Drug prevention program is the process that devotes its efforts towards limiting the use of psychoactive substances and the development of associated problems. These efforts may be focused on a group or individuals depending on the aim of the program. Using drugs and alcohol may impair the user’s judgment, result into poor performance at work and school or even result to trouble with the law. Therefore a drug prevention program is heavily needed hence the purpose of coming up with this program. This drug prevention program targets the schools, families, health workers, law enforcers and youth groups (Robert and Mary 121).
This drug prevention has two approaches that are meant for both West Baltimore and Agrestic. The two approaches differ in such away that the one for West Baltimore is aimed at addressing the existing drug problems and how to either limit or abstain from the use. On the other hand, the approaches for Agrestic are aimed at addressing the intending user groups and the non users (Perkinson 225).
The goals of this program are generally aimed at limiting alcohol usage and drug problems. Alcohol use being a serious social and medical problem, this problem has directed all its efforts to combat it. However, the goals are dependent on the type of the drug problem at hand. In the case of the addicts, this program aims at providing mechanisms for abstinence while for the non users and non addicts, the program aims at providing them with ways of changing their consumption behavior and the mechanisms for stopping drug abuse (Robert and Mary 132).
In comparison with the DARE program which focuses mostly in elementary schools and youth programs, our drug prevention program targets all sorts of groups such as the youth groups, schools, families, health workers and law enforcers. Our program ensures that the parents are enlightened on their role in the prevention of alcohol and drug problems to their children, initiative programs implemented in schools and among the health workers and youth groups involved in the participation of the program activities.
Our program would actually borrow some ideas from DARE which has been successful to some extent. There involvement with the youth activities is an important strategy to us as the drug prevention task force. We will borrow their techniques of coming up with youth programs that fight drug and substance abuse (Perkinson 232).
Our program will focus on the youths at risk of usage and addiction. Therefore the program will be modified to perform the following activities;
- Indicate and tell genuine apprehension for the addicts
- Confront the victims behavior and not their values
- Enlighten the at risk groups on the real facts of drug abuse
- Be supportive and available for consultations
- Convince the at risk youths to understand the positive effects of the program
This drug prevention program will incorporate families in various ways in its undertakings. First it will encourage individual counseling of the victims and the target groups with the counselor, medications prescribed by our experts for the target groups and families to stay drug free and detoxication where there is a complete detox setting within the vicinity of the target group such as the treatment facilities and medical hospitals for substance users.
In patient treatment is another way of incorporating the target groups and families in this drug prevention program, this is because it will involve both the treatment groups and individual therapy. Another most significant way of incorporating families in the program is by implementing family help and intervention among the target groups as well as self help recovery groups (Robert and Mary 145).
In summary, the program will address the unique needs of the addicts with con-occurring disabilities in various ways. Services will be taken to there door steps and leaders of the programs will be appointed from among them to ensure all their interests are attended to. The program will encourage full participation of all races and minority groups in order to make full coverage of the target groups (Perkinson 245).
Works Cited
Perkinson, Robert. Understanding Chemical Dependency. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. Print
Robert, McAuliffe and Mary Boesen. Essentials of Chemical Dependency. London: Springer, 2007. Print