African Journal of Drug and Alcohol Studies

Familial role and drug users' interaction with rehabilitation centres in Ghana

2023-06-15T13:04:45+00:00

Although a number of studies have been conducted with persons who use drugs (PWUDs) undergoing treatment, not much is known within the African context especially Ghana. The study sought to explore the experiences of PWUD with their families, their experiences at drug rehabilitation centres in Ghana, and the ways in which their interactions with drug rehabilitation centres helped them in the recovery process. Using a phenomenological research design, 47 individuals (42 males, mean age of 40, SD=11.54) who were mainly poly-drug users (33) undergoing drug rehabilitation in Ghana were sampled. Thematic analysis was used in analysing the data set. This was done by following the steps outlined by Braun and Clarke (2006). Three (3) themes were observed: ambivalent attitudes toward PWUD, conducive atmosphere at centres, and restoration. In their state of addiction, participants' family relations expressed disappointment in them but also complemented their efforts in seeking treatment. The drug use of participants led to a breakdown of their relationship with family members. Although some family members stigmatise PWUD, other family members of PWUD are supportive in the rehabilitation process. Also, PWUD are happy with human relations exhibited at rehabilitation centres, and the 12 steps treatment program. More education is required to deal with the stigma PWUD experience among their family members and to enhance their role in the recovery of PWUDs.

Exploring the substance abuse problem in a police academy in Nigeria: Implications for its cadets and authority

2023-06-15T13:09:37+00:00

There is an illicit drug/substance abuse problem in Nigeria, especially among youths. This morphed when cadets of the Nigeria Police Academy were arrested by the drug law enforcement agency for having illicit drugs. This spurred our study's objectives. Using an interpretative phenomenological approach, police cadets identified, through snowball sampling technique, to be involved in illicit drug/substance abuse were interviewed on causes of drug/substance abuse among cadets; accessibility to illicit drugs; perceptions on the effectiveness of punitive measures; effects on academic performance, police training, and interpersonal relationship. Findings are discussed in line with extant literature and inferences indicate the important need for a robust drug/substance use screening exercise for entrants into the Academy. Advocacy is made for the engagement of preventive measures which focus more on dissuading this behaviour through counselling and educational enlightenment initiatives.

The impact of substance use disorders on families and carers: A scoping review

2023-06-15T13:12:39+00:00

Substance Use Disorder (SUD) is a persistent and global public health and social problem. This scoping review explores and describes the impact that Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) have on families and carers. It draws on 36 research articles published between January 2007 and August 2021. The review findings are presented according to three themes, namely (1) the impact of SUDs on families/ carers, (2) the burden on carers, and (3) coping responses to living with a person with SUD. The evidence indicates that SUDs in a family affects almost all domains of family members' and carers' lives, suggesting the need to develop targeted harm reduction interventions that could reduce vulnerability and help restore the bio-psychosocial well-being of family members and carers.

Substance use under a restrictive and prohibitive policy regime in secondary schools in Uganda: The convergence of motives, contexts and student characteristics

2023-06-15T13:17:45+00:00

Drug use among young people is increasing in Africa. To prevent drug use, it is essential to understand the motivations, environments, and characteristics of users. Although there are established risk factors for drug use, little is known about the reasons why adolescents and young people take drugs. This study investigated the reasons given by a sample of secondary school pupils for using drugs and other substances, specifically, how adolescents circumvent the restrictive and prohibitive policy regime and rationalize and account for drug use. This study used a cross-sectional mixed-methods design. For quantitative data, descriptive and regression analyses were run, and for qualitative data, thematic analysis was used. About 13 per cent (n=41) met criteria for moderate to severe drug use. Coping (Mean = 4.13, SD 0.89), social (Mean = 3.71, SD 0.97), and enhancement (Mean = 3.09, SD 0.92) motives were highly endorsed as motives for drug use. The extent to which motives predicted drug use ranged from β = 0.55 (95% CI: 0.39, 0.72) for coping to β = 0.18 (95% CI: 0.08, 0.28) for expansion motives. Students employed ingenious and frequently risky ways to circumvent the rigorous and prohibitive regulatory regimes governing drug use in schools. Academic stress, limited recreational activities, poor stress management, peer influence, poor adult supervision and dysfunctional family backgrounds, all interrelate in complex ways with motives, contexts, and student characteristics to create a conducive environment for the rationalisation, medicalisation, and veneration of drug use. Further research on contexts, motives and characteristics of adolescents that shape drug use is needed.

Mental health problems, dark triad personality and school environment performance in substance user and non-user of high school students

2023-06-15T13:20:37+00:00

This study attempted to examine whether there were differences between substance nonuser and user adolescents on mental health problems, personality, and school environment performance. The data on mental health problems (depression, anxiety, and stress), dark triad personality traits, and substance use were collected through self-report questionnaires from a sample of 680 high school students and accessing their average scores in all subjects from the Registrars' Offices of the respective High Schools. For this study, 680 (i.e., 340 substance users and 340 non-substance users) participants were selected using repeated survey sampling from eight government and private high schools in Bahirdar City, Ethiopia. Results indicated higher mental health problems (anxiety, depression, and stress) in substance users than non-users. It was also found that substance users score lower on school environment performance than non-users. Analysis of the data showed that female students don't have significant substance use, whereas male students do have significantly higher substance use. A statistically significant difference was also found between the substance nonuser and user female and male students. The results of the general MANOVA tests revealed that the mean differences for those with substance non-users and users were significant for narcissism (F= 4.796, p < 0. 01) and psychopathy (F= 7.143, P< 0.01) personality. Parents, teachers, and counselors could benefit from this study by being informed about the mental health problems and substance use of students.

Implementation of the “unplugged” school-based prevention programme in Nigeria: Results of process evaluation

2023-06-15T13:26:04+00:00

Process evaluation can improve the quality of program implementation and the achievement of program outcomes. This paper aims to describe the fidelity of implementation of the school-based prevention program 'Unplugged' in Nigeria, i.e., the degree to which the intervention was delivered as intended, and the satisfaction of teachers and students. The program aims to prevent tobacco, alcohol, and substance use and consists of 12 standardized units, one-hour each, delivered by class teachers. Sixteen schools implemented the program. Eleven schools, 33 classes, 27 teachers, 993 students provided process evaluation data. Eighty-two percent of classes implemented the entire program, with lower rates of activities implementation at the beginning and at the end of the program. Each unit took on average 55 minutes. More than 90% of teachers perceived high students' interest for units 1, 4, 5, 8, and 9, high interactivity for units 1, 2, 8, and 9, and declared high comfort in implementing most units. About 80% of teachers reported an improvement in knowledge, teaching skills, and relationships with students due to the program. More than 75% of students declared the program changed their way of seeing themselves, was helpful to answer questions about themselves, and improved their relationships with mates and teachers. About 95% of students reported an increase in knowledge of the consequences of substance use. Students declared Unplugged educative, informative, helpful, impacting on change, interesting and suggested the program should be spread to other schools.

Methamphetamine (Mkpuru-Mmiri) prevalence in Southeastern Nigeria: Exploring peoples' perception of public flogging as a control measure

2023-06-15T13:33:59+00:00

This study investigated the peoples' perception of public flogging as a control measure for methamphetamine (Mkpuru-Mmiri) use among youth in Southeastern Nigeria. The study adopted mixed methods. The questionnaire comprised (12) items administered to a sample size of 1055 through the online mediated platform – Google Forms, while the qualitative data were collected from (12) participants via face-to-face interviews. The quantitative data were processed using SPSS version 20.0 and displayed in descriptive statistics. The hypothesis was tested using the Mann-Whitney U test. The NVivo 10 software was used to analyze the qualitative data thematically. The study revealed that the practice seems to have been accepted as a social control measure for drug misuse in Southeast Nigeria. In addition, the hypotheses stipulate that educational level influenced the acceptability of public flogging as a methamphetamine deterrent with human rights concerns. The study concludes that preventing methamphetamine misuse can be accomplished by creating job opportunities for young people and rehabilitating users.