Factors associated with new addicts in the voluntary treatment system

Abstract

The study was descriptive research.  The aim was to study factors and information associated with drug use among new - treated case. The data collection was drawn from 1,491 patients who were in the voluntary drug treatment system during 2014 - 2016. One thousand seventy-three patients were new cases appearing in the online report system of the monitoring and surveillance for drug problems, Ministry of public health. Descriptive statistics including frequency distribution and percentage was applied for analyzing data. To compare the ratio of the differences between the two groups of drug addicts between the new case and the old case, test the chi-square test was analyzed the comparison the difference at statistically significant differences at P <0.05.

Result: The results indicated that 2014 to 2016 has the highest number of voluntary patients, 1,491 people following with compulsory system, 1,096 people and the criminal justice system, 386 people, respectively. The number of the patient from the voluntary system tended to be increasing, and those were the new case being higher than the old case approximately triple times. Mueang Lamphun District, Ri District and Mae Tha District were the top three areas, with many new patients admitted every year.

Factors related to substance use in new patients in terms of personal information of substance users are gender, age, marriage, education, religion, occupation, and parent relationship. While the substance use information includes first use, reasons for use, age of first use, reason for treatment and results. Those factors significantly correlated with drug use in new case p < 0.05. Income was the only factor that did not correlate with substance use among those patients.

                Conclude and discussion: This study found significant opportunities for utilization by explaining problems related to new substance users. These factors are divided into two parts: patients, families and personal relationships. High-risk patients that should be supervised and prevented were males aged 16-25 years old and education level was high school. Family and personal relationships also effect on drug use. Therefore, an integrated treatment model should be created to control the risk factors involved in all dimensions, focusing primarily on the family unit and the patient-related environment.

                Suggestion: Governments should formulate policies that support love warmth and the role of family units in concrete form, in building immunity and increasing defensive from the external environment.