Addiction sufferer is not entirely to blame

Drug addiction is a serious problem, not only for the individual suffering from the disorder, but also for society as a whole.  Drugs often lead to crime, individuals suffering from addiction utilise valuable healthcare resources, and take up a lot of time and money from the justice system as well.

However, although all of these things are true, it would be unfair to say that the addiction sufferer is entirely to blame.  Although they may have chosen to try the drug in the first place (which was their choice, and thus their fault), the addictive effects it has on an individual, and the availability of drugs is not. 

But despite all the efforts by the government and various official agencies, little progress has been made in preventing the drugs getting to the drug dealers, and thus the drug users, and there is very little that can be done about the addictive properties of the drugs that are supplied. 

So the most reasonable action that the government and other agencies can take is to offer support and help to those who are addicted to drugs, but also work hard at trying to educate and hopefully prevent individuals from trying drugs in the first place.

Some experts have suggested that the best approach to treating and preventing drug use is to use public health and safety approaches, whereby individuals are offered advice and services about drug addiction and other related issues in a variety of settings (Compton & Chandler, 2011).  It is often the case that the justice system and health system have very different views on drug addiction, and thus often individuals get treated differently depending on the setting, and while it is not advocated that hospitals start acting like prisons, and vice versa, it has been suggested that the strengths and weaknesses of these institutions are discussed and a more unified approach could be devised. 

Helping individuals who suffer from drug addictions is extremely complex, and no one idea will ever solve all of the issues, that is why it is important for different institutions to share their knowledge and expertise in order to offer the most effective forms of treatment possible, and also use this knowledge to educate and inform people about drugs, and try and prevent individuals ending up in a rehabilitation clinics, hospital or prison.

Compton, W. M., & Chandler, R. K.  (2011).  Addressing addiction and high risk behaviors using the integrated public health and public safety approach.  Mental health in public health.  Sourced from: http://173.231.132.82/sites/default/files/documents/Addressing_Addiction.pdf

Published by on 23/08/2020.

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