AHS Views

More and more college students are taking prescription drugs like Adderall and Ritalin as study aids. Health services at colleges are wondering where the kids are getting the drugs - the prescriptions filled by the on-campus services don’t add up to anywhere near what’s being taken. More and more schools are going to need on-campus addiction help - and not just counselling. They’re going to need full drug addiction treatment facilities, with medically-supervised drug detox and long-term drug rehab.

Is this really practical for the educational community? Probably not. Especially since getting addiction help can take months of being in a residential treatment center where the person is completely removed from things and people that may influence them to take drugs. And if they go right back into the drug-infested college environment when they complete the program, the addiction help they’ve gotten may not be enough to prevent relapse.

I would think that a zero-tolerance policy would be the only really effective method of curbing drugs in schools. Drug testing should also be done - for all kinds of drugs. Many testing systems don’t test for prescription drugs at all, and they’re a bigger problem than street drugs in most places. And the tests should be widespread, not just a few people, and random enough so it’s not expected.

Yes, it would cost colleges a lot of money to do that. But at least half of the students in any college would prefer to not be around people who are taking drugs. And to be able to advertise they are a drug-free enviroment would be excellent incentive for parents and students to go there instead of one of the ‘party schools’ where kids are taking drugs constantly, getting into accidents and getting injured, binge drinking and getting ill, overdosing, rapes, and so on.

Parents would also be wise to ensure they get addiction help services for their kids before they go to college. That will help proof them against the onslaught of drugs they’re likely to encounter.