The Dominance of Drug Addiction Among Young People, and Expectant Mothers in the US - Literature review Example

Practice to policy paper As a social worker, it is the duty to try to find remedies for social problems, raise public consciousness against social injustices that can be improved. The problem of drug addiction, which acts as a stumbling block upon the young generation in US, is a highly serious social problem and a silent killer. It is the responsibility of a socially responsible person to save his/her fellow beings, who render their health to deadly drugs. The role of a social worker who can act as a mediator is crucial between the policy makers and the organizations which try to implement various treatments and rehabilitation programs among different social layers in the society. The problem that a drug addict and his/her family face is the total alienation from the mainstream of the society. Moreover, one of the family members has to keep a watchful eye upon the victim of the drug addiction and it can alter or control human behavior. It diminishes the capacity of a person to control his conduct and his/her conduct in the manner society expects from him/her. The person who is happened to be a victim of drug addiction may not be bantered about morals and values in a society. So, there is high chance to consider him/her as an antisocial being. It must be kept in mind that in the United States, the problem of drug addiction is considered as so serious that more than 11,000 specialized drug treatment facilities handle the tasks of drug related disorders. Most teenagers are attracted to the addiction of drugs either for company sake and to prove themselves that they are grown up to violate the strict laws set forward by the society, and wish to be in the hands of pleasure seeking principle. This is a disheartening sight for a dedicated social worker. The drug problem that the people of America face is transforming to a social epidemic that the crime rate of the country is increasing due to the increase in drug addiction among the people .Rudolph W. Giuliani feels that the drug problem in the US is increasing; however he does not consider it as a ‘plague’ or ‘mystical problem’ . Rather, he points out that the drug addiction problem is related to cultural factors in America : “This is a problem that we created in our culture, in our messages that we send to each other, we created this in the attitude that we have as a society ... in the 60s and in the 70s and we created it in the 80s.” (Giuliani 1998). The alarming problem of drug addiction may create serious problems in near future. Moreover, there is a close relation between crime rate and drug addiction. The rate of alcohol and drug addiction in children or youngsters is increasing at an alarming rate. All these factors prove that, if the problem of drug addiction is not tackled well, future generations will be doomed. http://home.nyc.gov/html/rwg/html/98b/drugpolicy.html http://home.nyc.gov/html/rwg/html/98b/drugpolicy.htmlSo, it must be considered that the problem of drug addiction not only create trouble to the individual but also to his/her social circle. But current statistics according to US Department of Health and Human Services study states that the number of teenagers who have been experimenting with alcohol and marijuana has declined. Research figures related to alcohol, nicotine, and marijuana smoking have shown a decline in daily use in US. The more threatening narcotic that is used by teenagers is cocaine and is cheaply available in the market. Richard M. Nixon (1972), referring to the statistical data made by the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs identifies that the number of ‘active addicts’ nationwide is 559,224 and that ‘between half and three-fifths of the nations opiate-dependent persons’ in the nation are from New York. It is estimated by the States Narcotic Control Commission that the total number of ‘active opiate-dependent persons’ in New York City would rise to 150,000 by 1971 whereas it was only 65,000 at the end of 1967 (Nixon 1972). The active addicts nationwide in US are 559,224, and the New York City is considered as the capital of drug addicts in US. The rate of crime is also high in this area and males arrested in America have drugs in their system at the time of arrest, which the deadly drug marijuana being the most detected drug. Moreover, the highest rates of teenaged that are treated are for marijuana dependence. The most drug affected areas in America are: Pacific North West, Portland, Ore, Kings County and Seattle. Heroine is the drug that is easily available in the market and its transmission is widespread among teenagers and criminals. Dr. Shahid Athar from Pakistan provides a vivid picture of the rate of drug addiction in America. According to him, among the 220 million citizens in the nation, alcoholics form 15 million of the total population whereas the number of heroine addicts, cocaine users, tranquilizer abusers and marijuana users are 2 million, 5.5 million, 6 million and 18 million respectively. He also points out that almost 10,000 children are born to the drug addicted mothers each year. Athar also throws light on the huge amount of cost for the rehabilitation and treatment of the drug addicted ($117 billion per year), and he places USA second only to Columbia in the production of marijuana (Athar). The problem of drug abuse in US is more serious than Asian countries. This is due to the availability of drugs from Latin American countries to US. Moreover, the victim of drug abuse is happened to be the second largest producer of marijuana, only next to Columbia. Related to this fact the hallucination according to drug addiction tempts the addicts to attempt crime and most of the addicts are with criminal background. Being a social worker, my experiences of working among drug addicts have provided me with useful information and insights regarding how the drug mafia operates itself among the youths and adolescents in the nation. Various gangs with criminal background flourish themselves in the drug affected regions in the nation. The drug mafia finds it easy to trap the youngsters and school children to drug addiction and later these victims themselves turn to be carriers of drugs. I have undertaken many awareness programs and seminars on drug abuse and related issues among the college students and youths in the community; however, as a social worker, I have felt that one needs to provide constant follow ups in this regard and that the governmental intervention should ensure community participation for the prevention of the malady. The family members, relatives, teachers and the other people who come in the close circle of the victim should socially include them and should provide them with the necessary emotional and mental support. As a social worker, the numerous reports and case studies of the pregnant women who use drugs have posed the greatest social threat to my profession. Social workers in US face a lot of constraints and hardships when it comes to the rehabilitation of the affected victims of drug. Besides, I have understood that the Governmental policies are not conducive enough for the social workers to render selfless services in this regard. One of the major issues that haunts any social worker in USA is the increasing rate of drug usage and addiction among the pregnant woman in America. The Statistics have been quite alarming. A study conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse revealed that in 1992, almost five percent of the four million women in the nation were drug addicts during their pregnancy and that the number of pregnant women who were prosecuted for using drugs during their pregnancy was around 240 between 1985 and 1998 (Fortney 2002). This increasing rate of the pregnant women who cause harm to the health of their children has resulted from lack of proper Governmental policies and this has prompted many to think of the need and necessity for both criminal and civil statutes for the eradication of illegal drug use by pregnant women. The effects of drug use by pregnant women are manifold due to the maternal-fetal link and as Susan Fortney (2002) points out, “given the maternal-fetal link, drugs such as cocaine directly and indirectly affect the fetus from conception to birth.” (Fortney 2002). Drug treatment and provision of effective counseling to the pregnant victims of drug addiction can serve as a better preventive measure to reduce drug use and many of the criminal activities associated with drug usage. The communities as well as the individuals are benefited when the Government makes legislative measures for its prevention and takes adequate measures to offer free drug treatment to the victims One of the major set backs in this regard, as observed by Lisa Eckenwiler (2004), was that the constitution offered unlimited privacy to the pregnant women and there were not any provisions in the legislation to bring the fetus in the scope of drug laws and effect criminal prosecution to the offenders (Eckenwiler 2004). However, there are some State and Federal statutes like the Welfare Reform Law and the Adoption and Safe Families Act which aim to target the women who happened to be the victims to drug addiction. These reforms made drastic changes to the present scenario as it employed serious preventive measures like the removal of the infant from the victim mother and even the termination of parental rights where drug abuse to the infant was clearly identified. However, the statutes have affected the women victims coming forward for drug treatment for fear of losing the infant from their custody. It is estimated that in 1999 the total amount spent on illicit drugs by the Americans amounted to $63.2 billion and according to Kay(2002), the ‘hard core addicts’ who formed only ‘less than one-quarter of the drug users’ in America consume ‘over two-thirds of the illegal drugs’ (Kay 2002). Thus, it is essential that the drug policy made by the Government should focus on this group of hard-core addicts. The Public Policy on drug addiction is affected by two opposing streams of thought. As Kay (2002) points out the first group is that of the prohibitionists who advocate ‘a punitive approach through the criminal justice system’, as they believe that strict laws are needed to tackle both the drug dealers and the drug users. The other stream of thought holds that education, prevention, and treatment can reduce the rate of drug abuse. A most desirable way to fight the widespread growth of drug addiction is to formulate public policies where by both prohibition and harm reduction of drug abuses are promoted. One of the significant strategies employed by the United States to tackle crimes related to heroin addiction is the methadone maintenance in the early 1960s. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), established in 1973, undertakes commendable measures for the implementation of government prevention programs. The Anti- Drug Abuse Act of 1986 enacted by the Congress sought to reduce the spread of cocaine and the Act made it mandatory that anyone who possessed cocaine is given a mandatory criminal sentence. Later, the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 was enacted with a view to include alcohol with other drugs and high penalties were levied for drunk driving. Efforts were also taken to ensure drug-free campuses in the nation. Drug use or sale was strictly prohibited in educational institutions with the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act Amendments. The Ecstasy Anti-Proliferation Act of 2000 and the Ecstasy Prevention Act of 2001 were passed with a view to address the issues of Ecstasy and other club drugs. However, one can notice that the Public policy on Drugs have not been successful in reducing the accessibility of drugs or drug trafficking. Analyzing the United States’ drug Policy, one understands that it is dominated by criminal justice agencies; however, one comes across two noteworthy programs that try to rehabilitate the victims of drug addiction. The Treatment Alternatives to Street Crime ("TASC") and the Therapeutic Communities ("TCs") programs stand out to be the two effective rehabilitation programs in USA as far as the drug users are concerned. The TASC is a private enterprise which operates effectively in more than 100 jurisdictions in the United States and very often it plays the role of a mediator between the criminal justice system and drug treatment communities. The primary goal of the TASC is to offer community treatment services to the victims of drug addiction. The TC offers correctional facilities to the victims to amend themselves by keeping them away from the rest of the prison population and the primary aim of the program is effect a drug-free lifestyle among drug addicts who have been rehabilitated. Both these programs have been proved beneficial and effective by the US Government that they are given sufficient amount of funding by the Federal Government. Aaron McNeece (2003) feels that the United States’ drug war has suffered serious set backs as the prohibition of illicit drugs have only increased the number of people arrested for drug related crimes. According to her, the country needs a paradigm shift in its public policy towards drug abuse and related crimes, “a switch from the "zero tolerance" philosophy to a policy of harm reduction, as well as the eventual decriminalization or legalization of some currently illicit drugs.” (Mcneece 2003). As mentioned earlier, US is the second largest producer of marijuana, only next to Columbia. So there is nothing good to be expected from the policy makers for the wellbeing of the future generations. The effective way to tackle the problem of drug abuse is to concentrate upon youth. Then only the root cause of the problem is treated effectively. Research studies prove that a person who can withstand from drugs up to the age of 21 is less likely to use it in his/her lifetime. Prevention programs related to drug abuse, which can be conducted in schools, can play an important role in molding hatred of drugs among the student population. Training programs which can be held in schools, can equip a teacher to take actions when a student is suspected of abusing drugs. Parenting strategies which mould the behavior and social relation of the youth can hinder him/her from wrong relationships, and ultimately from drug abuse. Community programs can be conducted in rural areas, which gives awareness of the side effects of drug abuse will be more helpful to the villagers who are far away from the urban area. Proper treatment and rehabilitation of the people who had undergone treatment is essential because there is high chance of using the drug again. Both the government and the public must be involved in the war against drug abuse and addiction. Another idea that can adopt is total ban over the production, import and export of drugs. Moreover, strict laws must be made and enforced on drug producers and distributors. So the remedial measures that are taken by the public and the government will affect the next generations, positively or negatively. From the perspective of a social worker, only thing that must be changed is the mind of the public towards the addicted millions. Bibliography ATHAR, http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/library/studies/duapip/pip3.htm Shahid Dr. The Alcohol & Drug Abuse: The American Scene And The Islamic Perspective. [online]. Islam-usa.com. http://www.islam-usa.com/im21.html Eckenwiler, Lisa. 2004. Why Not Retribution? the Particularized Imagination and Justice for Pregnant Addicts. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics. Vol. 32(1). Fortney, Susan 2002. A Jurisprudential Analysis of Government Intervention and Prenatal Drug Abuse. Journal of Law and Health. Vol. 17(1). GIULIANI, Rudolph W. (1998). Rethinking Americas Misguided Drug Policies. [online]. NYC.gov. Last accessed 18 August 2008 at: http://home.nyc.gov/html/rwg/html/98b/drugpolicy.html Kay, Amanda. 2002. The Agony of Ecstasy: Reconsidering the Punitive Approach to United States Drug Policy. Fordham Urban Law Journal. Vol. 29(5). Mcneece, C. Aaron. 2003. After the War on Drugs Is Over: Implications for Social Work Education. Journal of Social Work Education. Vol. 39(2). NIXON, Richard M. (1972). The Report of the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse: Drug Use In America: Problem in Perspective. [online]. Schaffer Library of Drug Policy. Last accessed 18 August 2008 at: http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/library/studies/duapip/pip3.htm Read More