Youth Culture and Substance Abuse

Role of Drugs as Part of Youth Culture

The use of drugs among the youth has become a normal part of dance and culture of young people. Generally, drugs have been regarded as a part of daily life, particularly among the youth to an extent that it has been involved in many youth cultures. The role of drugs as part of youth culture has been fueled by other components that have become common characteristics of today's youth. Actually, today's youths are becoming synonymous to rave, dance and club cultures, which has also been accompanied by increased drug use. Similar to the 60s, taking drug while in town, clubs or dancing is increasingly becoming the norm in the lifestyles of many young people. Given the prevalence of drugs as a motivator in the youth culture, several initiatives have been established to help deal with the problem. The juvenile justice system has established adolescent treatment programs to help juvenile offenders recover from drug abuse.

Juvenile Justice and Adolescent Treatment System

A juvenile justice system is considered effective if it provides several empirically and professionally approved supervision and treatment programs to the youth within the system (Chassin, 2008). In this case, the system is regarded effective if proper treatment programs are established. Proper treatment programs are those that help youths within and outside the system to work towards establishing positive relationships between these young people and the community. System linkages between juvenile justice and adolescent treatment programs are centered on the development of proper treatment programs for positive relationships between the youth and the community.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, adolescent treatment programs, especially those relating to substance abuse, should be incorporated in the justice system through careful treatment planning (Chassin, 2008). Some of the important components to incorporate in the treatment programs include continuity of care and utilizing an appropriate system of rewards and sanctions to promote involvement in pro-social behavior. When designing the treatment programs, juvenile justice system should include an integrated treatment approach, qualified, evaluation of treatment outcomes, suitable developmental planning, and family involvement.

Clinical and Programmatic Issues

The planning for substance use disorders treatment of juvenile offenders involves some clinical and programmatic issues. The major clinical issue involved in the planning of such treatment programs is the use of medication. When planning substance abuse disorders treatment programs, the juvenile justice system is faced with the clinical issue of the use of medication. This is an issue that arises when dealing with juvenile offenders diagnosed with mental health problems or concerns and require medication as the core of treatment. The juvenile justice system is also faced with the need to separate high-risk from low-risk offenders. One of the crucial aspects for effective treatment programs is separation of high-risk and low-risk youths in order to ensure meaningful treatment of substance use disorders.

Factors Involved in Engaging Hard-to-Reach Adolescent Populations

Hard-to-Reach adolescent populations are adolescents under-represented in service provision, those who are ignored by or invisible to service providers, and those regarded to be resistant to provided services. There are three major factors involved in engaging hard-to-reach adolescent populations include intervention design and practice, network and partnerships, and staffing (Cortis, Katz & Patulny, 2009). Intervention design and practice entails ensuring interventions will meet the needs of the targeted adolescent population. Network and partnerships help in determining needs, identifying and reaching needs, developing capacity, and promoting continuity. Staffing incorporates enlisting community members and ensuring that intervention measures comprise competent and highly skilled staffs.