to exemplify their skill.

-Follow-up through question and answer will be used to determine whether the attendees any clarifications that need to be made.