AHS Views

Chicago’s St. Viator High School is taking hair samples to test kids for drug use. So far, they’ve tested about 500 kids – half the student body – and only two tested positive. In the face of national statistics, this sounds pretty impossible. 10 percent of high school seniors have taken Vicodin according to a 2006 National Institute on Drug Abuse survey, and more than 36 percent of ninth graders reported drinking in the month prior to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevent (CDC) study. Obviously, there’s a ton of kids out there who need drug rehab, or are going to sometime in the future, but St. Viator’s testing isn’t catching it.

The problem that the testing does not include alcohol, prescription drug abuse, inhalants or steroids. The school says “We can’t be taking urine samples every day to find out if they’ve been drinking.” But what’s the point of testing if they’re not going to find the major problems?

They’re spending $75,000 on this program and so far have two positive tests. One of the teachers in the school did an informal survey on the students’ reaction to the testing: the consensus was that it might get them to switch from the drug they’re currently using to a drug not included in the test, or to alcohol.

The teacher said he wonders if the money would be better spent on drug education. Good idea. It might save 300 or 400 kids from having to find a successful drug rehab program in the future.

I read an article today about the residents of Washington Heights, an area in upper Manhattan, protesting a drug rehab opening right behind a school. “Why would you put a drug facility right on a street where there are drugs, constantly drugs?” comments one of the residents. That’s like asking why would you want to bring a policeman into an area where there’s crime. Washington Heights is notorious for its drug abuse problems, and has been for nearly 30 years. The place would probably do better if there was a drug rehab behind every school, not just one.

Residents are afraid that the facility will expose more kids to drugs – no, it will expose more kids to people who want to get off drugs. That’s a different story. It might even inspire some of the local addicts to get help, and it might run off some of the dealers.

There are different types of drug rehabs: there’s the kind that just pay lip service to rehabilitiation – methadone clinics are a good example – and there are those that help people get down to the bottom of why someone is taking drugs and actually enables them to begin a new life. The latter is a successful drug rehab program. If the new facility in Washington Heights follows that model, residents should count their blessings.

A big change in the life of Lindsay Lohan – she’s vowed to move away from Hollywood to stay off drugs. After meeting with her dad, whom she hasn’t seen since he went to prison for DUI and other charges two years ago. Looks like they’ve both been pretty messed up. Lohan has checked into a drug rehab in Utah, no word on whether dad’s handled his own alcohol or drug problem.

It takes a lot of courage to leave Hollywood when you’re in Lohan’s position. It isn’t as if she’s at the end of her career – it’s really just beginning. But, if she doesn’t get off drugs, her career won’t have much of a chance anyway. And worse, her life may end a lot sooner than she expects.

Hopefully, she’ll make it through her drug rehab program with flying colors and, if she’s stable enough, she can go back to Hollywood and resume her career.

The Wardle Academy, a center in Cheyenne, Wyoming that provides both prison facilities and substance abuse treatment for young people, has recently had a rash of incidents where the kids in jail have beat up the kids in drug treatment. As a result, the state has removed about 2 dozen kids to other drug treatment facilities, and is possibly going to remove more by the end of September. The kids being relocated are between 12 and 17 years old – that’s the kids who are there for substance abuse treatment – and are being placed in drug rehab programs where they will be safe.

There’s a bunch of political stuff going on with this – the facility says the state hasn’t removed any kids, the state says they have, one report says the state is withdrawing the facility’s license for substance abuse treatment, another report says they might renew it, etc., etc. etc. The usual stuff.

But nevermind all that – they’ve got 12-year-olds kids in there for alcohol and drug abuse! And when they get there, they’re getting beaten up by the kids in jail. On top of that, there was a 26 year old guy arrested there within the last week or two on suspicion of selling and delivering cocaine. Officials won’t reveal his connection with the facility.

All in all, a messy scene. Not conducive to successful drug rehab – that’s for sure. If you’re looking at checking into rehab, or helping someone you care about get off drugs, make sure you find a drug rehab program that’s safe. It’s almost impossible for a person to get down to the bottom of their drug problem and be rehabilitated in a threatening environment.

According to a recent article in the Honolulu Advisor, one in 10 adults in Hawaii needs drug rehab. This is a pretty outrageous statistic – look at the houses on either side of you and the two across the street: someone in those houses needs to get into a drug rehab program.

According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, one of the biggest problems in Hawaii is methamphetamine. Not only has it harmed the state’s economic and social structure, it has also increased crime and violence. In fact, more than 80% of federal drug cases in Hawaii were methamphetamine related.

However, the state has had some recent success in getting people into treatment: a campaign to remove the stigma connected to drug abuse has resulted in a nearly 17 percent increase in drug rehab admissions.

The current campaign, a celebration of National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, focuses on the successes.

Hawaii currently has 50 drug rehab programs. It’s time to jump on the bandwagon and find a program that’s right for you or your loved one. Hawaii is one of the most beautiful spots in the world, let’s keep it that way.

Former drug court graduates plan to take out their bikes to raise funds for people who want to end their drug addiction, according to an article in the Salt Lake Tribune. The bikers intend to use any money raised to help pay expenses and housing for new people entering drug rehab through the courts.

One of the graduates, who’s been riding motorcycles for 35 years, says that the drug court “saved his life.”

The drug courts in Utah are set up to help people who commit minor drug-related offenses stay out of prison – if you complete a long-term alcohol or drug rehab program successfully, the charges can be reduced or even dismissed.

Right now over 400 adult offenders in Utah participate in the courts. The Utah Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Heath reports that 84% of people enrolled in a drug rehab program through the courts have had zero arrests while in the program.

There are more than 13,000 drug rehab programs in the country, but only a small number of them are non-hospital inpatient centers. In fact, according to the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services, nearly 90% of people attending a drug rehab program in 2005 underwent outpatient services, while only 7% enrolled in long term inpatient care.

Part of the problem with this is that there simply aren’t enough beds at inpatient drug rehab programs for the people who need them. One reason is because insurance companies try hard to divert people to outpatient programs, and people are more willing to try what their insurance will pay for than try to get the best help possible.

Another problem is the scarcity of inpatient centers in some areas. The government funding for drug rehab programs is often based on populations, so there are plenty of scenarios where a more rural area has very limited bed space despite possibly having a higher ratio of substance abusers than a more urban locality.

So what does somebody do when they’re trying to find an inpatient center? Well, you can contact us at Addiction Help Services, and we can help locate inpatient drug rehab programs around the country.

Methamphetamine use, in particular, has been a growing problem in the rural South for years, reports The Herald Banner.

Illegal drug use takes a heavy toll on families and relationships torn to the breaking point by chemical addiction and the poor decisions it causes people to make…

Police statistics link drug use to property crimes and violence, both of which can be spurred by the drugs themselves and the irrational need to acquire more of them. Drug users waste millions of dollars to feed their habits, taking money from the legitimate local economy and giving it to criminals. Lives are lost as a direct result of drug use. People are killed in car accidents, by overdose and in violent, drug-related crimes.

Effective drug rehab programs that do not substitute one drug for another, but actually free the person from their addiction and help them to rebuild their lives can impact these statistics.