JEDDAH: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif has called for a national research project to study drug abuse in the country and adopt effective methods to combat it and treat addicts.
Fayez bin Abdullah Al-Shahri, secretary-general of the National Committee for Combating Drugs, made the announcement and said that Prince Naif had approved four guidelines set out by the committee’s secretariat to fight drug abuse.
Speaking to Al-Watan Arabic daily, he said a workshop would be held to discuss the four guidelines. The committee has finalized the work mechanism of addiction consultancy centers, giving them guidelines on how to cooperate with related agencies to counter addiction and how to assist families in dealing with drug addicts and confronting their violence.
Speaking about the four important factors in dealing with drug addicts, Al-Shahri said parents, teachers and business leaders should be informed of the signs of addiction and the principles of dealing with young men and women and teenagers. Proper consultancy services should be given on how to treat drug addiction, adopting modern methods.
Al-Shahri said experts and consultants at the secretariat had noticed that some addicts refuse to accept their problem due to a lack of health awareness and fearing negative reaction of families.
“There are scientific indicators that drug addicts might face relapse three to five times,” Al-Shahri said. “The worldwide recovery rate of addicts is not as much as 30 percent as a result of the negative atmosphere that encourages them to take more drugs.”
He said a survey of drug addicts at Al-Amal Hospitals would focus on a sample of about 3,000 patients, adding that the survey would cover all specialized addiction treatment centers across the country.
Al-Shahri emphasized the need to introduce effective methods to combat drugs by providing proper education to young men and women based on programs of international standards. “We are now introducing new regulations in order to participate with the private sector in treating drug addicts.” He said many parents have been found skeptical about the recovery of their addicted children. “This false notion should be eliminated,” he said.
