The Department of Community Development in Abu Dhabi launched the integrated strategy to combat addiction in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi (2022-2024) under the slogan “A Safe Society from Addiction” with the aim of activating an integrated system that begins with prevention and early detection and then treatment and family and community reintegration, and participated in designing the strategy and working on initiatives It is affiliated with many local, federal, private and third parties.
The strategy focuses on five main axes, including five axes, including reducing supply, prevention, detection and treatment, and reintegration, in addition to the axis of possibilities. The axis of drug addiction enhances early intervention efforts through targeted campaigns and education programmes, and the axis of detection and treatment works to prepare effective mechanisms for implementing examination, follow-up and referral procedures for treatment. Ensures that the identity and confidentiality of patient information is maintained while developing the legislative framework related to addiction, including privacy and confidentiality.
Dr. Mugheer Khamis Al Khaili, Chairman of the Department of Community Development, said: “The integrated strategy to combat addiction in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi is a focal point to enable individuals, society and stakeholders to carry out their roles and responsibilities based on the principle of integration and cooperation and the application of best practices that contribute to protecting individuals and families from behaviors. Negativity such as abuse, which in turn promotes the reintegration of the recovered into society in a positive way.
During the event organized by the department, Al Khaili added: “The concerned team from different sectors worked on developing the strategy based on guidelines based on best practices and international charters, such as the need to focus on early prevention and the importance of providing the necessary remedial and rehabilitative support for different groups, stressing that the department carries on It bears a great responsibility in building an integrated system based on cooperation between the competent authorities that work on the prevention of drug abuse, early detection of cases, and the adoption of methodologies and mechanisms to ensure social reintegration. Narcotics and drug-related deaths have decreased, in addition to an increase in the number of people seeking treatment.
For her part, Executive Director of the Monitoring and Social Innovation Sector in the department, Dr. Laila Al-Hayas, confirmed: “The strategy adheres to a set of principles that guarantee the rights of addicted patients, preserve their dignity, and protect society from the dangers of addiction, including acknowledging that drug addiction is a health and disease condition that requires Assistance and treatment, adopting a balanced approach to reduce supply and demand to activate the drug control system, focusing on the need for early detection of drug abuse and spreading community awareness about the indicators of abuse and early intervention mechanisms, and providing the necessary remedial and rehabilitative support for all segments of society by providing the necessary services for different age groups, In addition to promoting shared responsibility among all spectrums of society, starting with the individual, the family, and the various governmental and private sectors of public interest.
She pointed out that recent studies and global figures issued by the competent authorities in the fight against addiction showed that young people and adolescents are among the segments and groups most at risk of drug addiction, pointing out that the causes of addiction among adolescents include the pressure they face from peers, Absence of refusal skills, as well as auxiliary risk factors such as bullying, early smoking, violence, lack of awareness of the effects of substance abuse, poor relationship with parents, drug abuse or addiction by a parent or sibling, ease of access to drugs, curiosity and love of experience At this delicate age stage.
She pointed out that the most prominent causes of addiction among young people include the absence of skills to deal with stress, misuse of prescription drugs, in addition to the spread of false beliefs that increase the risk of abuse and addiction, including the use of some substances that help raise the mental level or energy of the individual, unemployment, relationships Unhealthy, in addition to family and financial problems.
She stressed that the Department of Community Development, through the “integrated strategy to combat addiction in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi”, treats this scourge by confronting and eliminating its causes, and launching a set of initiatives and programs targeting the age and social groups most vulnerable to drug abuse, in coordination and cooperation with all parties. concerned in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the UAE in general.
The Department of Community Development in Abu Dhabi confirmed that it has implemented the integrated strategy to combat addiction in the emirate in two phases, in coordination with the concerned authorities. The dangers of drugs, changing the societal culture about addiction and understanding its nature to provide the necessary support by the family and society, as well as launching an integrated awareness campaign on social media platforms targeting parents and workers in the relevant sectors such as the health, educational and social sector and focusing on introducing the factors to prevent the risk of abuse.
She indicated that the first phase will witness the activation of an awareness program for the prevention of addiction within all school curricula in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, in coordination with the “Early Childhood Authority”, and the activation of primary health care services in cooperation with the health sector by defining the scope of services at the level of the care model by working on Develop the necessary plans to activate services in primary health care centers, and develop models and tools necessary to activate services at different levels of care, pointing out that the second phase of implementing the strategy will begin by 2023 and end at the end of 2024, when a set of initiatives will be launched within the operational plan. to the concerned authorities.
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