Topic 1: Promoting the Prevention and Treatment of Substance Abuse

Topic 1: Promoting the prevention and treatment of substance abuse

Economic and Social Council 4 ECOSOC 4 Commission on Narcotic Drugs CND Student Officers – Tanish Dhagat and Abigael Kiambi

Position – Chair and Co – Chair Introduction - Substance abuse over the years has produced serious and expensive social issues. Many believe that through the prevention and treatment of substance abuse leads to reduced drug-related crime, unemployment, family dysfunction and disproportionate use of medical care. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has developed International Standards on Drug use Prevention and International Standards on the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders. Target 3.5 from the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development goals is to strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol.

Definition of Key Terms - Prevention: to keep from occurring; avert; hinder. Treatment: to deal with (a disease, patient, etc.) in order to relieve or cure. Substance Abuse: long-term, pathological use of alcohol or drugs, characterized by daily intoxication, inability to reduce consumption, and impairment in social or occupational functioning; broadly, alcohol or drug addiction. Sustainable Development Goals: a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. Background Information - In the past, prevention and treatment for substance abuse was imprisonment, asylums, and religion guided prayer. These methods were ineffective and did not help individuals seeking treatment for substance use. Over the years, scientists have discovered effective strategies that help individuals with their substance abuse. Scientists found that controlled clinical trials showed improvements that reduce social problems and costs to society. Prevention strategies, programmes and social reintegration measures addresses the issue of drug use and the negative health and social impacts. In 2015, research shows that substance use and substance-use disorders created a major health issue. An average consumption of alcohol of persons aged 15 or older was 6.3l of pure alcohol, with different variations across countries. In 2013, only 1 in about 6 people in the world that suffered from drug-use disorders received treatment. Using the collected data, at the Sustainable Development Summit 2015 the United Nations agreed on target 3.5 under goal 3 which is to strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol.

Main Countries and Organisations Involved - EMCDDA - The ‘European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drugs Addiction’ was established in 1933. EMCDDA aims to provide the EU and its member states an overview of the drug issues that face Europe with solid evidence to support the drugs debate. CCSA - The ‘Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse’ aims to change lives through education on the negative impacts of alcohol and other drugs and provide advanced solutions to address substance abuse in hope to live in a healthy society free of alcohol and drug-related harm. CICAD - The ‘Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission’ was established in 1986. CICAD is the policy forum that deals with drug problems in the Western Hemisphere. Some of CICAD aims include to prevent and treat substance abuse, reduce the supply and availability of illicit drugs and help member states and the hemisphere as a whole measure their progress over time in addressing the drug problem. Mentor - Mentor International was established in 1994 to collaborate with the World Health Organisation (WHO). Mentor’s mission is to empower, inspire and motivate young people in order to prevent substance abuse. WHO - The ‘ World Health Organisation’ is a branch under the United Nations. WHO’s goal is to build a better, healthier future for all people of all ages around the world. They work with governments and others to provide health for all people. NIDA - The ‘National Institute on Drug Abuse’ is an organisation that aims to further research the causes and consequences of drug use and addiction and use that knowledge to improve individual and public health and bring positive impacts on society. This includes “Strategically supporting and conducting basic and clinical research on drug use (including nicotine), its consequences, and the underlying neurobiological, behavioral, and social mechanisms involved” and “Ensuring the effective translation, implementation, and dissemination of scientific research findings to improve the prevention and treatment of substance use disorders and enhance public awareness of addiction as a brain disorder.” UNODC - The ‘United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’ established in 1997 is a global leader working to fight against illicit drugs and international crime. UNODC uses educational campaigns backed up with scientific findings to convince youth not to use drugs, people who depend on drugs to seek treatment and for governments to recognize drug use as a health problem not a crime.

Relevant UN Resolutions - Resolution 57/3 - Promoting prevention of drug abuse based on scientific evidence as an investment in the well-being of children, adolescents, youth, families and communities Resolution 58/7 - Strengthening cooperation with the scientific community, including academia, and promoting scientific research in drug demand and supply reduction policies in order to find effective solutions to various aspects of the world drug problem (operative paragraph 2) Resolution 59/6 - Promoting prevention strategies and policies (operative paragraphs 5 and 14) Outcome Document - UNGASS 2016 on the World Drug Problem S-30/1 - Our joint commitment to effectively addressing and countering the world drug problem

Previous Attempts to Solve the Issue - Strategies before modern treatments that prevented and provided treatment for substance abuse that many relied on was imprisonment, asylums and religion guided prayer, these methods failed. Though today many understand that addiction is a brain disease causing long lasting effects on the brain. Treatments today are fixed to best suit the patient, forming effective results. Treatments today include detoxification and behavioral and cognitive therapy.

Possible Solutions - To further educate citizens on substance abuse and to allow citizens to seek treatment, government officials should work close with UNODC and other organisations to implement strategies to prevent and treat substance abuse.

Bibliography -

1. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg3 2. https://www.unodc.org/docs/treatment/Investing_E.pdf 3. http://www.dictionary.com/ 4. http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/about 5. http://www.ccsa.ca/Eng/About-CCSA/Pages/default.aspx 6. http://www.cicad.oas.org/Main/Template.asp? File=/Main/AboutCICAD/about_eng.asp 7. http://mentorinternational.org/about-mentor/about-us/ 8. http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/treatments/ 9. http://www.who.int/about/en/ 10. https://www.unodc.org/docs/treatment/Investing_E.pdf 11. https://www.unodc.org/doc/wdr2016/WDR_2016_Chapter_2 .pdf 12. https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/prevention/prevention- standards.html 13. https://www.unodc.org/documents/prevention/UNODC_2013 _2015_international_standards_on_drug_use_prevention_E.p df 14. https://documents-dds- ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N16/110/24/PDF/N1611024.pd f?OpenElement 15. http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/sustainabledevelopment-goals.html 16. https://www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida 17. http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CND/