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Estimates indicate that as many as 1 in 4 Americans will experience a mental health problem or will misuse alcohol or drugs in their lifetimes. These disorders are among the most highly stigmatized health conditions in the United States, and they remain barriers to full participation in society in areas as basic as education, housing, and employment. Improving the lives of people with mental health and substance abuse disorders has been a priority in the United States for more than 50 years. The Community Mental Health Act of 1963 is considered a major turning point in America's efforts to improve behavioral healthcare. It ushered in an era of optimism and hope and laid the groundwork for th...
Every year about half a million men, women, and children in the United States die from the effects of using nicotine, alcohol, and illegal drugs: one of every four American deaths. Yet research to solve this terrible problem is often perceived as less important than other types of biomedical investigation. Focusing on four major classes of drugs with the greatest social and economic impactâ€"nicotine, alcohol, opioids, and stimulantsâ€"Dispelling the Myths About Addiction examines what is known about addiction and what is needed to develop a talented cadre of investigators and to educate the public about addiction research. The committee explores these areas: Economic costs of addictio...
Groundbreaking study of the history and ethics of addiction science
How should the war on drugs be fought? Everyone seems to agree that the United States ought to use a combination of several different approaches to combat the destructive effects of illegal drug use. Yet there is a remarkable paucity of data and research information that policy makers require if they are to create a useful, realistic policy package-details about drug use, drug market economics, and perhaps most importantly the impact of drug enforcement activities. Informing America's Policy on Illegal Drugs recommends ways to close these gaps in our understanding-by obtaining the necessary data on drug prices and consumption (quantity in addition to frequency); upgrading federal management ...
This book is the culmination of five years of debate among distinguished scholars in law, public policy, medicine, and biopsychology, about the most difficult questions in drug policy and the study of addictions. Do drug addicts have an illness, or is the addiction under their control? Should they be treated as patients or as criminals? Challenging the conventional wisdom, the authors show that these standard dichotomies are false.
Every year about half a million men, women, and children in the United States die from the effects of using nicotine, alcohol, and illegal drugs: one of every four American deaths. Yet research to solve this terrible problem is often perceived as less important than other types of biomedical investigation. Focusing on four major classes of drugs with the greatest social and economic impact--nicotine, alcohol, opioids, and stimulants--Dispelling the Myths About Addiction examines what is known about addiction and what is needed to develop a talented cadre of investigators and to educate the public about addiction research. The committee explores these areas: Economic costs of addiction. What ...
Leading historians trace the changing fortunes of the social science of social problems since World War II.
This updated second edition of At Risk in America provides a detailed analysis of those key population groups most vulnerable to disease and injury in the United States today-including homeless persons, refugees and immigrants, people living with AIDS, alcohol and substance abusers, high-risk mothers and infants, victims of family or other violence, and the chronically or mentally ill. Lu Ann Aday reviews the major theories and knowledge concerning these at-risk groups and offers new approaches and methodologies for tracing the social determinants and societal influences on health. She examines the specific health needs and risks faced by these groups, their experience in the health care system, the current policies and programs that serve them, and the research and policy initiatives that might be undertaken to help reduce their vulnerability.
As the nation's drug crisis has deepened, public and private agencies have invested huge sums of money in prevention efforts. Are the resulting programs effective? What do we need to know to make them more effective? This book provides a comprehensive overview on what we know about drug abuse prevention and its effectiveness, including: Results of a wide range of antidrug efforts. The role and effectiveness of mass media in preventing drug use. A profile of the drug problem, including a look at drug use by different population groups. A review of three major schools of prevention theory-risk factor reduction, developmental change, and social influence. An examination of promising prevention techniques from other areas of health and human services. This volume offers provocative findings on the connection between low self-esteem and drug use, the role of schools, the reality of changing drug use in the population, and more. Preventing Drug Abuse will be indispensable to anyone involved in the search for solutions, including policymakers, anti-drug program developers and administrators, and researchers.