Psychoactive Substance Use and Abuse
A psychoactive substance refers to any chemical which both impacts the central nervous system and the way the brain functions. Psychoactive substances refer to stimulants (cocaine, methamphetamine, dextroamphetamine), sedatives and analgesics (alcohol, heroin), hallucinogens (PCP, psychoactive mushrooms). As stated in the DSM-IIIR "psychoactive substance abuse is given the definition of being "a maladaptive pattern of use indicated by continued use despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent social, occupational, psychological or physical problem that is caused by the use [or by] recurrent use in situations in which it is physically hazardous" (Nordegren, 2002, p.11).
Social Effects
The social impact of psychoactive substance use and abuse on widespread scale is enormously detrimental to society. "In a 2005 report issued by the Department of Health and Human Services indicated that alcohol was associated with 100,000 preventable deaths each year and that it cost taxpayers nearly $185 billion annually" (Lundy & Janes, 2009 p.483). This fact is exceedingly revelatory as it encompasses both use and abuse -- recreational drinkers and abusive ones as well. This fact demonstrates that even with the most socially acceptable psychoactive substance, there's a formidably negative impact on society, both for physical and emotional health as well as a tremendous economic burden. "The National Justice Institute asserts that abuse of alcohol and other drugs by criminal offenders, parolees, and probationers contributes to 80% of crime in the United States" (Lundy & Janes, 2009, p.484). This fact is nothing to be dismissed nor should its impact on society be underestimated. Psychoactive substance abuse makes the nation an unsafe place to live: it victimizes families, it overfills our prisons and it clogs the criminal justice system with cases. The negative social impact of these substances is substantial.
The social impacts of substance abuse on the individual are extremely isolating. Relationships are put in jeopardy -- connections with family members and friends -- particularly if these people don't also abuse substances as well (Lundy & Janes, 2009). Loss of one's job is also extremely common or increased truancy in school for teenagers (Lundy & Janes, 2009). It's important to note that the effects of substance abuse socially are incredibly far-reaching: the children of users often suffer from abuse and neglect not to mention bear the risk of becoming users themselves (Dennison, 2003).
Risk Factors for Experimentation
For individual adolescents, a combination of risk factors make one more likely to experiment with drugs. Factors like: a belief that drugs aren't harmful, early experimentation (ages 10-12) with alcohol, ADHD, mental conditions like depression, lack of impulse control and a rebellious attitude are all factors that can have an impact (drugfree.org, 2013).Furthermore, if an adolescent has friends who use drugs or believe that drugs aren't harmful, or have a generally favorable attitude to drug use, this puts all connected friends at risk for experimentation (drugfree.org, 2013). The familial home environment can be a risk factor for experimentation with drugs for adolescents for a variety of reasons, particularly if homes are characterized by some sort of trauma (such as death or divorce), little parent supervision or monitoring, inconsistent or overly harsh punishment, parental mental illness, lack of a strong message against drugs (drugfree.org, 2013). Finally, having drugs available in the community along with community poverty are both risk factors for drug use (drugfree.org, 2013).
With adult users, the reasons are generally different. A recent study entitled, "Risk Factors for Incident Drug Use in Adults" by Harrington and colleagues found that mental disorders were generally reasons for increased risk of development to drug use among individuals who had previously abstained (2011). Other factors like early life trauma or difficulties or addiction in family members played a part in some of the participants of the study as well (Harrington et al., 2011).
Intervention Strategies
Module 3 Assignment: Exploring EBP Quality ImprovementThere are various kinds of healthcare settings that mental health patients can chose for treatment depending on their financial ability and severity of their mental illness. The first healthcare setting that I would explore in my project is a psychiatric hospital. I work in the said setting. The other two healthcare settings that I would explore in my EBP quality improvement project will be
' If a person does not disclose their drinking behavior if they seek outside help, they may be misdiagnosed as having an anxiety disorder. Mixing alcohol and medications for anxiety disorders can have lethal consequences, as well as prolonging a process of addiction." (Losinno, p. 1) This denotes that especially in the face of trauma, those who are predisposed to dissonant responses and unhealthy coping mechanisms will struggle at a higher
801). According to Green (2006), "Research on how gender influences substance use and substance-abuse-related problems has established clear differences between women and men in several important areas. Women typically consume less alcohol than men when they drink, drink alcohol less frequently, and are less likely to develop alcohol-related problems than men. Similarly, women are less likely than men to use illicit drugs and to develop drug-related problems" (p. 55). Relationship
Some patients knowingly abuse the healthcare system to obtain drugs and substances, which only adds to the complexities of the substance misuse relationship with the medical community. In 2008, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported approximately 4.7 million Americans used pain medications for non-medical use within the last month (Fishbain et al., 2010). This statistic is only one indication of the substance misuse prevalence and its
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Substance / Alcohol Abuse among the Elderly Substance/alcohol abuse among the elderly 60 years and older Alcohol and substance abuse among the elderly is a significant social problem, not only because people in this age group tend to have very permissive attitudes towards social drug and alcohol usage but also because the stressors that accompany aging may result in increases in drug or alcohol usage to problematic levels. While people may begin
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