Drug Abuse Problem in Modern Society - Essay Example

Social Problem: Drug Abuse The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical discussion of drug abuse in our modern society and the effect that it has on our community and society. The format that this paper will utilize is to first identify the social problem and provide some reasoning as to why it is a social problem. Building on this last point, this paper will also describe how this problem affects specifically Americans. Secondly this paper will provide a critical discussion as to what is being done to help resolve the problem of drug abuse by providing examples of approaches that are being undertaken to resolve the issue as well as two major approaches that are not currently in use. To address this issue, the paper will draw on a variety of different sources as well as give some personal opinions on the matter. There is little question that drugs can play a very positive role in our modern society. Drugs are often prescribed or taken in moderation to help our physical health, and in this respect one can consider drug use to be beneficial to our societal well being. According to the World Health Organization (1969) a drug is in its most basic terms, a substance that can be absorbed into the body to modify a bodily function. In this respect one could consider any number of chemically engineered and naturally occurring substances as being classified as a drug. However in a more common context and for the purpose of this paper, the focus will be on drugs that are taken for recreational purposes to the determent of one’s personal health (Or wellbeing) or to those around the drug taker in question. For the purpose of this paper the focus will be on more traditional drugs such as alcohol, cannabis, opiates, barbiturates, etc. It should be noted that many of thee drugs are legally obtained, either over the counter, or through prescription yet still maybe detrimental. There are many substances such as coffee which technically meet the definition of being a drug and may be detrimental to one’s health but in the broadest sense these substances are not as detrimental to society as a number of other more powerful narcotics. Why are drugs considered a societal problem? In many circumstances people can take drugs recreationally and not harm themselves. So it is the case that a drug such as alcohol in the hands of most people does not represent a serious threat to society or one’s health. However it is the case that some people do negatively respond to the stimuli brought about from alcoholic beverage consumption and engage in behavior that could be considered damaging to society. According to the Government of Australia (2010) there are a number of ‘Societal costs’ associated with drug abuse and misuse which can be broken up into six major categories. Firstly it is the case that narcotics can be a contributing factor to violence and crime. In this regard, the consumption of narcotics can severely impair one’s judgment and a person could typically engage in violent behavior that is uncharacteristic of the individual in question owing to the lapse in judgment. Building on this point, certain drugs (And prolonged drug use) may directly bring about violent behavior depending on the individual and drug in question. Secondly, drugs can be considered a major contributing factor to family problems. According to Henderson (2008) it has been postulated that early drug abuse amongst adolescents are 2.4 to 5 times more likely to have significant family problems in their future lives which may arguably bring about negative family outcomes such as dropping out of school, criminal convictions, early pregnancy, exposure to STD’s or chronic health problems. Naturally these factors create stresses on any family environment whether it be the caretakers for the adolescents involved or the long term family relationships established by the adolescents later in life. Thirdly, drugs are influential in the amount of accidents and deaths. Anybody who is familiar with drunk driving laws understands the fact that certain drugs impair ones judgment to the point that risk of serious injury is a real possibility. In this circumstance, the person who has consumed the drug may bring about serious risks to people other than themselves. According to the United States department of transportation results from studies carried out over the last few decades indicate that approximately 40-55% of all fatally injured drivers have blood alcohol levels over the legal limit. Fourthly, it may be the case that drug abuse can contribute to work related problems. There are direct risks associated with consuming drugs on the premises of ones employment such as the risk of injury while operating heavy machinery, or impaired judgment that leads to poor allocation of resources. Building on this point, there are risks associated with workplace downtime resulting from workers unable to complete their assigned tasks from drug use and/or long term health problems from prolonged drug use. Fifthly, drugs may be a strong contributing factor to chronic illness and death. Whilst some moderate recreational drug use (Specifically alcohol) may pose no health problems there is little question that prolonged, excessive drug consumption is typically detrimental to one’s health. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (2010) the most typical damage caused by most substances abusers is chronic respiratory, liver and neurological problems. Impaired judgment resulting from drug abuse may cause people to engage in sexual behavior which could lead to pregnancy or the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Building on this point, Intravenous drug abuse in which people share needles may cause the spread of diseases. Lastly, there are a number of ancillary problems associated with drug use. In this regard this category encompasses everything not listed above such as accidental property damage caused by impaired judgment such as fires started while smoking cannabis, or environmental accidents such as spilling petroleum products on soil whilst inhaling gasoline. Why drug abuse negatively affects all Americans owes to the varying degrees of impact from each drug. As mentioned earlier chronic illness from drug abuse can place strain on American health care providers. Work related problems from drug use hurts the bottom line of many corporations and can lead to unnecessary cutbacks and layoffs. Lastly there is the case that drug abusers may cause direct harm to individuals other than themselves such as drunk drivers injuring/killing sober drivers etc. Naturally there have been a number of proposed solutions to drug abuse problems with varying degrees of success. For example in the 1920’s and early 30’s, the United States implemented a prohibition of alcoholic beverages. According to the United States National Archives (2010) the beginnings of prohibition came from the temperance movement which sought to help people who had substance abuse problems. However the enforcement of these laws became nearly impossible owing to the illegal importation, distribution and production of alcohol. It was further estimated that in New York City alone there were between 25,000 and 100,000 speakeasy clubs. What this implies is that outright banning of a particular substance is not a fool proof plan for eliminating its problematic consumption. As such a number of alternative means for helping people with problematic drug use have been proposed. Firstly there are the use drug treatment programs. However in order to get the offender to enter the program there is often the use of intervention counseling to help serve as a catalyst for drug abusers. In this circumstance friends, family members and anybody strongly affected by the perpetrator persuade the offender to enter some sort of treatment or risk severing all interpersonal relationships and support networks. Once the person is in the program there may be the use of one or more of the following treatments; twelve step program, anti-addictive drug use, cognitive behavioral therapy, group counseling, and alternative therapies such as counseling. In the use of twelve step programs according to alcoholics anonymous (2001) the program entails a gradual and systematic process in which an individual takes steps to create an admission of guilt and recognition of shortcomings in order to make improvements to ones life (See Appendix #1 for the 12 steps). The next major treatment option is for patients to utilize an anti-addictive drug such as methadone (Typically for people addicted to opiates). According to Connock et al. (2007) Methadone treatments offer a much ore cost effective and clinically successful treatment for patients addicted to opiates than alternatives. The treatment works by nature of it having a type of tolerance for other opioids and can help patients typically suffering from withdrawal symptoms, and in higher doses can block the effect of opiods effectively rendering them useless. In terms of treatments that are not currently in use in the United States the first that comes to mind would be the legalization and control of soft drugs. In this circumstance the American government could adopt a policy similar to that of the Netherlands which according to the European Legal Database on Drugs (2010) allows for the sale of cannabis products in a controlled environment. In this circumstance the illegal drug trade for cannabis products is nearly eliminated which allows for stricter control of the legally traded product eliminating the cross pollination with stronger products such as crystal methamphetamine. In this respect the sale of cannabis in the Netherlands resembles the sale of alcohol in the United States which (Depending on state legislation) would prohibit the sale of products to intoxicated persons, minors etc. The major problems that result from this policy are that it only affects soft drugs which are arguably not as addictive and as harmful as hard drugs. Secondly it could be argued that people with chronic cannabis dependency will use this opportunity to consume even more drugs. As an final alternative treatment policy that is not currently in practice in the United States, State governments could utilize free drug clinics. In Vancouver, Canada, according to the CBC (2005) by giving heroin away to addicts for free the city government hopes to reduce overdoses, HIV infection and petty crime for the purpose of procuring funds for drug habits. Furthermore by keeping these individuals in a controlled scenario doctors hope to persuade individual drug addicts to enter treatment facilities and hopefully kick their addiction. The downside to this policy is that drug addicts will simply use this opportunity to engage in more drug use at the cost of taxpayers and effectively not ‘kick their habit.’ Appendices Appendix #1 Alcoholics Anonymous 12 Steps 1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol because our lives had become unmanageable. 2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. 3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him. 4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. 5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. 6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character. 7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings. 8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. 9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others. 10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it. 11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out. 12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs. Available online at http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline/en_bigbook_chapt5.pdf Accessed on March 3rd 2010. References Alcoholics Anonymous (2001). Chapter 5: How It Works. Alcoholics Anonymous (4th ed.). Alcoholics Anonymous World Services. CBC NEWS (2005) Vancouver Clinic Offers Free Heroin in North American First. [online] Available at http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/02/10/heroin-050210.html#ixzz0hBKCuxJS Accessed on March 3rd 2010. Connock M, Juarez-Garcia A, Jowett S,. (2007). Methadone and Buprenorphine for the Management of Opioid Dependence: a Systematic Review and Economic Evaluation. Health technology assessment (Winchester) European Legal Database on Drugs (2010) Country Profile: The Netherlands [online] Available at http://eldd.emcdda.europa.eu/html.cfm/index5174EN.html# Accessed on March 3rd 2010. Henderson, M. (2008) Drug Abuse a ‘Cause not Effect’ of Social Problem. The Times. [online] Available at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/article4958885.ece Accessed on March 3rd 2010. National Institute on Drug Abuse (2010) Drugs of Abuse Information [online] Available at http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugpages/ Accessed on March 3rd 2010. World Health Organization. (1969). WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence. Sixteenth report. (Technical report series. No. 407).Geneva:World Health Organization. Government of Australia: Northern Territory (2010) Drug Related Problems [online] Available at http://www.nt.gov.au/health/healthdev/health_promotion/bushbook/volume2/chap1/problems.htm Accessed on March 3rd 2010. United States Department of Transportation (1998) 2- Overview of the Alcohol-Crash Problem. [online] Available at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/research/AlcoholHighway/2__overview.htm Accessed on March 3rd 2010. United States National Archives (2010) Teaching With Documents: The Volstead Act and Related Prohibition Documents. [online] Available at http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/volstead-act/ Accessed on March 3rd 2010. Read More