It has not been scientifically proven to date that drug addiction has genetic motives, but there is a consensus that it is a disease with psychological and societal causes.
Since the law defines two types of addicts: one of them insists on his addiction and becomes an accused, and another seeks treatment and is treated as a patient in need of help, society’s view of the two types is the same, even in the event of recovery from addiction: the family divorces its son, the wife requests a divorce, and the labor market is not more merciful. While the “gate of setback” remains wide open.
Despite the efforts made to accommodate those recovering and encourage addicts to quit drugs, the country still suffers from a shortage in the number of treatment and rehabilitation centers, a shortage of qualified medical personnel, a limited number of beds available in government treatment clinics, and weak aftercare programs, in addition to a number of challenges. Health, social and legal, which causes those recovering to return to the cycle of addiction again.
In the file “Returners from Addiction,” Emirates Today highlights the challenges facing addicts on the treatment journey, the reasons that lead to relapse, and the views of medical, police, and legal authorities and specialists on how to adopt a comprehensive national strategy to reduce the spread of addiction.
In the first episode of the file “Returners from Addiction,” we discussed the problems facing those recovering in health, and their exposure to symptoms that may push them to relapse. We also touched on the family and social problems that haunt them even after quitting addiction, and in this episode we search for an answer to a central question in this file. Are the rehabilitation centers in the country sufficient to accommodate the number of recovering people?
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Study of the genetics of addicts The National Rehabilitation Center signed a memorandum of understanding with Khalifa University, related to cooperation in the field of research in identifying the genetic genes that have a role in addiction, through which blood samples from addiction patients will be collected and analyzed at the center, to identify genetic genes that may have an impact in causing the patient to be affected by substances. More narcotic. Similar studies have been conducted in several countries in Europe and the United States, but it will be the first of its kind in the UAE, as the study will include 250 patients and continue for two years. Dr. Hamad Al-Ghaferi “Aounak” qualifies those recovering socially and psychologically The Aounak Centre, affiliated with the Community Development Authority in Dubai, is a social rehabilitation center and not a medical treatment centre. It deals with addiction patients in the post-drug withdrawal and drug treatment phase, and provides several rehabilitation programs in the psychological, social and family fields for those recovering from drug addiction and their families. In addition to providing them with the necessary financial support, through the center’s partners and concerned authorities. The center supported recovering people by employing them in the government and private sectors, provided opportunities for training and vocational rehabilitation in various institutions, and provided them with financial assistance to help them get married, study, pay off their debts, and other services. |
According to the results of a study assessing the situation of drugs and psychotropic substances in the Emirates, conducted by the National Rehabilitation Center and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, finally, the treatment and rehabilitation services available for addiction patients in the country are insufficient, in terms of the number of institutions that provide this type of services, in light of The lack of centers in the northern regions that undertake these tasks.
The study recommends providing integrated treatment and rehabilitation programs, through conducting a detailed and accurate inventory of the institutions that provide treatment and rehabilitation services, and expanding the establishment of treatment and rehabilitation institutions.
There are three main centers in the country that provide addiction treatment: the National Rehabilitation Center, which was established in 2002, based on the directives of the late Sheikh Zayed, the Sharjah Rehabilitation Center, which opened in 1999, and Al Amal Hospital in Dubai, which is currently being developed. .
The National Rehabilitation Center suffers from a shortage of beds and personnel
The Director General of the National Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Hamad Al-Ghafri, stressed that there is a necessary need to expand the establishment of rehabilitation centers for addiction treatment in the country, as the results of a study assessing the situation of drugs and psychotropic substances in the Emirates, conducted by the National Rehabilitation Center and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, showed, Finally, the treatment and rehabilitation services available for addiction patients in the country are insufficient, in terms of the number of institutions that provide this type of services, in light of the absence of centers in the northern regions that undertake these tasks.
He pointed out that the results of the study also indicate that the National Rehabilitation Center suffers from a shortage of beds, and has waiting lists, in addition to a shortage of qualified personnel, adding that the study recommended providing integrated treatment and rehabilitation programs, through conducting a detailed and accurate inventory of the institutions that provide treatment and rehabilitation services. And expanding the establishment of therapeutic and rehabilitation institutions.
Dr. Hamad Al-Ghafri indicated that the center is in the process of establishing a rehabilitation center for addicts in the Emirate of Ajman, noting that the drug problem is one of the global problems facing all countries of the world, and it can be considered a national and security problem with great dangers, if it is not dealt with wisely, and out of our belief in the role of… An important and vital center in this field.
Treatment program
He pointed out that the center, since its establishment until now, has received, evaluated and treated more than 340 different cases, ranging from addiction to alcohol and all kinds of drugs, while its capacity is 28 beds, for those aged 18 and above, and it receives voluntary cases and those referred by judicial authorities.
He stated that “the center follows a policy of treatment and rehabilitation according to an integrated scientific program that lasts for three months, consisting of two parts, internal and external. The internal phase begins with the phase of removing toxins from the patient’s body, which lasts from 10 to 15 days, after which the patient undergoes a comprehensive evaluation, in preparation for the start of treatment.” A psychological rehabilitation program, through an individual psychotherapy program followed by a group.
He added that during this period, the patient’s family participates in the treatment, so that they know the patient’s history, strengths and weaknesses, stages of his addiction, and his development during the previous years of addiction, in addition to working on treating the accompanying psychological diseases, if any, and focusing on the rehabilitative aspects.
He continued that the treatment team prepares an action plan for each patient based on the circumstances surrounding him, whether psychological, medical, social, financial, etc. The team includes doctors and psychologists and social specialists who work in a team spirit, to provide the necessary treatment for the patient, in accordance with best practices to reach a positive result with the patient. To fully rehabilitate it.
Qualification process
He explained that during the rehabilitation stage, the patient’s condition is reviewed, and if he succeeds in passing the treatment requirements in this stage, after a period of a month and a half, he will be granted gradual treatment leaves during the weekend, while he is followed up with the family within an integrated visit program and is followed up by the treatment team. .
He stressed that if the patient succeeds in the treatment stages without any relapse, he will continue to complete the treatment program, and will be given leave for a full day and a night, and the gradual discharge will begin, provided that it is later decided to remove him from the center and follow him in the outpatient clinic, or transfer him to a halfway house to continue his treatment. It is a comprehensive care system that provides psychological and social follow-up services to patients who need it.
He said that the patient has training programs to re-engage in society, or training programs at the workplace, referring to the agreement concluded with the Khalifa Fund for Project Support, in which the first workshop on how to establish a business project was completed for the patient himself, for a period of one month.
“Matrix” is the most powerful addiction treatment program
The head of the psychiatry department at the National Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Ahmed Ali, explained that the treatment stages begin with the addict being subjected to a medical evaluation to learn about the psychological and social aspects, the type of drug he was using, the circumstances surrounding him, and how the addiction began. He can remain in the outpatient clinic if he He takes a simple drug, or in the case of moderate or severe addiction, he is transferred to a sanatorium, and undergoes a two-week treatment to remove toxins from his body, and is accompanied by symptoms such as convulsions and hallucinations, and then enters psychological programs. And qualifying.
He explained that the “National Rehabilitation Center” implements one of the most powerful therapeutic programs in the world, which is the “Matrix” program, where recovering patients attend classes and sessions for a period of four months, in which they address one of the topics related to the positives of recovery and avoiding temptations, and during which they acquire important skills to remain in recovery. , such as occupying themselves with hobbies, and staying away from places and people that remind them of addiction.
He pointed out that treatment for addiction begins with the person himself, and the extent of his voluntary desire to change and recover, and every addict needs motivation to change, and change often occurs at a later period of his use, as the addict is initially in the pre-contemplation stage, meaning that he feels pleasure. Abuse without problems, then the stage of contemplation, when his addiction causes him to get into trouble, such as when he goes to prison for example, where he begins to contemplate his condition and what has become of him, then the stage of movement in which he makes a decision to get treatment and get out of addiction. Then stop, and here begins the cycle of change in the addict’s life.
He pointed out that addicts who are forcibly transferred by the judiciary and police to treatment centers have a positive side, which is pushing people towards the stage of contemplation and thinking about change, which may succeed for some and fail for others.
14 billion dirhams in losses from “addict production” annually
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Dr. Ali Al-Marzouq |
The Director of the Public Health and Research Department at the National Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Ali Al Marzouqi, stated that the cost of the addiction problem in the country amounts to $5.5 billion annually (about 20.1 billion dirhams), including economic burdens, loss of productivity, treatment, prevention, control, and others.
He said that the loss of production resulting from addiction, and the health problems that accompany it, costs the state about four billion dollars annually (about 14 billion dirhams), while control efforts cost about 600 million dollars annually, and treatment expenses amount to about 20 million dollars annually, in addition to Issues related to drug abuse.
Al Marzouqi revealed that the center, with the participation of all concerned authorities in the country, is currently seeking to develop a complete national strategy to reduce the cost of addiction, and to develop unified and advanced national programs for control, prevention and treatment.
The National Bank called for an increase in rehabilitation centres
The former member of the Interior and Defense Committee in the Federal National Council, Saeed Nasser Al Khatri, called for the establishment of more rehabilitation and treatment centers for addicts in the country, especially in areas that lack treatment and rehabilitation services and centers, in a way that enhances efforts to combat the scourge of drugs and addiction.
He stated that members of the Council’s Interior and Defense Committee had previously visited a number of addiction rehabilitation centers, including the National Rehabilitation Center in Abu Dhabi and the Sharjah Rehabilitation Center, and were briefed on the reality of these centers, and the challenges and difficulties they face.
Al-Khateri added that the committee reached a number of recommendations, the most prominent of which are two: demanding the establishment of more treatment centers for drug addicts, and the second is tightening control over all the country’s border crossings, by deploying drug abuse detection devices.
He said that the committee will hand over the drug file, and its findings and recommendations, to the next committee that will be formed from the new members of the National Council, this November, stressing the importance of following up on this file and implementing the recommendations it contains, to enhance efforts to protect our children from the danger of addiction.
Al-Khateri warned that drug abuse represents the most prominent challenges faced by countries around the world, especially since drugs have taken on changing forms, making it difficult for control agencies to detect them. Therefore, it is important to complete the presentation of the drug file in the next session of the Legislative Council.