Preventing Teen Substance Abuse Within Rural Areas

As a counselor in training and an advocate for individuals’ mental health and wellness, I chose to become an official member of the American Counseling Association (ACA) and create an advocacy project to enhance adolescent mental health and wellness by advocating for more available protective factor to reduce substance use and abuse among this population. The purpose of this paper/project is to address and improve the rate of substance use and abuse among adolescents in Pitt County, more specifically in Greenville, North Carolina. This paper goes into great detail of the description of the population (adolescents), providing statistical evidence of adolescents’ use of drugs in Greenville. An increase in youth involved community activities, community service work and parental involvement will be discussed as ways to create a healthy, anti-drug, and stable environment for adolescents in Greenville, North Carolina.

Perkins and Wesley (2014), found that a handbook should be used by educators, counselors and clinicians for understanding and implementing an alternative to traditional methods for preventing substance abuse among young people. the social norm approach present in the handbook focuses on the phenomena beyond the individual’s personality and personal values which are important determinants of behaviors and offers information about how these influences can be changed. The handbook consists of a variety of specific techniques, programs and field-tested results of the application which can be used in various schools and

Persistent substance abuse among youth is often accompanied by an array of problems, including academic difficulties, health-related consequences, poor peer relationships, mental health issues, and involvement with the juvenile justice system. There are also significant consequences for family members, the community, and society in

Abuse of alcohol and use of smokeless tobacco is a significant problem among rural youth. The rate of DUI arrests is significantly greater in non-urban counties. Forty percent of

The author feels that rural areas are drastically underserved by addiction treatment centers. The surgeon general said, “If you focus on prevention, some programs get up to $64 in return for every dollar invested” (Wolf, 2016). Medicaid-assisted treatment with guidance and counseling programs would greatly help rural areas. The government spends $27 billion in health care expenses. The author feels with prevention and addiction treatment centers specifically placed in rural parts of America, will help save government spending, reduce insurance costs and save many

According to Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Study, conducted among high school students, over 70% tried cigarettes, 25% smoke daily for at least a month and over 80% of students have used alcohol at least once5. Many factors impact the likelihood of adolescent substance use. One risk factor for adolescent substance use is perceived ease of access to substances4. Also, the type of substances being used by adolescents varies by geographic location. Students living in rural areas report higher perceived access to alcohol, smoking tobacco, chewing tobacco and steroids while students living in urban areas report higher levels of perceived access to marijuana, cocaine, inhalants, ecstasy, methamphetamine and hallucinogens4. Depression during adolescence is linked to substance abuse. Students who did not have many peers of the same racial/ethnic group in their school reported poorer school attachment, which in turn is related to depressive symptoms3. Positive relationships among peers tend to have an impact on substance use in

Considering that many teens are drinking illegally and also choosing to drive, many teens in our nation are lacking maturity. In Dying of Acceptance it states, “Alcohol abuse is involved in almost thirty percent of all academic problems, and about one-third of all emotional difficulties. A study done by the Nemours foundation found that teens who drink alcohol regularly are more likely to have problems in school, try drugs, and be delinquent” (Esherick 60). In addition to this fact, American teens show more likelihood to develop long-term alcoholism. Alcohol, like certain other drugs, is relatively easy to acquire. Some might even feel that alcohol is better than other drugs due to its easy accessibility. “Alcohol, like nicotine, is a gateway to later use of drugs” (Esherick 64). Gateway drugs are truly a gateway to trouble. Teens are more susceptible to the influence of drugs. If drugs are taken in the teenage years, it's likely that the teen will become addicted to the substances with little continuation. This shows how dangerous drugs can be and how a legal drug can be just as dangerous as an illegal drug. Drug use can result in highly delinquent behavior. Alone, drug use can create unwanted tensions. Young adults who use alcohol are not in the best state of mind, and will often influence the younger adolescents. Juvenile delinquency is commonly defined as general misbehavior involving children under the age of eighteen;

It seems that drug was more prevalent among urban dwellers but otherwise repeated continued drug use was consistent across geographical locations. This study showed that rural women reported treatment was limited to them or they had not received treatment at all. The findings also revealed that rural women have more detrimental issues with drugs than urban women and that location was a factor preventing treatment. But this is because rural woman have less access to clinical care than urban women. And rural women are far less accessible. Similar to Warner, & Leukefeld, (2001), Staton-Tindall points out that that rural offenders with substance abuse problems should be targeted for treatment. However in all fairness, the rural woman did self-report fewer issues with drug issues and were hospitalized less with mental health

The primary prevention topic of this community healthy and population field experience is related to the Healthy People 2020 goal to “reduce substance abuse to protect the health, safety, and quality of life for all, especially children.” (Healthy People 2020, 2018). This topic correlates with the Roanoke Valley’s increase in fatal drug overdoses and the public health emergency that was declared by the Virginia state health commissioner in 2016, related to the opioid addiction crisis (Virginia Department of Health, 2016). While all members of the community are affected by this health concern, the primary focus of this assessment will be on the effects of and prevention of substance abuse within the areas youth.

“Factors contributing to substance abuse in rural America include: Low educational attainment, poverty, unemployment, high-risk behaviors, and isolation”

Educating the public about the high rates of substance abuse in wealthy communities is important as data shows the relationship between adolescents’ socioeconomic status and risk of alcohol or drug abuse. Also, providing adequate resources to families with a history of substance abuse is another way to prevent teens from nurturing the same behaviors. Implementing more policies that regulate alcohol and drug advertising is critical as these industries focus on targeting the youth to make them lifelong consumers. Efforts to combat substance abuse among adolescents continues to be a national health issue but with the appropriate services, it can be

I live in the small community of Pleasant Valley, New York. Pleasant Valley is in central Dutchess County and is a suburban-rural community north of New York City. Pleasant Valley is a quiet 3 stoplight town consisting of residential areas as well as farms. The town is quaint and its name reflects it. However, in recent years, drug use by adolescents is on the rise. Pleasant Valley has had a member of the community die from heroin overdose as well as multiple arrests for possession and distribution of illegal drugs. These drugs consist of heroin, cocaine, prescription drugs and marijuana. Knowing these drugs are available in this small community puts its residence at risk. The U.S. Census Bureau lists persons under 18 years of age 23.2% of Pleasant Valley’s population. This is almost one-fourth of the community. The purpose of this paper is to identify and assess this vulnerable population. According to Nies and McEwen (2015), “the primary concern of community health nurses is to improve the health of the community” (pg. 92). Education is the first step in raising awareness about the

I am writing to you today in regard to your request that I develop a program to decrease substance abuse in low-income teenagers at Glenville High School in Cleveland, Ohio. This memorandum will discuss the program I recommend and the reasons why I believe it will help reduce substance abuse in this population.

Adolescent substance abuse is a major problem in society. There are many risk factors that can contribute to adolescent substance abuse. One of the main risk factors is peer pressure. When adolescents start at a young age there is an increase in health problems, addiction, and over all poor social outcomes. Parental influence has substantial effect on adolescents because the adolescent sees their parents and they learn by their example. Media plays a role in the use of drug and alcohol use among young people. Many school systems have implemented programs that teach adolescents about the problems of substance abuse that is funded

Alcohol is the number one drug problem among America’s youth. More senior high school students use alcohol than any other psychoactive drug. Family doctors, pediatricians, schoolteachers, and parents know that alcohol is overwhelmingly the drug of choice among today’s youth, although trendier substances such as cocaine are often given more attention in the headlines (Carla Felsted, p. vii). Furthermore, it is widely acknowledged that drinking alcohol is a part of the youth culture in America; it may also be understood as a culturally conditioned and socially controlled behavior.