.png)
A new report by the National Council on Drug Abuse says molly, vaping and edibles are the top three substances being abused among Jamaican adolescents and are easily accessible to students.
The report, titled A Rapid Situation Assessment on Substance Use and Urgent Issues in Secondary Schools, was generated from a survey conducted in May.
Some 160 students from grades 8-10 in thirteen parishes participated in the survey.
Twenty guidance counsellors also contributed.
Research analyst at the National Council on Drug Abuse, Uki Atkinson, said Jamaican teenagers may be turning to drugs as a means of coping with stress arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prior studies had found that alcohol, tobacco and cannabis were the most popular substances.
But the shift, she said, is an indication that "our context is changing".
Mrs Atkinson said new psychoactive substances are becoming more accessible and popular due to media influence.
"We did not typically have a pill-popping culture, nor do we typically have an injection-drug use culture, but things are changing," she reiterated, citing the popularisation of molly as a party drug.
Besides drug use, the survey also found that students are suffering from issues of anxiety, depression, self-harm, and suicidal ideation.
The findings were presented at a press conference on Thursday.
Public health threat
Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton has said normalising the use of drugs is a public health threat.
Calling it a matter for national attention, Dr. Tufton said substances, to include molly, are unpredictable, poorly understood and are becoming too widely accessible.
"Despite the proven dangers, the challenge of rising drug use tells us that other issues are intersecting and ballooning," Dr. Tufton asserted, citing issues such as psychosocial challenges as well as grief and trauma.
He said these intersecting issues, coupled with drug use, are posing health risks to young people, "many of whom are impressionable and are following a trend, hoping to achieve relief in some way, shape or form - many times not understanding the effects or the side effects".
$16 million drug survey
The Ministry of Health is to conduct a National Drug Prevalence Survey at a cost of $16 million.
The survey will be conducted across the country among the 12 to 65 age cohort.
Responding to the findings from the Rapid Situation Assessment on Substance Use and Urgent Issues in Secondary Schools, Dr. Tufton said the data has revealed a need for further research.
In addition, he said evidence based research is needed to guide the alcohol policy, now in formation.
Dr. Tufton was speaking at a press briefing on Thursday.
comments powered by Disqus
.jpg)
All feeds
