Drug abuse is a problem on individual and societal levels. It affects the success of individuals and the production they give back to society. Intervening in drug problems can save lives and money. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, interventions in drug abuse can be effective whether they are done by families, schools, communities or the media.
Parents
Parents need to use their influence to intervene in drug use and abuse. The best intervention in drug abuse is to prevent the use from starting. According to the MayoClinic.com, parents should play a significant role in preventing young people's drug use by discussing the risks of abuse, challenging their children not to use by helping them develop specific ways to resist peer pressure, being knowledgeable about their child's friends and whereabouts and always being supportive of their children. Children who have friends who use drugs are more likely to use drugs themselves, reports Teen's Health.org.
Despite the feelings otherwise among some parents, parents do play an influential role in the life of their children, and standing up to drug abuse will make their child less likely to use or continue to use. While giving a child proper guidance and support will not ensure that the child does not use drugs, it will increase the chances, notes TKidsHealth.org.
Schools
Schools should intervene in drug use by offering their support, education on drugs and a positive environment for students who do not use drugs. Children should be taught about drug use at a very early age. Academic programs need to provide students with all the information on the risks of drug use, but do not gloss over the positive reasons why people use drugs.
When a child is found to be using drugs, school systems should offer him the necessary support and encouragement he needs instead of pushing him out of school. At the same time, schools need to maintain the safety of the other students and ensure the drug use does not spread.
Drugs should be kept out of the school. Easy access to drugs only increases the chances for use, reports the MayoClinic.com. Therefore, the more schools keep drugs off their campuses, the lower the chances that some students will ever begin using.
Friends
Interventions in drug abuse can be done by friends. Offering a supportive and caring friendship to someone who is abusing drugs can help her overcome the drug problem. HelpGuide.org suggests that friends should tell the user about how her drug use concerns them and offer on-going support. They should avoid making excuses or covering up for a friend's drug abuse; this will only perpetuate the abuse.
Mental Health
Many times, drug problems occur as a result of untreated mental health conditions because people use drugs to self-medicate and reduce their symptoms. Therefore, having proper and easily accessible mental health screening and treatment programs can help to curb drug problems. People should be provided direct and open access to effective mental health services. Also, people should work to reduce the stigmas that are associated with mental health problems.
