Phuket Opinion: Meth-Ods For Drug Abuse Prevention

[Lite Beer]

Phuket Opinion: Meth-ods for drug abuse prevention
Phuket Gazette -

Getting the message across to Phuket's youth about the dangers of crystal methamphetamine, known locally as ya ice, is critical. Image: Gazette Graphics

PHUKET: Dr Ruangsit Netnuanyai, the psychiatric social worker who runs the drug treatment center at Vachira Phuket Hospital, is absolutely right that more needs to be done to prevent youths from falling into the potentially fatal trap of drug abuse (story here). As he notes, this effort should start with the most commonly abused substance among young Thais: methamphetamine, known locally as ya bah.

Dr Ruangsit knows all too well the dangers of long-term abuse of this powerful stimulant, which was first manufactured and used on a massive scale by the Nazi war machine to fuel its blitzkrieg attacks across Europe during World War II.

A low point for the Kingdom came back in the late 1990s, when hardly a day went by without reports of a meth-crazed lunatic holding somebody hostage at knifepoint, threatening to commit suicide or engaging in some other kind of insane or irrational behavior. The reason for this epidemic abuse: the price of ya bah pills smuggled in from Myanmar had fallen extremely low levels; so low that farmers were actually feeding them to buffalo to get them to work harder, according to some media reports.

So bad was the situation that public support was strong in early 2003 for Thaksin Shinawatra’s infamous War On Drugs.

That was until a wave of unexplained murders, thought by many to have been government-ordered extrajudicial killings waged under the banner of the War on Drugs, started to take place across the country and brought Thailand deservedly harsh international criticism from human rights groups.

One notable casualty here in Phuket was a four-year-old girl named Benz who was shot in the shoulder in a restaurant near Suan Luang (Rama IX, also known as King’s Park). As in many of the incidents at the time, the two shooters arrived together by motorbike during government work hours – and the case was never solved.

Since that time, the meth-buse problem has persisted, though easier-to-conceal and more powerful crystal meth has to a large extent replaced ya bah pills, at least according to monthly seizure reports released by police.

As Dr Ruangsit wisely states, the only way to really end Thailand’s entrenched meth epidemic is to keep youngsters from ever trying the highly addictive substance in the first place. Threats of criminal punishment are seldom effective deterrents for curious youths, especially here in Thailand where they learn from an early age that much of what they are told by authorities can be taken with a grain of salt.

Youths need to be taught that meth, like other abused substances, has a built-in payback effect and that there are no “free rides” in nature.

The best people to explain this to them are not police, but people who have overcome meth addiction themselves.

Source: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket_news/2013/Phuket-Opinion-Meth-ods-for-drug-abuse-prevention-21089.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2013-05-19

[JetsetBkk]

Youths need to be taught that meth, like other abused substances, has a built-in payback effect and that there are no “free rides” in nature.

TV adverts, every break, at the beginning, at the end, with pictures.

[Guest]

The adds could have pictures of people prior meth usage when the movie or show starts.. and at the end pictures of the same people after using the substance for some years.

[hyperdimension]

I hope that the authorities are starting to become aware that the "just say no" anti-drug campaign does not work; it's better that this realisation is late than never. Factual education about the effects and risks (including addiction), and how to minimise the risks in case they are ever in a situation in which they have the option to consume any drug, would be better.

Maybe it's a little like teenage sexual activity - it's going to happen (due to innate evolutionary urges) regardless of how much they are all told to refrain, so teaching them about condoms is the better way than "just don't do it".

Once people know which drugs are very harmful in comparison to others and are well-informed of the effects, and if they are insistent on seeking out and trying something, they may choose to try the less harmful drugs instead. e.g. for partying, instead of crystal methamphetamine ("ice") they may choose to take MDMA instead as it is far less harmful (particularly less addictive) whilst still extremely enjoyable, i.e. the enjoyment-to-risks ratio is far higher with MDMA.

Here is one of my posts from another thread that includes links to results of scientific studies. These should be taught in schools.

Existing drug laws and their enforcement are not based on the harm that the drugs directly cause. The enforcement itself often cause more harm than the drugs themselves, especially in the case of soft drugs like cannabis. It's very much a waste of taxpayers money that could instead be put to much better and more productive uses.

People should become more aware of the differences in the levels of harm of different drugs. The common belief that all illegal drugs are harmful (and equally so) and that all legal drugs are safe is an extremely simple-minded misconception. The three scientific studies that I know of that have explored the harmfulness of various drugs are:

Drug harms in the UK a multicriteria decision analysis

Quantifying the RR of harm to self and others from substance misuse results from a survey of clinical experts across Scotland

Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse

These studies show that alcohol and tobacco are even more harmful than many of the illegal drugs.

If there are other studies then please mention them.

Decriminalization, legalization, regulation, taxation, and education (about responsible use focused on harm reduction), starting with the least harmful illegal drugs like cannabis and MDMA is the best way forward.

[mamypoko]

The adds could have pictures of people prior meth usage when the movie or show starts.. and at the end pictures of the same people after using the substance for some years.

Clearly some photo shopped pics...I count too many teeth

[Chris Lawrence]

Nancy' promotion didn't work and at the time was the only money spent by the Regan Govt on their drug policy.

Mr T had an impact but was dramatic to say the least.

School education programs usually have a soft approach, and can sometimes self promote the drugs.

Street work and particular with ex-addicts as the workers (Needle exchange/sexual health service) can have a impact, but this usually is hard work and can have many pitfalls for the worker and the addict.

Rehabs are needed where the addict can gain their self respect, dignity, and a self purpose. These types of rehabs need to be supplied by Drug Courts that will send the offender thru their system. This system works in New South Wales, OZ. Not everyone will get it, but by sticking people in Goal will only make them street smart.

Its a hard one as the general attitude is that bloody junkies, they robed my house took the TV and raped the cat.

I have seen the above system work, have worked in it and have seen the results.

The rehab I worked in, we got people off the streets and into employment within 8 weeks of hitting the front door. Many clients had never had a steady job or had done more goal time than actual work time. Many left after 6-12 months benefiting from a living skills program that pointed them in the right direction with bank savings of between $2000 to $4000.

[Joe Mamma]

My question is why don't the chemists and other scientists create some kind of receptor blocker or other means of neutralizing the bad chemicals that are polluting our peoples? They can make designer drugs, so the good guys should be able to fight chemicals with chemicals.