drug addiction dissertation topics

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40 Drug Abuse & Addiction Research Paper Topics

Drug Abuse and Sociology

Drug abuse and medicine, drug abuse and psychology.

• Drug abuse and the degradation of neuron cells
• The social aspects of the drug abuse. The most vulnerable categories of people
• Drugs and religion. Drug abuse as the part of the sacred rituals
• Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
• Drug abuse as the part of human trafficking and as psychological defence of victims
• Reversible and irreversible consequences of drug abuse
• Drug abuse and minors
• Ethnic and cultural traditions that may lead to drug abuse
• Medical marijuana. Can legalizing it lead to drug abuse?
• The ethical questions of abusing painkiller drugs or other drugs that ease the state of a person
• The “club culture”. May it enhance the danger of drug abuse?
• Preventing drug abuse. Mandatory examination or voluntary learning: what will help most?
• The abstinence after the drug abuse. Rehabilitation and resocialization of the victims of it
• The harm done by drug abuse to the family and social relations
• The types of drugs and the impact of their abuse to the human body
• The positive effects of drugs. May they be reached without drawbacks of drug abuse?
• Alcoholics Anonymous, similar organisations and their role in overcoming the dependency
• Is constant smoking a drug abuse? Quitting smoking: government and social decisions
• Exotic addictions: game addiction, porn addiction etc. Do they have the effects similar to drug abuse?
• Substance abuse during pregnancy and before conceiving. What additional harm it causes?
• The correlation between drugs and spreading of HIV/AIDS
• Drug abuse and crime rates
• History of drug abuse. Opium houses, heroin cough syrup and others
• Drunk driving and drunk violence. The indirect victims of alcohol abuse
• The social rejection of the former drug abusers and the way to overcome it
• The main causes of drug abuse in the different social groups
• Drug abuse and mental health
• LGBTQ+ and drug abuse
• The development of drug testing. The governmental implementation of it
• Geniuses and drug abuse. Did drugs really helped them to create their masterpieces?
• Shall the laws about drug abuse be changed?
• Health Care Information Technology
• Drug abuse and global health throughout the 20-21 centuries
• Personal freedom or the safety of society: can drugs be allowed for personal use?
• Legal drinking age in different countries and its connection to the cultural diversity
• The different attitude to drugs and drug abuse in the different countries. Why it differs so much?
• Teenage and college culture. Why substance abuse is considered to be cool?
• Drugs, rape and robbery. Drugging people intentionally as the way to prevent them defending themselves
• 12-Step Programs and their impact on healing the drug addiction
• Alcohol, tobacco and sleeping pills advertising. Can it lead to more drug abuse?

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• Learn more about Overdose Prevention from the Department of Health and Human Services.
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A qualitative investigation of addiction counselors’ perceptions and experiences implementing an open-access model for treating opioid use disorder

Lindsay m. s. oberleitner.

1 Yale School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, New Haven, CT 06510, USA

2 Western Connecticut State University, Department of Psychology, Danbury, CT 06810

3 The APT Foundation, Inc., New Haven, CT 06519, USA

Lynn M. Madden

4 Yale School of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA

Dharushana Muthulingam

5 Washington University, Division of Infectious Disease, St. Louis, MO, 63112, USA

Ruthanne Marcus

David e. oberleitner.

6 University of Bridgeport, Department of Psychology, Bridgeport, CT 06604, USA

Mark Beitel

7 Yale School of Medicine, Child Study Center, New Haven, CT 06510, USA

Marina Gaeta

Joseph f. tamberelli, declan t. barry.

To examine addiction counselors’ perceptions and experiences of implementing an open-access model for methadone maintenance treatment (MMT), in which the program rapidly enrolled prospective patients, irrespective of ability to pay, and provided real-time access to multiple voluntary treatment options. Between 2006, when the treatment program initially implemented this model, and 2020, the census of clients receiving methadone maintenance at the study site grew from 1,431 to 4,500.

Participants were 31 addiction counselors employed at a treatment organization that implemented an open-access model to scale up MMT. We examined counselors’ perceptions and experiences of working in programs that employed this model, using individual semi-structured interviews, which an interdisciplinary team audiotaped, transcribed, and systematically coded using grounded theory. The team reviewed themes and reconciled disagreements (rater agreement was 98%). We describe themes that more than 10% of participants reported.

Counselors described perceived advantages of the open-access model for clients (e.g., “individualized to client needs”), clinicians (e.g., “fewer demands”), and the community (e.g., “crime reduced”). Counselors also described perceived disadvantages of the open-access model for clinicians (e.g., “uneven workload”) and clients (e.g., “need for more intensive services for some clients”), as well as program-level concerns (e.g., “perceived lack of structure”).

Conclusions:

Counselors who work in opioid treatment programs that use an open-access framework described multiple benefits to themselves, their clients, and the public; they also outlined disadvantages for themselves and clients, which research should further explore and address to facilitate MMT scale up.

1. Introduction

Untreated opioid use disorder (OUD) is an important contributor to the opioid crisis and is associated with increased risk of infection with HIV and hepatitis C, opioid overdose, and all-cause mortality ( Kolodny et al., 2015 ). The standard of care for OUD is medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) with methadone, buprenorphine, or naltrexone ( Volkow et al., 2014 ). Since a minority of individuals with OUD receive MOUD ( Jones et al., 2015 ; Knudsen and Roman, 2012 ), scaling up this effective treatment is a national public health priority ( Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, 2019 ; National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine). For scale up to occur, either new providers or programs need to begin offering MOUD or existing providers and programs need to expand their treatment capacity. However, the paucity of evidence-based implementation models and anticipated negative provider responses may deter program managers from attempting scale up ( Brownson et al., 2018 ; Madden et al., 2018 ).

Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) program managers in the United States may be particularly reluctant to scale up treatment capacity without evidence-based models to assist them because federal and state regulations impose multiple restrictions to attenuate the risk of overdose and diversion. Prospective patients often incur wait times that exceed a month for MMT (i.e., time between first face-to-face appointment and treatment entry; Andrews et al., 2013 ). Admission delays for MMT are more common among persons of racial and ethnic minority descent (versus whites) and with greater (versus lower) psychiatric burden ( Gryczynski et al., 2011 ).

While few studies have systematically examined sustained MMT scale up ( Madden et al., 2018 ), research has investigated the effects of changes to traditional methadone treatment practices on patients’ enrollment and engagement in treatment. In a clinical trial comparing patient-centered MMT and treatment-as-usual, no significant differences emerged in illicit substance use at 12 months ( Schwartz et al., 2017 ). Counselors in the patient-centered MMT condition noted that changes to treatment-as-usual allowed them to enhance rapport with clients ( Mitchell et al., 2018 ). A literature synthesis by Jackson and colleagues identified three factors that lead to effective psychosocial treatment with MMT: client-centered focus, relationships at the treatment site, and addressing broader psychosocial needs ( Jackson et al., 2014 ).

Regulations in the United States require MMT programs to provide counseling in addition to methadone medication. Addiction counselors play an important role in the delivery of counseling, but scant research has systematically examined the experiences of those who work in opioid treatment programs that have scaled up treatment capacity in response to the opioid crisis ( Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, 2005 ; Oberleitner et al., 2019 ). One model of MMT scale up that has been found to be effective and economically viable over a sustained time period is the “open-access model” in which prospective eligible clients are enrolled rapidly in methadone treatment, irrespective of their ability to pay, and are provided access to a variety of counseling, medical, and vocational services ( Madden et al., 2018 ). The implementation of the open-access model involved two major changes in counselors’ clinical practice: First, they switched from conducting primarily individual counseling by appointment to conducting group counseling without appointments (see description of “drop-in groups” in Methods). Second, counselors no longer carried individual caseloads; instead, the program assigned cases to teams of counselors.

The current study aimed to examine the perceptions and experiences of the open-access model among addiction counselors at the treatment organization that developed the model and initially implemented it. Whereas we previously examined addiction counselors’ lived experiences ( Oberleitner et al., 2019 ) and burnout ( Beitel et al., 2018 ), we did not examine their perceptions or experiences of the open-access model itself. Because of the lack of prior research examining addiction counselors’ perceptions of the open-access treatment model, we used qualitative methods to facilitate in-depth examination of the counselors’ experiences. We anticipated that the study findings would be useful to program managers who are interested in scaling up MMT programs by implementing an open-access or similar model. Reading counselors’ lived experiences of the open-access model may be valuable for clinicians who work in settings that are considering scale up. Specifically, we anticipated prior to conducting the study that:

• Counselors would emphasize reduced barriers to treatment entry and the provision of multiple group counseling options when describing the open-access model. Reducing barriers to treatment entry and providing patients the opportunity to choose from a large variety of group counseling options are core aspects of the open-access model, and distinguish it from traditional models of MMT involving long wait times and the provision of appointment-based individual counseling.
• Counselors would describe both personal (removal of individual caseloads) and client benefits (reduced barriers to entering MMT and fostering autonomy because of choice regarding counseling group attendance) when outlining the advantages of the open-access model. Team-based rather than individual caseloads are notably different from other models of MMT; consequently, we expected this feature to also arise in clinicians’ descriptions.
• Counselors would discuss the de-emphasizing of individual counseling and individual clinician-patient alliance when describing disadvantages of this model. Individual counseling and forging individual clinician-patient alliances may be rewarding for counselors and consistent with their professional training.

2.1. Study site and sample

The APT Foundation, Inc. (hereafter referred to as APT) is a not-for-profit community-based organization in Connecticut, founded in 1970, which specializes in the treatment of substance-related disorders and is affiliated with Yale School of Medicine. APT operates four outpatient methadone maintenance treatment programs; with a current census of approximately 4,500 clients, it is one of the largest providers of methadone maintenance treatment in southern New England.

In 2006, APT began developing an “open-access model” for scaling up methadone maintenance treatment in which eligible persons are enrolled rapidly in treatment irrespective of their ability to pay and are provided real-time access to multiple voluntary drop-in treatment options ( Madden et al., 2018 ). In the first 9 years of implementation (2006–2015), wait time to accessing treatment decreased from an average of 21days to same-day, and the census increased 183% (from 1,431 to 4,051 clients 1 ) without decrements to rates of retention, opioid-negative drug tests, or mortality ( Madden et al., 2018 ). Currently, APT offers methadone treatment to approximately 4,500 patients. By comparison, from 2003 to 2012, the methadone maintenance treatment capacity nationwide increased by only 37% ( Jones et al., 2015 ). Ukraine has used key elements of this open-access model to scale up access to MOUD ( Madden et al., 2017 ; Tan et al., 2019 ).

The open-access model identified intake procedures that regulations did not require and that impeded rapid MMT entry. For example, intake workers at the study site (similar to those at some other MMT programs) assumed incorrectly that federal guidelines required “proof of previous treatment failure.” Workers altered the procedures for verification so that they could perform them on the same day: Consistent with federal requirements, all admitted patients met with a clinician who formally evaluated the patient for DSM-5 OUD ( American Psychiatric Association, 2013 ); a licensed medical provider confirmed eligibility for admission. While the federal requirements for MMT entry recognize that certain DSM-5 OUD diagnostic criteria ( American Psychiatric Association, 2013 ) may not apply to specific categories of individuals (e.g., those who were recently incarcerated or completed a rehabilitation program), intake workers at the study site, prior to the implementation of the open-access model, required written verification of previous treatment for OUD and/or other medical information. Securing written verification can be difficult and can take time; however, information can often be verbally verified on the same day while the prospective patient waits, avoiding the need for another visit. Rapid treatment entry also entailed re-ordering the sequence of required steps so that eligible persons receive medication as quickly as possible after being determined appropriate for treatment. For example, previously the study site required a full physical exam (PE) prior to admission; following the advent of the open-access model, medical screening for contraindications to MMT are conducted prior to admission and a PE is performed on a walk-in basis within 2 weeks of admission ( Madden et al., 2018 ).

Participants in the current study were 31 addiction counselors who we recruited from APT’s four methadone maintenance treatment programs. Counselors at the study site that developed the open-access model faced major changes following its implementation in 2006. The primary mode of counseling delivery switched from individual appointments to “drop-in” open group sessions (with individual sessions available upon request) and from individual to team caseloads, where the program no longer assigned individual clients to specific counselors. At each APT methadone program, addiction counselors provide patients a variety of drop-in group options (usually more than fifteen 50-minute groups daily from 5am to 3pm). Patients choose the number and the topics of groups they wish to attend and are also able to access individual services as they deem needed. Per federal guidelines ( Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, 2005 ), patients must attend at least one counseling session per month.

2.2. Procedures

One of the authors (DTB) attended clinical staff meetings to recruit participants for a study to solicit feedback about providers’ work experiences, APT’s clinical programs, and suggestions for improving these programs and clinician work life. Fifty-one (out of a staff of 57) addiction counselors signed up to be interviewed. We based the order in which we conducted the interviews on counselor availability. We conducted interviews until there was saturation of qualitative themes (i.e., the point where the interviewer determined that no new themes were emerging from the interviews). The final sample consisted of 31 counselors. An investigator (DTB) with no personal or professional relationship with the counselors conducted the interviews in a private office. The investigator had experience conducting qualitative interviews, and was a licensed clinical psychologist. We audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and then coded the interviews. We did not conduct any repeat interviews. We did not contact participants to receive feedback about thematic coding. Procedures for recruitment and the interviews have been described in detail previously ( Beitel et al., 2018 ).

Interviews were confidential. We did not request or record any identifying information, and research assistants independently read each transcript, identified, and expunged possibly identifying information (e.g., unique employment or educational history) prior to dissemination of the transcripts to the coding team. One of the authors (LMM) is the CEO at APT, and is the only team member who had a professional (e.g., supervisory) or personal relationship with any of the participants. We maintained a demographic sheet separately from the interview on which participants recorded age, gender, race/ethnicity, years of counseling experience, and education. We compensated counselors for the time spent completing the interview with a $25 gift card. The APT Board of Directors approved the current study and the Human Investigation Committee at the Yale School of Medicine exempted it from review as a quality improvement project.

2.3. Interviews

Semi-structured interviews lasted approximately 45 minutes and we conducted them between August 2015 and July 2016. Three authors (DTB, MB, and LMM) created the structured interview to assess counselors’ (a) experiences treating patients, (b) suggestions for optimizing work life and training, (c) views of optimal treatment, (d) attitudes on interventions, and (e) perceptions and experiences of the open-access model. Specific to the current study on counselors’ perceptions and experiences of the open-access model, we prompted participants with the following: “APT uses an ‘open-access model’ of treatment. What is your understanding of what this means?” We then instructed participants: “So open-access means that APT tries to get patients into treatment as quickly as possible irrespective of their ability to pay (ideally within 24 hours) and then tries to retain patients, in part by offering patients multiple treatment options that they are free to choose from.” We then prompted participants with the following questions: 1) “What do you think of this model?” 2) “What are the advantages of this model?” and 3) “What are the disadvantages of this model?”

2.4. Coding

We convened a multidisciplinary team to analyze the transcripts. Team members comprised seven researchers experienced in qualitative data analysis, including clinical psychologists, a social psychologist, a medical anthropologist, a physician, and a senior administrator with a doctorate in inter-professional studies. The semi-structured nature of the interviews allowed the team to focus coding on counselor responses to specific questions. The questions coded in the current study were different from those that we coded in prior studies with participants about lived experiences (questions about roles, motivation, and perceived responses of others to their work) ( Oberleitner et al., 2019 ) and burnout (questions about perceived burnout, strategies used to cope with or prevent burnout) ( Beitel et al., 2018 ). We used a grounded theory approach to identify themes that arose from the transcripts ( Belgrave and Seide, 2018 ; Glaser and Strauss, 1967 ). As an initial training step, all seven researchers coded responses to one question for a sample of interviews; as all team members were well versed in qualitative methods and coding, we wanted to establish an agreed-upon approach for coding. Subsequently, three researchers (LMM, DM, and LMO) reviewed responses to questions pertaining to counselors’ perceptions and experience of the open-access model, and they identified themes and subthemes included in this article. Two researchers independently reviewed and coded each individual response. The mean percent agreement between the pairs of coders was 98%. We calculated percentages of participants who spontaneously reported each identified theme or subtheme in response to open-ended questions regarding the open-access model of care and we provided them in the Results and Tables 1 , ​ ,2, 2 , and ​ and3. 3 . Participants could provide responses that we coded into multiple subthemes, as we coded each meaningful and responsive unit separately. However, we only counted participants once per major theme, even if they provided multiple subtheme responses within that major theme. Themes that we coded in at least 10% of the interviews are presented here. We did not use coding software for these analyses.

Description of the open-access model.

Note: The “Total” number and percentage provided for each major theme represents the number of participants who reported any of the subthemes in that category. If a participant reported multiple subthemes within the larger thematic category, that participant would only count as one individual for the major theme total value.

Advantages of the open-access model.

Note: The “Total” number and percentage provided for each major theme represents the number of participants who reported any of the subthemes in that category. When a participant reported more than one subtheme, we only used one of the responses toward the major theme “total”.

Disadvantages of the open-access model.

3.1. Participants’ demographic characteristics and counseling experience

As we have previously described ( Beitel et al., 2018 ), participants were 31 addiction counselors (18 women, 13 men) who self-identified as White (77%), Hispanic (13%), or African American (10%). Participants’ mean age was 47.3 years (SD = 15.1 years) and mean years of counseling experience was 16.5 (SD = 10.7). Seventy-one percent of participants had a master’s degree, 16% had a 4-year degree, and 6% had a 2-year degree. Of the remaining two participants (6%), one had a doctorate in a nonclinical field, while the other had a JD (law degree).

In response to open-ended questions about their perceived understanding, general perceptions, advantages, and disadvantages of the open-access model of care, counselors identified two primary themes—clinician level and client level—to describe the model’s impact. Participants also noted two further themes—community-level advantages and program-level disadvantages. We identified subthemes (expressed by >10% of participants) from each line of questioning. Table 1 shows subthemes from questions regarding understanding and general perceptions of the open access model. Tables 2 and ​ and3 3 show subthemes from questions about advantages and disadvantages of the model, respectively.

3.2. Descriptions/perceptions of the open-access model

As described in our Methods, we prompted participants with: “APT uses an ‘open-access model’ of treatment. What is your understanding of what this means?” The following codes pertain to participants’ descriptive responses.

3.2.1. Clinician level

When asked to describe the open-access model, many participants emphasized positive impacts on their own work experiences. For example, some participants responded to the description question with “It’s great.” Other responses included a description of participants’ working as part of a team-based approach. Few participants described the model as decreasing physical and structural boundaries with clients.

3.2.2. Client level

Counselors accurately identified the major components of the open-access model: enrolling prospective eligible patients rapidly into methadone maintenance treatment irrespective of ability to pay and providing multiple group psychosocial treatment options from which patients are free to choose (without making an appointment). Participants noted that immediate access to a range of services besides methadone dosing, including medical and mental health, defined the open-access system.

[Patients have] access to move around freely; to be part of the milieu. They have services available in the moment. It has reduced wait times for psychiatric and medical treatments … This is a place where they can come and there’s not that division of us and them (Participant 25).

These themes suggest that counselors recognize the distinguishing features of open-access from the previous traditional model involving delays in prospective clients’ accessing methadone maintenance accompanied by counseling delivered individually by appointment.

3.2.3. Community level

The provision of medical and psychiatric services to all-comers, especially those with higher symptom acuity and with fewer financial resources, was an important theme. Counselors perceived the open-access model as a method to broaden access to methadone maintenance treatment for community members regardless of resources and background.

3.3. Advantages of the open-access model

In response to open-ended questions about the advantages of the open-access model, participants described three themes: clinician-level advantages, client-level advantages, and community-level advantages.

3.3.1. Clinician-level advantages

Participants described the open-access model as a positive experience overall for clinicians. Clinician-level descriptions of the open-access model included that it required adaptation and a team approach in which clinicians supported one another rather than having individual caseloads. This resulted in counselors having limited client care responsibilities when they were out of the office (e.g., coverage when on vacation), which, in turn, allowed them to more effectively detach psychologically from work tasks.

There’s no caseloads… you don’t have specific patients on your caseload. It’s rotating. Anyone can come in and speak to whatever counselor is available (Participant 27).

When specifically asked about advantages of the model, participants reported positive reactions (e.g., “It’s good”; “It’s great”), their own personal experience of the model (e.g., “I like it”; “I enjoy it”), and described positive personal or counselor outcomes of the model.

It helps the counselors. The responsibility is to focus on the client that’s in front of you at the time…our main goal is just to meet clients’ needs, where they’re at, and go from there (Participant 22).

3.3.2. Client-level advantages

In describing how the open-access model worked for clients, participants reported that it increased and supported client autonomy, that it allowed increased flexibility to meet client needs, and that it was responsive to the needs and interests of clients.

With the open-access model, there’s no appointments. When a person comes into the clinic they can be treated, their needs will be met… as soon as possible. They don’t have to worry about waiting around that’s what I see as open-access (Participant 18).

When prompted about advantages of the model, counselors described the reduction of barriers to enrollment as well as the ready availability of client services. Counselors described how clients have decreased difficulty accessing care in the open-access model compared with other methadone maintenance treatment programs and that clients have choice in the type of counseling services received.

If you’re here for outpatient … you can stay for 6 groups a day, or you can come [for] one. It’s treatment à la carte… the clients pick what they’re interested in (Participant 28).

3.3.3. Community-level advantages

Respondents reported that the open-access model reduced barriers to care and that it served higher acuity clients. In contrast to the client-level category, this code reflected the broader impact of having increased treatment access for the community, serving as a treatment center where the highest risk community members could receive treatment, and having a clinical setting that was open to all (e.g., accessible time and location).

We’re an organization that specializes in the treatment of addiction. We’re here to help in any way that we can. Our doors are open. [People are] not turned away… [they] are given a fair hearing …[they are] not judged for what they’re bringing to us (Participant 8).

Participants reported that the facility’s open-door policy also led to an increase in high acuity clients being served.

[We] try and find a way to reduce barriers to treatment as much as possible. We work with really acute people, who are less likely to engage elsewhere, especially if there’s any barriers to treatment … we reduce those barriers to try to keep them (Participant 26).

Participants described positive impacts on the community through the open-door philosophy and that the increased access to opioid agonist treatment reduced deaths, overdoses, and crime.

[Clients] talk about how years and years ago, how long it took to get in. The good thing is that it is saving people’s lives in the community, so they’re not on the street using or overdosing (Participant 17). We receive a lot of patients into our program… in so doing we have (brought) down the crime rates. We help people to stabilize their lives and hopefully get a job (Participant 8).

3.4. Disadvantages of the open-access model

In response to open-ended questions about the disadvantages of the open-access model, participants described three themes: negative clinician-level outcomes, negative client-level outcomes, and program-level concerns. However, eleven participants (35%) identified no disadvantage (e.g., participant 5 stated: “There’s really no disadvantages.”).

3.4.1. Clinician-level disadvantages

Counselors identified several disadvantages of the open-access model on their workflow, including that the workload can be uneven and that the demands are high because of the perceived unpredictability of the work. Some counselors also voiced concern that the increased patient volume led to a lack of available building space.

We have heavy volume … it can be unpredictable… even the building [is not able] to support the amount of people coming through here (Participant 12).

When asked to describe their understanding of the open-access model, some counselors expressed increased safety concerns due to perceived decreased physical boundaries with clients related to the increased volume of patients and lack of appointment-making.

There’s a lot of people hanging out, there are, many of them spend the whole day here. They’re loud. We can hear them in my office. They’re distracting… I’ve lost 2 iPhones and my eyeglasses, and I’m blind as a bat! (Participant 31)

3.4.2. Client-level disadvantages

Counselors’ perceived disadvantages of the open-access model to clients included its possible negative impact on the therapeutic relationship and difficulties with the lack of scheduled appointments.

It can feel chaotic… if someone can see a different counselor every time, they’re able to fly below the radar. That’s a concern here (Participant 30).

3.4.3. Program-level disadvantages

Counselors identified some program-related concerns, including that the model of treatment delivery needed to be more structured and intensive for some clients, although they did not delineate negative outcomes.

The only disadvantages I think … once they are in treatment there should be… a little bit more rigidity or more routine (Participant 9).

4. Discussion

This qualitative study is one of the first to examine the perceptions and experiences of addiction counselors who work in MMT programs that used the open-access model to scale up treatment capacity. Given the success of the open-access model in scaling up treatment capacity without any negative impact on retention, survival, or relapse ( Madden et al., 2018 ), and the importance of addiction counselors in providing the psychosocial treatment component of MMT, an understanding of APT counselors’ perceptions and experiences of the open-access model may be valuable to opioid treatment program managers who are considering scale up of MOUD to address the opioid crisis. Themes that emerged from interviews centered on the model’s impact on counselors, clients, and the broader community. As a context for interpreting the findings, it is important to note that participants did not receive training in the open-access model prior to working at APT; thus, their responses were a result of their personal work experience.

4.1. Description accuracy

Following the prompt to describe “open access,” counselors were consistently able to identify key aspects of the model, including those that distinguish it from treatment-as-usual: same-day treatment access irrespective of ability to pay, team-based approach to care, no individual caseloads, and a patient-centered focus. Consistent with our expectations, counselors discussed reduced barriers to MMT access as a core feature of the open-access model. Participants also emphasized that offering clients choices about which counseling groups to attend enhanced client autonomy (see section 4.2.2 ). When asked to generally describe the model, we were surprised that counselors emphasized features related to the community, including enrolling high acuity clients into MMT. We expected that counselors would be focused mainly on features of the model that relate to clients and clinicians. Across the United States, it is notable that individuals with higher versus lower psychiatric acuity experience longer wait times to MMT entry and are thus at greater risk of not entering this evidence-based treatment ( Gryczynski et al., 2011 ). The open-access model has curtailed wait time (clients generally enroll in MMT on the same day they seek it); in doing so, this model may have dismantled a barrier to enrollment among those with high acuity. These findings are important because they suggest that the open-access model is distinctive from treatment-as-usual to first-line clinicians, and that counselors are aware both of the driving forces behind the model and its possible benefits to the community as well as to clients. The accuracy of counselors’ descriptions is important since awareness may foster adherence.

4.2. Advantages of open-access model

In response to prompts to describe the open-access model and its advantages, participants described clinician-level, client-level, and community-level factors.

4.2.1. Clinician specific

Counselors generally reported an overall positive experience with the open-access model. Many noted specific advantages related to shared provider responsibility for clients across teams and increased engagement of clients who were active in their choice of group attendance (as opposed to models that require clients to attend a set weekly group, or attend psychosocial treatments at increased frequency beyond the national minimum of monthly appointments). Consistent with our expectations, counselors described the removal of individual caseloads as an advantage of the model. One distinguishing feature of the open-access model is that counselors are not assigned a specific caseload of clients, nor are they required to schedule ongoing, individual sessions with clients. Instead, clients are assigned to clinical teams and are provided a range of group treatment options from which they choose and seek individual counseling as needed. Consequently, when counselors are out of the office, they have limited responsibilities related to client care, which allows them to more easily establish work-home life boundaries. The absence of individual caseloads among counselors in the open-access model contrasts with the large individual caseloads that community mental health clinicians often experience ( Hromco et al., 2003 ). Other providers have implemented group treatments for office-based buprenorphine/naloxone due to group treatment’s cost-effectiveness ( Sokol, Albanese, Albanese, Coste, et al., 2019 ; Sokol, Albanese, Chew, Early et al., 2019 ). Our findings that counselors employed in MMT programs that use an open-access treatment model perceive their work as challenging but also feel that they focus less on work when out of the office extend prior studies that counselors experience less burnout when they view their work as nonrepetitive and when they treat clients who demonstrate clinical improvements ( Beitel et al., 2018 ).

4.2.2. Client level

One goal of the open-access model was to reduce barriers to MMT access and retention. A public health mission to both increase access to evidence-based treatment in response to the opioid crisis and mitigate the stigma that clients who attend MMT programs experience informed this goal ( Earnshaw et al., 2013 ; Olsen and Sharfstein, 2014 ; Smith et al., 2019 ). Counselors brought up client-level benefits of the open-access model both when asked directly about advantages and when asked to describe the model. When describing the open-access model, counselors stated that the structure of the open-access program fostered choice and this choice empowered clients. As expected, this theme emerged when asked about the advantages of the open-access model, with participants saying it fostered client choice, autonomy, and well-being. Autonomy and choice are related to self-efficacy, a central concept in successful self-management of chronic medical conditions ( Bodenheimer et al., 2002 ). Future studies should examine if open-access models impact patient-reported self-efficacy and whether this relates to treatment retention.

Counselors emphasized that logistical aspects of the open-access model (reduced waiting time/same-day treatment access, elimination of scheduled appointments, and enrolling eligible individuals irrespective of their resources) reduced barriers to MMT access for prospective clients and provided client-centered psychosocial services. Enrolling eligible patients in MMT irrespective of their ability to pay also addresses a significant barrier to self-management of chronic medical conditions (i.e., lack of financial resources) ( Jerant et al., 2005 ). Waiting times of at least one month for methadone maintenance are common in the United States ( Andrews et al., 2013 ) and prior research has found that individuals referred to MMT from the criminal justice system, those with lower educational levels, those with co-occurring psychopathology, or those who are of racial/ethnic minority status are at increased risk of not enrolling in methadone maintenance when faced with such long intake waiting times ( Gryczynski et al., 2011 ). Thus, it seems counselors view the primary goals of the open-access model, which were to broaden access and minimize waiting time, as advantages. Future research should systematically examine if demographic changes occur following a program’s transition to the open-access model, particularly in terms of these historically marginalized groups who are disproportionally disadvantaged ( Gryczynski et al., 2011 ; Madden, 2017 ) and whether the provision of open-access mitigates “institutionalized stima” among those enrolled in methadone maintenance ( Harris and McElrath, 2012 ).

4.2.3. Community level

Counselors suggested that certain aspects of the open-access model benefitted the local community. These benefits centered on the idea that any member of the community could receive timely, standard-of-care treatment, and that these changes enabled more vulnerable members of the community to do so (i.e., those with higher psychiatric acuity, fewer financial resources). When asked to describe the advantages of the open-access model, counselors noted that increased enrollment provided the perceived benefits of decreased overdoses, mortality, and crime to the community. We did not expect that community impacts would arise as a theme because we thought they would be less noticeable to counselors than changes within the clinic. Prior findings about the effectiveness of MOUD in attenuating risk of infection with HIV and hepatitis C, and in reducing opioid overdose, all-cause mortality, and crime support the perceived community advantages of methadone maintenance scale up ( Volkow et al., 2014 ). The extent to which perceived community advantages offsets the previously reported stigma associated with being an addiction counselor merits further research ( Oberleitner et al., 2019 ).

4.3. Disadvantages

Counselors also highlighted disadvantages of the open-access program, particularly within the client-related and clinician-related themes. These concerns may be important for any opioid treatment program to consider when attempting scale up. Although APT has implemented interventions to address some of these perceived shortcomings, a program’s internal quality improvements and future research on the open-access model should look into how to further mitigate these possible disadvantages.

4.3.1. Clinician level

We anticipated that clinicians would experience the reduced emphasis on the one-to-one relationship with clients as a primary negative personal impact. Although therapeutic relationship arose as a theme when discussing disadvantages to clients (see section 4.3.2 ), we were somewhat surprised that it did not emerge more frequently as a perceived disadvantage to clinicians. We were surprised that some clinicians reported uneven workloads and high perceived demands as disadvantages of the open-access model. It appears that the high volume of clients in the open-access model presents challenges in the day-to-day work of some clinicians. Since clients select the type and time of groups that they attend, clinicians do not determine the flow of clients at APT as much as this might occur in other treatment settings that offer counseling one-on-one by appointment.

Consistent with other findings on reduced waiting time, the implementation of the open-access model at APT was associated with an increase in psychiatric acuity among clients enrolled in methadone maintenance ( Gryczynski et al., 2011 ; Madden, 2017 ). Although this represents a good public health outcome ( Madden, 2017 ), an unintended consequence may have been that some counselors perceived the increase in both volume of clients and level of acuity as challenging, or in some cases, threatening. In response to the findings from this quality improvement project, supervisors at APT now assess and address these concerns with addiction counselors, and APT has strengthened its onsite provision of clinical training opportunities (e.g., assessing and managing comorbid psychopathology) with free continuing education units offered to licensed providers (e.g., licensed clinical social workers). Program managers from opioid treatment programs who wish to implement the open-access model may also benefit from implementing these strategies.

4.3.2. Client level.

When outlining client disadvantages, counselors noted how the structural changes inherent in the open-access model may be challenging to navigate for certain patients. We anticipated that clinicians would experience the diminished emphasis on the traditional individual therapeutic relationship as a drawback for clients. Indeed, some clinicians reported that the lack of an assigned counselor may limit formation of a therapeutic relationship. We were surprised that some counselors highlighted how patients might experience the absence of appointment-making as chaotic. Both clients and clinicians may be more familiar with treatment settings where individual counseling by appointment is the norm. Specifically, some clinicians described clients with high clinical needs who struggled to take advantage of useful therapeutic opportunities, despite their availability (e.g., counseling groups, onsite primary care, and psychiatric services). Some counselors also expressed frustration that they were unable to do more for those clients who they perceived as having great need but were not engaging in treatment; although counselors’ noted that these clients did not represent the typical client who they served. In response to these concerns, the administrators at APT strengthened intensive outpatient programing for patients who continue to exhibit illicit opioid use or psychiatric distress. Whether the team-based approach to treatment inherent in the open-access model and the availability of multiple counseling groups from which clients choose facilitate an increased institutional, rather than individual provider, alliance is unclear ( Pulido et al., 2008 ).

4.3.3. Community level

A surprising finding was that counselors did not generate any community disadvantages, either in their description of the open-access model or when directly asked about its disadvantages. Public discourse about the opioid crisis has involved negative perceptions from some community members about this evidence-based treatment ( Heimer et al., 2019 ), including misconceptions that substance use treatment facilities incur increased crime ( Boyd et al., 2012 ; Furr-Holden et al., 2016 ). Counselors’ perceptions in this study regarding the efficacy of methadone maintenance to reduce opioid use, opioid-related overdose, and all-cause mortality align with scientific evidence ( Volkow et al., 2014 ). Despite the devastating toll that untreated OUD has taken on any U.S. communities, many communities still have inadequate access to MOUD ( Abraham et al., 2020 ); the extent to which community members’ misconceptions about MOUD approaches are related to inadequate access to MOUD in these communities is unclear.

4.4. Limitations and future directions

This study had several limitations. Although the coded responses from the interviews yielded potentially important themes related to counselors’ perceptions and experiences of implementing the open-access model, we did not collect data from community members or patients to corroborate these themes. Counselors who we interviewed for the current study had chosen to work within the open-access treatment model and their perceptions and experiences of open-access may not reflect those of other addiction counselors. For example, counselors who have a negative response to open-access may have left APT to work in a traditional opioid treatment program. To protect the anonymity of counselor responses, we did not ask them about their previous work experiences during interviews. Some of the counselors included in the current study may have limited work experience outside of this open-access model and their understanding and perceptions of the treatment model might be different from those counselors who have worked in settings that provide alternative models of care. We drew participants from methadone maintenance programs that a single not-for-profit, community-based organization in Connecticut operated. The extent to which study findings generalize to addiction counselors who work in programs with different treatment models or in different geographic locations is unclear.

Future studies should assess clients’ experiences of being treated in opioid treatment programs that use the open-access model. Clarifying which facets of the open-access model, if any, promote client autonomy and well-being would be useful. Our knowledge base would also benefit from research that examines which clinicians and clients respond favorably or unfavorably to the open-access or other models that are designed to enhance access to MOUD. Research should further examine the disadvantages of the open-access model that counselors described as well as how this model compares with and differs from other treatment models that these counselors have encountered in their work. Given the emphasis on team-based treatment in the open-access model, investigators should consider examining individual and institutional alliances among patients to determine whether these different alliances affect treatment outcomes.

4.5. Conclusion

Counselors who work in opioid treatment programs that have used an open-access model to increase treatment capacity report benefits to themselves, their clients, and the public. Research should explore the perceived disadvantages that counselors outlined and address these disadvantages so that programs can scale up MMT.

Highlights:

• Counselors identify positives and negatives to scaling up opiate agonist clinics.
• Advantages to clients include reduced barriers and greater autonomy.
• Advantages to counselors include stimulating work environment and fewer demands.
• Advantages to the community include less crime and treatment to vulnerable members.
• Disadvantages include uneven counselor workloads and lack of structure for clients.

Acknowledgments

This quality improvement study was funded by the APT Foundation, Inc. The findings of this study were presented in part at the 81st Annual Scientific Meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence—San Antonio, TX, June 16, 2019. The study in this manuscript represents original research, has not been submitted for publication elsewhere, and has not been published in whole or in part in any other peer-reviewed media. All relevant ethical safeguards have been met in relation to subject protection. All authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest over the past five years to report as related to the subject of the report.

1 In this paper, we use the terms “client” and “patient” as well as “clinician‖ and “counselor” interchangeably.

Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

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• Study Protocol
• Open access
• Published: 16 May 2024

Developing practical strategies to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination in public addiction treatment centers: a mixed-methods study protocol

• Maryam Khazaee-Pool   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-2587-3460 1 ,
• Seyed Abolhassan Naghibi 1 ,
• Tahereh Pashaei 2 &
• Koen Ponnet 3  

Addiction Science & Clinical Practice volume  19 , Article number:  40 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

People with substance use disorders (SUDs) have restricted engagement with health-care facilities and describe repeated experiences of stigma, discrimination, and mistreatment when receiving care at health-care and public addiction treatment centers (PATCs). The purpose of the current study is to design practical cultural-based strategies to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination at PATCs.

Methods/design

The present study will use a mixed-methods design with an explanatory sequential approach. Phase 1 of the study will combine a cluster sampling technique combined with a cross-sectional survey of Patients with Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) in Mazandaran, Iran. A total of three hundred and sixty individuals with SUDs will be selected to assess their experiences of stigma and factors predicting stigma. Phase 2 will involve qualitative study aimed at exploring participants’ perceptions regarding the aspects and determinants of their stigma experience. The participants will include two groups: people with SUDs and staff/health-care providers at PATCs. Participants for Phase 2 will be purposively sampled from those involved in Phase 1.Qualitative data will be collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions and analyzed using content analysis with a conventional approach. Phase 3 will focus on the development of new strategies to reduce the experiences of stigma among people with SUDs at PATCs. These strategies will be formulated based on the findings derived from the qualitative and quantitative data obtained in Phases 1 and 2, a comprehensive review of the literature, and expert opinions gathered using the nominal group technique.

This is one of the few studies conducted within the domain of stigma pertaining to individuals who use drugs within the context of Iranian culture employing a mixed-methods approach, this study aims to develop culturally sensitive strategies to reduce such problems from the perspective of Iranian people who use drugs. It is anticipated that the study will yield evidence-based insights and provide practical strategies to reduce the stigma and discrimination experienced by people who use drugs at PATCs. Such outcomes are important for informing policymaking and designing healthcare interventions tailored to the needs of individuals grappling with substance dependency.

Introduction

Substance use disorders (SUDs) represent complex illnesses that disrupt brain activity and function resulting in significant personal and societal repercussions [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]. Recognizing the detrimental impact of SUD-related stigma, The National Institute on Drug Abuse has prioritized efforts to understand and diminish this stigma [ 5 ]. Research on mental illness stigma has consistently revealed its association with adverse outcomes, including exacerbated symptoms and impaired social functioning [ 6 ]. With the increasing prevalence of SUDs within the general population [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 7 ] and the necessity to inform policymakers and allocate legislative resources effectively [ 8 , 9 ], it becomes crucial to raise awareness about the stigma surrounding SUDs in society. Studies investigating SUD-related stigma have documented various forms of prejudice and discrimination experienced by people who use drugs, particularly from healthcare providers, which are correlated with detrimental health outcomes, including mental health disorders and compromised physical health [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ].

Part of the stigmatization faced by healthcare providers stems from the inaction of public health leaders [ 15 ], while another part arises from the lack of training among healthcare workers in SUD treatment [ 16 , 17 ], both of which contribute to inadequate implementation of effective remedies. Numerous studies have demonstrated the persistent and entrenched nature of stigma, often rooted in the misconception that drug addiction reflects a personal choice, indicating a lack of self-control and moral failure. Stigma and discrimination levels are notably high both within the general population and among professions that interact with individuals with SUDs, such as the healthcare industry. Some studies have demonstrated that stigma and prejudice harm SUD patients’ health and cause delays in the delivery of high-quality care in venues for public addiction treatment. Individuals with SUDs frequently encounter stigma and discrimination across all levels of care at public addiction treatment centers (PATCs) [ 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ].

The World Health Organization is working with several countries to train medical professionals in screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) [ 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. SBIRT is a treatment strategy that encourages all medical professionals to identify patients who are taking drugs at statistically dangerous levels, provide brief interventions to promote drug use reduction, and then refer patients who meet criteria for drug use or addiction for more intensive treatments. According to some studies, screening and brief interventions (SBI) have the greatest effect on reducing the use of psychoactive substances [ 20 , 23 , 26 , and 28 ]. SBI is a simple, quick advisory intervention that stresses several types of specific behavior. It may be used by professionals in a variety of situations [ 29 ].

Unfortunately, societal acceptability of evidence-based initiatives does not always come easily [ 30 ]. The allocation of healthcare interventions is influenced by various factors, including the novelty of characteristics, healthcare worker attitudes, and the stigma associated with a health condition. Research has consistently demonstrated that negative attitudes among healthcare professionals can impede the adoption of innovative practices, the quality of services provided, and clients’ adherence to preventive and therapeutic measures [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 ]. Therefore, education and training programs should prioritize the modification of attitudes and beliefs among healthcare providers to promote the uptake of SBI for drug addiction [ 37 , 38 ].

Research in health has linked stigma from service providers at care or treatment centers with poor utilization of preventive programs and reduced accessibility for stigmatized individuals to access effective interventions [ 39 , 40 ]. Efforts to mitigate stigmatization are underway, particularly for individuals living with mental health conditions [ 40 , 41 ]. Studies have identified three main approaches: (i) providing educational interventions to dispel misconceptions about mental illnesses, (ii) facilitating interactions between individuals with mental illnesses and the community to challenge community attitudes, and (iii) exposing stigmatizing beliefs and behaviors in the hope of eliciting public condemnation and reducing their acceptance [ 41 , 42 , 43 ]. Although anti-stigma strategies are sometimes inaccessible or unproven, the aforementioned techniques aim to change community perceptions of people facing such circumstances [ 39 , 41 ].

To reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, several national and international strategies have been developed, and the range of programs continues to expand. However, stigma and discrimination against individuals with SUDs remain poorly understood [ 44 , 45 ]. Moreover, there has been limited research investigating the creation and execution of practices or interventions aimed at reducing SUD-related stigma and discrimination among people who use drugs by PHC professionals [ 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 ]. When developing anti-stigma strategies, it is essential to consider the cultural norms and different behaviors of specific groups, including healthcare professionals, youth, police, and policymakers [ 14 , 38 , 40 , 45 , 49 ].

For many years, stigma related to SUDs has posed challenges in Iran [ 51 , 52 , 53 ]. One of the most significant obstacles to improving the well-being and health of individuals with SUDs is the stigmatization and discrimination they face within the healthcare system [ 52 , 54 ]. This results in disparities in healthcare facilities, including limited availability, accessibility, and quality of services for individuals with SUDs [ 54 ]. Stigmatization negatively impacts help-seeking behavior from official healthcare facilities, leading to poorer outcomes and perpetuating the misconception that SUDs are untreatable. individuals with SUDs may be more prone to engaging in unhealthy behaviors, refusing treatment, non-compliance with prescription instructions, weakened immune systems, and experiencing adverse consequences [ 55 ].

Comprehensive plans for the promotion, prevention, treatment, and recovery of individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs) should consider numerous socioeconomic variables. Adopting a “health-in-all policies” approach is crucial in addressing these challenges. Strategies to increase access to treatment and reduce stigma and discrimination towards individuals with SUDs may involve integrating SUD care and fostering collaboration between primary care clinicians and other healthcare providers [ 22 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 53 ]. International efforts to combat addiction-related stigma have emphasized the importance of lowering barriers to a variety of health treatments for individuals with SUDs. Despite this emphasis and the widespread consensus that reducing stigma associated with SUDs is important, progress in this area has been slow [ 40 , 49 , 56 , 57 , 58 ]. While strategies to reduce SUD-related stigma have gained traction in Western industrial nations in recent years [ 59 , 60 ]. They remain largely absent from national and government policies, information, and healthcare plans in many parts of the world [ 40 , 42 , 44 , 53 , 58 , 61 ].

Longitudinal data on behavior changes in response to stigma and discrimination related to SUDs in Iran are lacking, making it challenging to develop effective strategies to reduce such stigma, especially in PATCs. The most widely recognized solutions are those that are acceptable, suitable, and adaptable across cultural contexts. Further research and needs assessments are required to identify additional strategies for addressing addiction-related stigma [ 42 , 47 , 56 ]. To address the stigma associated with addiction, it is necessary to study the effectiveness and feasibility of stigma-reducing interventions [ 55 , 58 , 62 ].

In Iran, as in many other countries, there is a lack of comprehensive strategies aimed at reducing stigma related to SUDs. Additionally, there is a dearth of studies providing practical strategies, both quantitative and qualitative, to address addiction-related stigma and discrimination specifically within PATCs for individuals with SUDs in Iran. Mixed-method analyses focusing on this issue are also lacking. While there have been some studies conducted in Iran to explore stigma toward individuals with SUDs, none have offered strategies or methods to mitigate stigma within public treatment settings. Although limited, existing data from small-scale qualitative studies in Iranian healthcare settings indicate the prevalence of discriminatory attitudes toward people with SUDs, manifesting as care refusal, substandard care, excessive precautions, physical distancing, humiliation, and blame [ 30 , 51 , 52 , 55 , 62 , 63 , 64 ].

Iran’s unique cultural characteristics [ 65 ] including demographic factors [ 66 ], cultural norms [ 67 ], ethnic identity [ 68 ], social customs, traditions, peer relationships, and poverty [ 69 ] shape the societal landscape and perceptions surrounding behaviors, including those related to SUDs. Consequently, addressing addiction-related stigma and its impact on individuals who use drugs in Iran requires sensitivity to these cultural nuances [ 64 , 70 ]. In Iran, SUDs are not solely viewed as medical issues but also as a socio-cultural problem. This perspective can lead to delays in treatment and pose significant challenges for patients and their families. Consequently, reducing stigma and discrimination associated with the rising prevalence of addiction among Iranians has been identified as a pressing priority within the healthcare system [ 70 ].

In Iranian society, plays a significant role in shaping perceptions and experiences of SUD across various demographic groups, including differences related to age, gender, socioeconomic status, and education level [ 64 ]. Research in Iran has extensively explored how cultural influences manifest in SUDs, examining factors such as demographic characteristics, regional prevalence patterns, gender dynamics, religious beliefs, and the stigma associated with drug use. These studies highlight the complex interplay between cultural norms, individual behaviors, and societal attitudes toward SUDs within the Iranian context [ 66 , 67 , 68 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 ].

Of course, the stigma surrounding drug addiction in Iran exhibits variations based on factors such as gender, the specific type of drug used, and residential location [ 81 , 82 ]. Interestingly, a study examining literary works in Iran reveals a historical acceptance of opium as a medicinal remedy by prominent Iranian poets. Opium has been portrayed positively, with references to its purported benefits such as regulating blood pressure and relieving pain [ 83 ]. This cultural perspective reflects a nuanced view of drug consumption in Iranian society, indicating that stigma surrounding certain drugs may not be uniform. Rather, stigma appears to evolve dynamically within social contexts, presenting new challenges that may differ from those associated with more entrenched forms of stigma.

Although previous qualitative studies have provided valuable insights into the experiences of individuals with SUD interacting with healthcare professionals, our understanding of SUD-related stigma within the Iranian healthcare system remains limited. A comprehensive, multiphase study employing a mixed-methods approach is needed to systematically assess the experiences of Iranian people who use drugs regarding stigma and to develop evidence-based guidelines and strategies for reducing stigma and discrimination against individuals with SUDs at PATCs. The importance and the impact of stigma and discrimination related to SUDs within Iranian culture as well as the influence of cultural differences on patients’ healthcare-seeking attitudes and the support services provided by the healthcare system, form the foundation of this mixed-method study. Given these considerations, it is imperative to address cultural factors associated with substance use disorders and the stigma stemming from substance consumption in Iranian society. This is because the cultural, economic, and social variations across different societies warrant an examination of human experiences within each unique cultural context. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore comprehensive and culturally sensitive strategies in order to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination at PATCs.

The study aims

This mixed-methods study aims to identify strategies to reduce stigma and discrimination against Iranian people who use drugs at PATCs. The specific objectives of the study can be categorized into three phases as follows:

To measure the perceived stigma score among people with substance use disorders (SUDs) who were referred to PATCs in Mazandaran, Iran.

To evaluate professionals’ attitudes towards people with SUDs receiving treatment at PATCs in Mazandaran, Iran.

To measure the social distance score towards people with substance use disorders seeking treatment at PATCs in Mazandaran, Iran.

To examine the relationship between socio-demographic characteristics and perceived stigma among individuals with substance use disorders.

To investigate the relationship between perceived stigma, social distance, and professionals’ attitudes toward people with SUDs.

To explore the perspectives and experiences of people who use drugs concerning the various aspects and determinants of stigma and discrimination stemming from the community, healthcare centers, or PATCs due to drug use.

To examine healthcare providers’ perspectives on stigma against individuals who use drugs.

To develop evidence-based cultural strategies aimed at diminishing stigma and discrimination at PATCs against Iranian people who use drugs faced health challenges.

Study design

This study will employ a mixed-methods technique with an explanatory sequential approach for data collection and analysis. Grounded in pragmatic principles and logic, the mixed-methods paradigm combines quantitative and qualitative methodologies to provide a comprehensive understanding of the research questions. In this methodology, the researcher first gathers quantitative data to identify patterns or trends requiring further exploration. Subsequently, qualitative data are collected from individuals who can offer insights to enhance the understanding and interpretation of the quantitative findings [ 84 ]. According to this paradigm, merging qualitative and quantitative methods results in a deeper comprehension of the issue [ 85 , 86 ].

This study will be conducted in three phases. The first phase will be a quantitative study, during which, quantitative data will be gathered. The second phase of this project will be a more detailed exploratory qualitative study of participants’ experiences regarding SUD-related stigma toward and discrimination against people who use drugs at PATCs. At the end of the second phase, the qualitative and quantitative findings will be integrated. The third phase of the study will involve the development of evidence-based and culturally sensitive strategies based on a literature review, the results of Phases 1 and 2, and experts’ opinions using the nominal group technique (NGT) (Fig.  1 ). Full explanations of each part of the study are provided below.

Study visual diagram

Phase 1: quantitative study

The quantitative phase will be a descriptive-analytic cross-sectional study conducted among Iranian people with SUDs living in Mazandaran, Iran. In this phase, we will assess perceived stigma experiences and their relationship with social distance, perceived dangerousness, experts’ discrimination or acceptance, and sociodemographic characteristics among the participants. The target population will consist of people who are referred to PATCs in Mazandaran, Iran. The Perceived Stigma of Addiction Scale (PSAS), Health Professionals’ Attitude Towards Substance Abusers Scale (HPA-SAS), and Social Distance Scale (SDS) will be used. These scales will be validated for use among Iranian people.

Sample size and sampling method

There is no shortage of research on stigma toward and discrimination against people with SUDs at PATCs and other health-care settings in Iran. Therefore, the sample size is calculated based on Matsumoto’s study [ 87 ]. Following Matsumoto et al. [ 87 ], the calculated sample size is 240, based on the largest standard deviation related to the sub dimension of stigma (SD = 12.39), with a precision (d) of 0.05 around the mean (m = 35.01), and α = 0.05. In most cases, the design effect’s numerical value is about 1.5–2. In this study, we will apply 1.5, and the final sample size will be increased to 360 substance users, based on cluster sampling.

For this project, fifteen PATCs in Mazandaran will be selected. A cluster sampling method will be employed, with each cluster comprising a comparable number of respondents. Mazandaran will be divided into three areas (west, central, and east). All PATCs within these areas will be enumerated, and five PATCs will be randomly chosen from each area. Individuals with SUDs who are referred to the PATCs will be invited to participate in the project.

The participants will be offered comprehensive explanations of the goals and methods of the research. The sociodemographic questions, the PSAS, HPA-SAS, and SDS will be administered in a “quiet setting” [questionnaire will be presented while maintaining patient privacy] by a research group member and then collected in person. The investigator will fill out the scales to ensure that the same data collection method is used for all individuals. Informed consent will be obtained from the individuals prior to the data collection.

Inclusion criteria

Individuals will be eligible for the current project if they are adults (aged 20 years or older), reside in Mazandaran province, have a history of any kind of substance use, and have no severe mental difficulties that prevent them from answering the items in the questionnaires.

Exclusion criteria

The exclusion criteria for participants will be: having a mental disability, having psychiatry history like active bipolar disease, depression with psychosis, or schizophrenia, being deaf or mute, showing unwillingness to continue participating in the study, and not fully completing the questionnaires.

Questionnaires and data collection

Quantitative data will be collected utilizing sociodemographic variables and the PSAS, HPA-SAS, and SDS scales. The sociodemographic section will include questions on age, gender, occupation, duration of employment, and education. The PSAS comprises eight items to measure the perceived stigma towards individuals with substance use disorders. Initially developed and validated among patients undergoing treatment for substance use–related issues in the United States [ 88 ]. he items were adapted from a study conducted by Link and colleagues on perceived discrimination-devaluation processes, Content validity was established through review by stigma professionals in the substance use field the PSAS was related to adopted shame, self-concealment, adopted stigma, and depression [ 89 ]. The PSAS employs a four-point Likert scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree” for participants to rate their agreement or disagreement with each item. Scores range from 8 to 32, with higher scores indicating greater perceived stigma. The PSAS has demonstrated good reliability, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.71 and a reliability coefficient of 0.79 based on the test-retest method in American society [ 88 ]. In an Iranian study, the reliability of the PSAS was found to be 0.85, with a test-retest correlation coefficient of 0.81 [ 90 ].

The HPA-SAS consists of 10 items, with questions addressing the attitudes and/or views of health professionals toward people with SUD, their knowledge of addiction, and their training in substance use. The constructs of attitudes will focus on discrimination and acceptance towards people who use drugs. The HPA-SAS was developed utilizing a Likert scale format, with each item offering four response options: (1) strongly disagree (2), disagree (3), agree, and (4) strongly agree, resulting in total scores ranging from 10 to 40. The validity and reliability of the HPA-SAS were established through research conducted by a team of psychological counseling and medical care professionals. The overall Cronbach’s alpha of the original HPA-SAS has been reported as 0.79 [ 91 ]. In this study, the validity and reliability of the questionnaire were assessed prior to data collection with a sample of Iranian people who use drugs. The overall Cronbach’s alpha of the HPA-SAS was found to be 0.76, and the test–retest correlation coefficient of this scale was 0.74.

The seven-item SDS, which was created by Bogardus et al. (1925) [ 92 ] and then modified by Link et al. (1987) [ 89 ], measures the social distance that interviewees wish to keep toward a person with a particular condition (diverse social, ethnic, or racial backgrounds). This scale focuses on respondents’ willingness to engage in a relationship with someone who is dependent on illegal substances. In particular, it measures people’s willingness to take part in a variety of social contacts with a particular group. The SDS consists of seven items presented as multiple-choice questions, which assess social distance by probing the respondent’s willingness to engage in various social interactions with stigmatized individuals: These interactions include scenarios such as being a sub-lessee, neighbor, co-worker, spouse of a family member, caretaker of one’s child, and member of the same social group. Participants will be asked to rate their level of willingness or unwillingness for each item using a four-point Likert scale with the following options: (0) definitely willing [ 1 ], willing [ 2 ], unwilling, and [ 3 ] definitely unwilling. The total score ranges from 0 to 21; scores higher than the mean identify higher social distance. The overall Cronbach’s alpha of the original SDS is 0.75 [ 89 ]. The Iranian version of the SDS has found to have a Cronbach’s alpha value of 0.92. The test–retest reliability coefficient for the SDS was 0.89, and the content validity coefficient was 0.75 [ 90 ].

Data analysis

The data from the first phase of the study will be analyzed using SPSS Statistics Version 26.0 for Windows (IBM Inc., Armonk, NY, USA). In the cross-sectional phase, descriptive statistics will be applied to describe the sociodemographic factors and perceived stigma of addiction, experts’ attitudes toward people with SUD, and social distance. Univariate analytical statistics will be used to test the correlation between the sociodemographic variables and perceived stigma, experts’ attitudes toward people with SUD, and social distance. Variables with a correlation of p  < 0.1 in the univariate analysis will be included in the multivariable logistic model. All statistical tests will be two-tailed, and a p -value < 0.05 will be considered statistically significant. To ensure data quality during this phase of the study, measures such as double data entry and range checks for data values will be implemented.

Phase 2: qualitative study

In Phase 2, an exploratory qualitative study will be conducted utilizing a conventional content analysis method to explore the experiences of people who use drugs regarding stigma and discrimination stemming from the community, health-care centers, or PATCs as a result of drug use. Additionally, this phase will aim to gain insight into healthcare providers’ perspectives on stigma against people who use drugs in greater detail. Given the objectives of the project’s qualitative phase, employing this method will enable the investigator to gain a comprehensive understanding of the situation, facilitating the clarification of the impact of stigma and discrimination on Iranian people who use drugs at PATCs.

Participants and sampling method

A purposive sampling approach will be used in the second phase of the study. The target population will consist of two groups of people, namely, those who have experienced drug use and staff members at PATCs. The first group of participants (people who use drugs) will be selected from those willing to participate in the quantitative phase of the study and will be based on the mean total score of the stigma experience, which will be collected in Phase 1 of the study. People with 10% upper and lower stigma experience scores will be selected as extreme cases, and will be retained for the next phase. We will seek to interview people with either a stigma or discrimination experience in order to collect more comprehensive information about their stigma experiences and its related factors. Efforts will be made to have variety in terms of gender, level of education, religion, age, socioeconomic situation, and the use of different types of drugs.

The second group of participants will consist of health-care workers and providers at PATCs. This sample will include agents from (i) PATC management, (ii) clinical and medical teams, (iii) health-care program teams and (iv)others according to the setting (e.g., finance). Health-care workers will be enlisted using purposive sampling methods. Four of them will be contacted through education programs with a specific focus on staff involved in drug treatment. The retained persons will be invited to register, and a member of the research team will be in touch to schedule an interview. Health-care workers in specific treatment centers will also receive direct invitations from the investigation team.

Data analysis will commence after the first interview, focusing on elucidating the intricacies and interactions among key concepts and categories derived from the exploration of the primary data. Consequently, the selection of participants will persist until theoretical saturation is achieved, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of the relationships between the study concepts and components [ 93 ]. In the current study, sampling will continue until the investigator determines that no further data can be garnered through data analysis and coding, signifying theoretical saturation. However, it is recommended by experts that a minimum of 12 participants be interviewed for a qualitative study to ensure a robust and comprehensive analysis [ 94 ].

Data collection

Data will be collected by two methods: in-depth interviews with individuals with SUDs and focus group discussions with PATC staff members.

Semi-structured, in-depth interviews

Individual, in-depth, semi-structured interviews featuring open-ended questions will be employed to gather data. These interviews will focus on exploring participants’ perspectives and experiences related to stigma and discrimination against individuals with (SUDs within healthcare settings. The target group for this part of the study will consist of people who use drugs who have been referred to PATCs in Mazandaran, Iran. Before the qualitative phase of the study, the interview protocol questions will be prepared based on the results of the first phase of the study as well as the literature review. Interviews will be held in locations, such as clinics, where respondents will feel safe and relaxed. All individual in-depth interviews will be recorded using a digital tape recorder after the applicant’s permission. In addition to the audio recordings, the interviewer will take notes. If participants decline to be audio-recorded, only notes will be employed for data gathering. Furthermore, non-verbal cues, such as facial expressions, tone of voice, and the respondents’ state, will also be noted by the interviewer, together with the date and place of the interview.

All interviews will be conducted by the first author of this study, who is familiar with qualitative research methods and the topic, and who has conducted similar studies on addiction,. Participants will be encouraged to discuss their experiences related to strategies to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination in public addiction treatment centers. Further, they will be encouraged to discuss sociocultural and ecological components that might have had an effect on the level of using these strategies in this regard.

The interviews will be focused on the following three main questions:

How was the experience with stigma toward and discrimination in health-care settings?

What strategy and procedure have they applied to reduce and cope with stigma and discrimination in health-care settings?

How have the strategies and procedures affected their coping strategies in this regard?

Based on the responses to these questions, follow-up questions will be asked. After each question, participants will be invited to explain more thoroughly their answer, by probing questions such as “What do you mean?” or “can you explain this more”.

Interviews will be performed during a single meeting with each participant and is estimated to last between 40 and 60 min, although this can differ slightly based on the experiences of each participant. The investigator will start with explaining the significance of the study in order to gain their confidence. All interview questions will be reviewed after the first interview, and all interviews will be taped. Data collection will be continued until saturation is reached.

Focus group discussions

Following semi-structured interviews, the principal researcher (first author), who is an expert in qualitative studies, an expert in qualitative studies, will conduct focus group discussions with staff members at Patients with Substance Use Disorders Treatment Centers (PATCs), which comprise the second target group of this phase of the study. These focus group discussions aim to validate the emerging themes from the individual interviews and gain deeper insights into the identified themes. The focus group discussions will be guided by the two main research questions: (i) What is providers’ understanding of stigma towards and discrimination against persons with SUDs? and [ 2 ] What are the providers’ opinions regarding a response to stigma and discrimination? Furthermore, more detailed investigative questions will be incorporated, such as: What types of SUDs do your clients typically present with? Are there any other community-level factors that could influence experiences of stigma and discrimination against individuals with SUDs?

Immediately following data collection, the coding process will be initiated, and the data will be analyzed. The main themes will be identified using a conventional content analysis method of Graneheim and Lundman [ 95 ], in which themes and subthemes are identified to reveal participants’ perceptions and experiences toward stigma and discrimination against Iranian people who use drugs at PATCs. This process will employ inductive reasoning, which introduces concepts and categories via a detailed exploration of the data by the researcher.

In Graneheim and Lundman’s method, qualitative content analysis addresses the obvious content of an interview, along with explanations of content that can be construed or added from the interview but are not obviously detailed in the transcript [ 95 ]. Further, coding classifications are derived directly from the transcription data. Without laying on preset themes or prior theoretical opinions to categorize extracted codes from interviews, the conventional content analysis method is a suitable technique for advancing coding categorizations from the raw interview transcripts.

In this method, data analysis begins with a comprehensive reading of the entire text to ensure a thorough understanding. Subsequently, the text is examined word by word to extract codes, initially identifying specific words that may encapsulate the main concepts. These texts are derived from notes documenting the initial opinions of the interviewees and the preliminary analysis conducted. Codes that are indicative of more than one main thought are tagged and then categorized based on their dissimilarities and similarities. The greatest benefit of a conventional content analysis is attaining data directly from the study without imposing preplanned and defined categories, themes, or theories. However, one problem with this kind of analysis is that it interjects with other qualitative methods (i.e., grounded theory or phenomenology). While these approaches share similarities with initial analysis, they are emphasized for their relevance to theory advancement. Additionally, they hold significance for model development. To evaluate the trustworthiness of the results in this phase of the study, four criteria —reliability, portability, credibility, and verifiability— will be employed [ 96 ]. MAXQDA software will be used for data processing.

Phase three: integration of quantitative and qualitative data and the development of strategies

In this phase, cultural evidence-based strategies aimed at reducing stigma and discrimination associated with substance use of Iranian people at PATCs will be developed This will involve integrating insights from the literature review, the findings of the preceding study phases, and input from experts. The target group for this aspect of the study will comprise PATC experts residing in Mazandaran, Iran.

Upon completion of the second phase of the study, the quantitative and qualitative results will be merged to glean additional insights that will inform the design and implementation of appropriate strategies to mitigate stigma and discrimination against individuals with SUDs at PATCs. Three techniques can be employed to integrate the quantitative and qualitative findings: combining the data into a discussion, utilizing a matrix for combination, or employing a side-by-side display and transformation. n this study, the data will be combined into a discussion format. Some researchers often commence this approach with a section outlining the quantitative findings, followed by a section detailing the qualitative findings. Alternatively, researchers may present the quantitative findings while substantiating claims with quotes extracted from them. Another less common technique involves initially presenting the quantitative results and subsequently confirming and validating them with descriptive qualitative findings [ 97 , 98 ].

To develop strategies for reducing stigma and discrimination against people who use drugs at PATCs, the research team will start with formulating guidelines after a comprehensive review of the available literature. Systematic review and interventional studies will be conducted to find approaches. The search will encompass English-language databases (including Cochrane Library, APA PsycNET, MEDLINE, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, ProQuest) as well as Persian databases (such as Magiran, Irandoc, SID, and Barakat). No restrictions will be imposed, particularly with regard to publication dates, to ensure comprehensive coverage of relevant studies. A uniform search strategy will be applied across all databases, utilizing the intersection of three fields via the Boolean AND operator. To define search terms, the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) dictionary will be referenced. Upon identification of relevant documents, their quality will be assessed using the GRADE approach, followed by evidence analysis. Insights gleaned from the literature review will also be incorporated. Subsequently, the recommended strategies developed will be offered to Nominal Group Technique (NGT) experts.

NGT will be applied will be employed to devise and implement effective strategies aimed at diminishing stigma and discrimination against individuals with SUDs at PATCs. NGT is a structured, group-based method utilized to achieve consensus. Participants are encouraged to independently generate viewpoints based on predetermined and organized questions facilitated by a moderator [ 99 ]. To initiate the NGT process, primary strategies will be extracted from the findings of the first and second phases of the study, in addition to insights gathered from a literature review and examination of relevant rules and regulations A meeting will then be held with the experts who must meet the inclusion criteria of being residents of Mazandaran, Iran, possessing a minimum of one year of relevant work experience, having comprehensive familiarity with Iranian culture and customs, and being employed in a clinic associated with the treatment of people who use drugs. During this meeting, specialists will be invited to share their opinions on the developed strategies in relation to the key study questions, with all ideas and suggestions being meticulously recorded. Subsequently, these suggestions will be organized and prioritized to formulate consensus-driven strategies for effectively reducing stigma and discrimination against Iranian individuals with SUDs.

Ethical approval

The Ethics Committee of the Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in Mazandaran, Sari, Iran, has approved the protocol for the present study [code number: IR.MAZUMS.REC.1401.192]. Informed written consent will be obtained from all participants during the quantitative and qualitative stages. Participants will be assured of the confidentiality of their data and identities. Additionally, they will be informed that they have the right to withdraw from the project at any phase of the intervention, and that their decision to refuse participation at any time will not impact or alter the quality of services provided to them.

The study is still ongoing, and no results have yet been generated. We will wait until the completion of our first data collection before disseminating any findings.

This article outlines the protocol for a mixed-method study aimed at identifying and formulating appropriate strategies to mitigate addiction-related stigma and discrimination at PATCs. The study will offer comprehensive insights into the stigma encountered by a cohort of Iranian people who use drugs and the factors influencing their experiences. The findings of this study will be utilized to develop and implement culturally tailored strategies geared towards reducing stigma and discrimination associated with substance use among Iranian people who use drugs attending PATCs.

While stigma and discrimination linked with drug addiction is a global concern, their nature and expression are contingent upon the religious, social, and cultural frameworks prevalent in various societies. Operating as a multilevel phenomenon, stigma arises when harm resulting from unfavorable status, labeling, or discrimination transpires within a power structure that perpetuates and reinforces social inequalities among those labeled [ 100 ]. Stigma toward substance use can profoundly impact an individual’s social and personal connections, often resulting in feelings of worthlessness. Such stigma may provoke negative responses and behaviors from various organizations and individuals towards the affected person [ 101 , 102 ]. These behaviors can impede access to treatment for individuals with substance use disorders. Moreover, they contribute to social, financial, and health discrimination within these communities, fostering the perception that individuals with SUDs are undeserving of the opportunity to address their condition [ 103 ].

Stigma significantly impacts the spectrum of care for individuals with SUDs, influencing aspects such as treatment seeking, preference, maintenance, and adherence, consequently leading to poorer health outcomes within this population or ever, stigma may exacerbate disparities in accessing medical and health services, as individuals with SUDs may be hesitant to pursue and adhere to health-oriented measures [ 104 ].

Studies evaluating the stigma experiences of persons with SUDs are mainly qualitative in nature [ 21 , 52 , 62 , 98 , 105 , 106 ]. The present study will be one of the few studies addressing addiction-related stigma in Iran that applies a mixed-methods technique to identify suitable strategies to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination at PATCs from the perspective of Iranian people who use drugs. It is expected that the current work, by using quantitative and qualitative methods, will offer valid data regarding suitable cultural strategies to reduce stigma against persons with SUDs at health-care and treatment centers.

The findings of the current study hold potential significance for healthcare specialists and policymakers shedding light on the pivotal role of cultural strategies in mitigating stigma against individuals with SUDs within healthcare and treatment settings employing a culturally sensitive approach Furthermore, the study aims to elucidate the needs of individuals with SUDs and provide insights into the factors influencing addiction-related stigma that require attention. Effective strategies emerging from this research may encompass interventions geared towards enhancing the health outcomes of Iranian people who use drugs and their families, as well as those from other nationalities and countries sharing similar cultural contexts with Iran. Additionally, the study’s findings are anticipated to inform stigma-reduction education and healthcare support initiatives tailored to the Iranian population, underpinned by a culture-based approach.

Potential strengths of the study

This study has several advantages. The results will potentially fill some of the gaps in research on people with SUDs who encounter stigma and discrimination at PATCs thus holding significant clinical implications. By employing a mixed-methods approach, this study facilitates the integration of diverse approaches and methodologies. The collection of both qualitative and quantitative data will provide a comprehensive understanding of. People who use drugs’ experiences of stigma and discrimination at PATCs. Moreover, the qualitative component of the study involves various participants directly or indirectly associated with this phenomenon, including individuals with SUDs and staff/clinicians. Conducting interviews with substance users and clinicians will enable a deeper understanding of how the phenomenon is perceived by those directly affected by stigma/discrimination, as well as by individuals closely involved in the patients’ daily lives and clinicians, who play a crucial role in both the phenomenon and its treatment.

Potential limitations of the study

The researchers acknowledge several limitations in the current study although the developed strategies will be evaluated upon achievement to ascertain their suitability and effectiveness, detailed descriptions will be necessary to design appropriate interventions and allow for generalization in similar contexts. One limitation is related to the sampling, which will be conducted in only one province in Iran. To mitigate this weakness, we will try to use maximum variation in the study phases. Another limitation is the possibility that the participants will not cooperate and drop out before the end of the study. Additionally, the scarcity of research and literature reviews regarding the stigma experienced by this population at PATCs poses a challenge. Furthermore, there is limited available data on how stigma varies among different subgroups, such as based on gender, race, religion, or socioeconomic status. These limitations will be considered during the interpretation of the study results and may influence the generalizability of findings to broader contexts.

The stigma and discrimination faced by individuals’ with SUDs experience persist not only in the community but also within PATCs, and medical settings. This Stigmatization adversely affects the accessibility and acceptability of care, as the lack of anonymity limits the willingness of this population to seek SUD treatment. The present study aims to provide comprehensive insights into the development of appropriate strategies to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination at PATCs. By incorporating evidence-based practice principles, insights from people who use drugs’ experiences, and input from PATC staff, these strategies can offer valuable guidance for healthcare professionals, policymakers, and managers seeking to enhance the quality of care for individuals with a history of drug use worldwide. Furthermore, the strategies developed may serve as a blueprint for adapting interventions for patients with SUDs in various settings, including other healthcare treatment centers, clinics, and within the broader public community.

Data availability

Not applicable.

Abbreviations

substance use disorder

public addiction treatment centers

Perceived Stigma of Addiction Scale

Professional’s Discrimination, Acceptance, Attitude, and Training toward Substance Abusers

Social Distance Scale

focus group discussions

screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment

in-depth interviews

nominal group technique

standard deviation

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Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful for the support of the Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences.

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Department of Health Education and Promotion, School of Health, Health Sciences Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran

Maryam Khazaee-Pool & Seyed Abolhassan Naghibi

Department of Health Promotion and Education, School of Health, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

Tahereh Pashaei

Department of Communication Sciences, imec-mict-Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

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Contributions

MK designed the project, and will collect and analyze the data. Mk wrote the first draft of this manuscript. TP and SAN will participate in the analyses of data. MK and KP critically revised the final version of this article. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Maryam Khazaee-Pool or Tahereh Pashaei .

Ethics declarations

Ethics approval.

The study procedure was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences [Grant NO: 18008; Ethical code number: IR.MAZUMS.REC.1401.192].

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Khazaee-Pool, M., Naghibi, S.A., Pashaei, T. et al. Developing practical strategies to reduce addiction-related stigma and discrimination in public addiction treatment centers: a mixed-methods study protocol. Addict Sci Clin Pract 19 , 40 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13722-024-00472-8

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Top 17 Offbeat Ideas For Your Dissertation On Drugs

Writing a dissertation is one of the most critical academic tasks that you will complete as a student. You may find these assignments tough if you are doing them for the first time. However, if you have already attempted such project in your undergraduate or graduate degree, then it would be easier for you to create your assignment. You will know the overall format and structure of the paper if you have done so before. However, the complexity of the task would change when you promote to higher degrees. For instance, in high school you are not expected to come up with innovative ideas but doctorate or master’s degree must requires you to base your work on your original ideas. You may have an inspiration for the idea but you will have to mention that and give the credit to the cited sources

Topics to use for a winning dissertation

Choosing a topic on drugs is going to be interesting as long as you are passionate about what you do. You should make sure that the topic for your assignment is original and unique. This would create a curiosity for the audience and help to engage them for the rest of your task. Here are a few offbeat ideas to consider when writing a paper on drugs

• A comparison of the effects of alcohol and weed on behavior
• Why do people smoke cannabis? Is it a cultural influence?
• What is tendency of a child to be involved in drugs if one of both of the parents were drug addicts
• How do people exposed to drugs and alcohol excel in their practical lives and what difference does it make on social interactions
• Is drug use and abuse same thing? Can using drugs ever be a good thing
• If drugs are bad then media promoting drugs in any way should also be restricted and controlled
• The relationship between poverty, low income households and substance abuse
• Clinics in Switzerland allow exact amount of heroin and other drugs to people so that they do not have to feel socially left out
• How successful are the strategies used by rehabs and psychiatrists for drug addiction and getting rid of it
• Legalizing marijuana
• Herbal medication and cannabis
• Alcohol as a medication
• What causes addiction
• Domestic violence and drug abuse
• Substance abuse and poor schooling
• Drugs and crime
• Retaliation and drugs

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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Narcotics drugs'

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Primlani, Monisha. "Drugs, crime and law enforcement : the economic connection." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/30643.

Kwan, Ming-tak Kalwan. "Drugs, peers, gangs, and crime : an interactional model /." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1995. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B19470563.

Henry, James J. "Department of Defense in the war on drugs : an optimization model for counter-narcotics assets." Thesis, Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/23851.

Byrom, Christopher L. "Dismantling the Afghan Opiate economy : a Cultural and Historical Policy Assessment, with Policy Recommendations /." Thesis, Monterey, Calif. : Springfield, Va. : Naval Postgraduate School ; Available from National Technical Information Service, 2005. http://library.nps.navy.mil/uhtbin/hyperion/05Sep%5FByrom.pdf.

Kwan, Ming-tak Kalwan, and 關明德. "Drugs, peers, gangs, and crime: an interactional model." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1995. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B43893636.

Gutebrand, Kristoffer. "Ett Drogfritt Samhälle : En filosofisk förfrågan om Sveriges narkotikapolitik." Thesis, Umeå universitet, Institutionen för idé- och samhällsstudier, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-140427.

Kosinski, Jake M. "Drug Markets and the State: A Perspective from Political Economy." Oberlin College Honors Theses / OhioLINK, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=oberlin1411564078.

Schooler, Edward Webb. "The War on Drugs in Latin America: How Misinterpretation Led to Failed Policy." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2012. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/403.

Möller, John. "Medierad narkotikahandel på internets skuggsida : En fallstudie kring svenska säljares erfarenheter." Thesis, Stockholms universitet, JMK, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-131100.

Törnhage, Robert. "FINNS ETT SAMBAND MELLAN ATT HA PROVAT NARKOTIKA, KRIMINALITET OCH BROTTSUTSATTHET HOS UNGDOMAR? En enkätundersökning." Thesis, Malmö högskola, Fakulteten för hälsa och samhälle (HS), 2015. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-24926.

Eriksson, Annette, and Anita Nyhlén. "Tur och Retur : en kvalitativ studie om resan genom ett narkotikaberoende." Thesis, Stockholm University, Department of Social Work, 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-7427.

The purpose of this study was to, through the life stories of four women and their experiences, thoughts and feelings according to a life in drug dependency reach an increased knowledge about how a dependency can arise, continue and be brought to an end. The question at issue were: How do a small amount of women describe and comprehend their experiences, thoughts and feelings according to their drug addiction seen through a process perspective. In order to answer that question three themes were investigated: the road into dependency, living as an addict and the road to recovery from dependency and the time that follows. The study followed a qualitative method and the theoretical approach was hermeneutic. The results were analysed through a process analyse perspective, from the view of the chosen theoretical perspectives, social constructivism, experience perspective and a psychodynamic perspective. The results of the study showed a concordance in the initial experiences in contact with the drug between the informants. The informants all had difficulties in realizing that the drug had become a problem. The process of ending the dependency was seen as a lenghty process. They expressed feelings of loss in connection to drugs and drug taking.

Olsson, Oskar. "Från bärs till brass : En studie om hur skolpersonal uppfattar elevers inställning till droger i två kommuner." Thesis, Umeå universitet, Institutionen för idé- och samhällsstudier, 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-158897.

Carvalho, Jonatas Carlos de. "Regulamentação e criminalização das drogas: a Comissão Nacional de Fiscalização de Entorpecentes e a internalização do proibicionismo no Brasil (1936-1946)." Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, 2013. http://www.bdtd.uerj.br/tde_busca/arquivo.php?codArquivo=7837.

Baldesjö, Emma, and Sandra Gustafsson. "”Inget var viktigare än drogen” : En litteraturstudie om ungdomars erfarenheter av missbruk med samtidig kriminalitet." Thesis, Högskolan Väst, Avdelningen for hälsopromotion och vårdvetenskap, 2021. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hv:diva-16573.

Kassman, Anders. "Polisen och narkotikaproblemet : från nationella aktioner mot narkotikaprofitörer till lokala insatser för att störa missbruket." Doctoral thesis, Stockholms universitet, Sociologiska institutionen, 1998. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-62836.

Keesling, James Richard. "An evaluation of the drugs crime nexus, legalization of drugs, drug enforcement, and drug treatment rehabilitation." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2000. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1697.

Floreš, David. "Vliv omamných a psychotropních látek na chování řidiče a možnosti odhalení v rámci silniční kontroly PČR." Master's thesis, Vysoké učení technické v Brně. Ústav soudního inženýrství, 2018. http://www.nusl.cz/ntk/nusl-382220.

Burton, Lindsay. "The Convergence of the War on Terror and the War on Drugs: A Counter-Narcoterrorism Approach as a Policy Response." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2019. https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/2085.

Johanson, Stefan. "The Guide: A Journey Through Holistic Healing." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för design (DE), 2021. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-106196.

Chan, Kin-yi Ivy. "A study of determinants of relapse in psychotropic substance abuse /." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1995. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B19470757.

Macaulay, Fiona. "Gendering Drug Policy." Emerald, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/10454/17899.

Ng, Kwok-cheung. "An analysis of the anti-narcotics strategy in Hong Kong." Click to view the E-thesis via HKUTO, 2007. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record/B38598231.

Jiggens, John Lawrence. "Marijuana Australiana: Cannabis use, popular culture and the Americanisation of drugs policy in Australia, 1938-1988." Queensland University of Technology, 2004. http://eprints.qut.edu.au/15949/.

Chassee, Thomas J. Cobb Michael M. "Narcotics and national security refining the military option /." Monterey, California : Naval Postgraduate School, 1990. http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA243761.

Ng, Kwok-cheung, and 吳國璋. "An analysis of the anti-narcotics strategy in Hong Kong." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2007. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B38598231.

Cavanaugh, Angelina. "California's narcotic registration program: Legislation in need of revision." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2003. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2370.

Padwa, Howard Philip. "Narcotics vs. the nation the culture and politics of opiate control in Britain and France, 1821-1926 /." Diss., Restricted to subscribing institutions, 2008. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1610056031&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=1564&RQT=309&VName=PQD.

Azemi, Ferid. "National Strategy Against Narcotics, Drug Control Policy, and Law Enforcement Experiences in Kosovo." ScholarWorks, 2019. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/6517.

Balchak, Stefanie Wrae. "The geo-spatial analysis and environmental factors of narcotics hot spots." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2005. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2936.

Howell, Simon Peter. "Force of habit the mystical foundations of the narcotic." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002994.

Tsui, Lai-lin Lillian. "A study on stress and youth drug abusers." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1994. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B1399217X.

Akyay, Ilkay. "Replication of Akers' SSSL Model on Turkish Male Narcotics Arrestees." VCU Scholars Compass, 2007. http://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd_retro/63.

Au-yeung, Ho-lok Luke. "An evaluation of the role of the Customs and Excise Department in drug enforcement." [Hong Kong] : University of Hong Kong, 1990. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B12816942.

Kronstrand, Robert. "Analytical and toxicological aspects of drug incorporation into human hair /." Linköping : Univ, 2001. http://www.bibl.liu.se/liupubl/disp/disp2001/med709s.pdf.

Cathapermal, S. "Determination of diconal in biological fluids and its disposition." Thesis, University of Strathclyde, 1987. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.382259.

Brown, Bryan. "Addicted to the Addict: Hollywood's Sinuous Relationship With the Drug-Addict in the 1970s." OpenSIUC, 2014. https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/dissertations/906.

Tsui, Lai-lin Lillian, and 徐麗蓮. "A study on stress and youth drug abusers." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1994. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31977819.

Baran, Ozlem. "Determination Of Narcotic And Psychotropic Substances By Using Infrared Spectroscopy." Master's thesis, METU, 2005. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12606293/index.pdf.

Potts, Donald Joseph. "Development of a curriculum for a 24-hour advanced officer narcotics course." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1997. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1323.

Feder, Daniel. "The influence of the drug trade on economic globalization." Thesis, Boston University, 2002. https://hdl.handle.net/2144/28566.

Parakilas, Jacob Christopher. "The Mexican drug 'war' : an examination into the nature of narcotics linked violence in Mexico, 2006-2012." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2013. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/872/.

Castro, Helena Salim de. "Policiamento transnacional : uma análise da cooperação entre Brasil e Bolívia no combate ao tráfico de drogas (2008-2012) /." São Paulo, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/11449/150227.

Kulšienė, Janina. "Injekcinių narkotikų vartotojų socialinė demografinė charakteristika ir socialinių – medicininių paslaugų poreikiai." Master's thesis, Lithuanian Academic Libraries Network (LABT), 2006. http://vddb.library.lt/obj/LT-eLABa-0001:E.02~2006~D_20061214_110619-20533.

Choi, Hang-yin Grace. "A study on the critical perceptual shift of drug abusers using Maslow's framework /." [Hong Kong] : University of Hong Kong, 1992. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B1341771X.

Kjärman, Sol, and Joy Uche. "The Impact of Treatment on Addicts: An Explorative Study." Thesis, Högskolan i Gävle, Avdelningen för socialt arbete och psykologi, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-21329.

Travis, Yolanda Rene. "The Effect of Gender and Narcotic or Stimulant Abuse on Drug-Related Locus of Control." ScholarWorks, 2018. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/5279.

Wong, Chung Shiu-wah Wendy. "The development of the methadone treatment programme in Hong Kong." Click to view the E-thesis via HKUTO, 1988. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record/B31975641.

Cheung, Hung-yan Joseph. "A study of the gospel drug rehabilitation programme at Bliss Lodge Youth Training Centre /." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1996. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B19470605.

Strandberg, Joakim. "Toxicological studies of opiate-related death /." Stockholm, 2007. http://diss.kib.ki.se/2007/978-91-7357-191-3/.

Lai, Sai-wo. "The help-seeking behaviour of drug addicts /." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1994. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B13991668.

108 Drug Abuse Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best drug abuse topic ideas & essay examples, 👍 good essay topics on drug abuse, 💡 most interesting drug abuse topics to write about, ❓ drug abuse research questions.

Drug abuse essays are an excellent way to learn about the issue and its influence on various groups and populations while demonstrating your understanding.

Various substances, including alcohol, narcotics, and other mind-altering products, are a popular method for recreation in some communities.

However, they are prone to result in addiction, psychological as well as mental, and lead the person to pursue another dose before anything else.

In doing so, he or she can eventually ruin his or her life, which is why most drugs are currently banned around the world. This article will offer you some tips that will help you write an excellent essay and receive the top grade.

Youth is a major demographic that is affected by addiction issues due to drug consumption. Young people are impressionable and prone to search for new sensations. Drugs can offer a sense of novelty and provide an experience they have not had before, leading to considerable appeal.

Considering that young people are generally not wealthy and have to focus on work to succeed in life, essays on drug among youth can use a variety of excellent topics. You can offer your ideas on the reason for the phenomenon’s existence and ways in which it can be prevented.

However, remember that the purpose of the programs should be to help the people who are at risk.

There are many other drug abuse essay topics that you can explore, with poverty being a prominent example. Despite their conditions, many people turn to substance abuse to try and escape the unpleasant aspects of their life.

These population segments are more likely to suffer after acquiring a drug habit than young people because they generally receive less attention.

Furthermore, poor neighborhoods with relatively low amounts of surveillance by law enforcement are likely to house drug dealers who prey on vulnerable people.

You can discuss this topic or discuss a variety of other ones, as the relationship between poverty and poor outcomes has been researched deeply.

Here are some additional tips for your essay:

• Try to use examples to illustrate your points about various aspects of the issue. Drug addiction essay quotations from people who are affected by the condition or have overcome it can offer valuable insights. They also legitimize your findings by providing parallels with the real world.
• Alcohol essays are an excellent choice, as the substance is legal and available to everyone without much difficulty. Nevertheless, its effects can be devastating, especially if a person’s consumption is chronic.
• Try to write a drug abuse essay outline before starting work, as it will help you to organize the essay. Select some prominent ideas that you want to discuss and organize them in a manner that represents a logical progression. You do not have to discard all of the other concepts, as you can make them sub-headings under your main titles.
• Be sure to include a drug abuse essay introduction and conclusion in your work. They will help you provide a structure to the essay and make it easier for the reader to understand your ideas. The introduction should describe the topic and provide the thesis, and the conclusion should restate your main points.

Visit IvyPanda for drug abuse essay titles, and other useful samples on various subjects to help you with your writing work!

• Social Media Impact on Drug Abuse Thus, social media platforms definitely contribute to the misuse of various drugs by romanticizing their consumption and making “social drug use” acceptable among users.
• Drug Abuse and Current Generation Drug abuse also breeds an array of behavioral problems among young people, which may affect their suitability to fit in the society.
• Drug Trafficking and Drug Abuse Drug trafficking contributes to drug abuse in the society. Drug trafficking also contributes to increased criminal activities that affect the security of citizens.
• Drug and Alcohol Abuse For along time now, drug and alcohol abuse in the society has been a problem that affects the youth and the society at large. This paper highlights the problems of drug abuse and alcohol drinking […]
• Consequences of Drug Abuse The endless stream of drugs, obtainable to the individuals with little or no restrictions, poses a serious inquiry. When assessing the advantages of using pharmaceutical drugs, it is essential to consider the severity of health […]
• Drug Abuse & Its Effects on Families Focusing on the family seems to be by far, the most known and effective way of finding a solution with regards to the “war on drugs” since it more promising to end the vicious cycle […]
• Merton’s Argument of Deviance: The Case of Drug Abuse The most prominent example in support of Merton’s argument in relation to drug abuse is that cultural and social circumstances play a crucial role in defining people’s desire to engage in drug use.
• Teenage Drug Abuse in the United States The problem of teenage drug abuse inflicts a threat to the future society and health state of the overall population in the United States.
• Drug and Substance Abuse Many experts consider addiction as a disease as it affects a specific part of the brain; the limbic system commonly referred to as the pleasure center.
• Drug Abuse in Lake County, California The topic of drug abuse is essential for discussion due to the need to develop strategies to prevent and minimize the dangerous consequences of drug abuse in different regions.
• Drug Abuse in Adolescents and Its Causes Scientific research shows that the development factors for adolescent drug abuse are not limited to a set of three to five causes, but are usually linked to the integration of destructive environmental conditions.
• Drug Abuse Among the Youth Essentially, this case study will allow the evaluation of the prevailing cases of drug abuse among the youth. In this regard, the pain and peer pleasure cannot be persevered to allow an explicit cure of […]
• Community Intervention Practices Against Drug Abuse The key features that result in successful community-based intervention on drug abuse are integrated for effectiveness and efficiency. On the other hand, drug abuse refers to the consumption of substances that elicit particular feelings and […]
• Drug Abuse and Prevention Strategies When specialists deal with preventative factors, they pay attention to both mental and physical ways to resist the drug. The symbiosis of these procedures is exceptionally efficient in terms of the drug rehabilitation process when […]
• Drug Abuse in High School and College With respect to social work and the problem of substance abuse, research has been carried out in terms of investigating the relationship between drug abuse and poverty, the effects of drug abuse on the society.
• “Cocaine: Abuse and Addiction” by National Institute on Drug Abuse The literature provides us with a report of a research that has been conducted in the US regarding the topic of cocaine and drug abuse.
• Impact of Drug Abuse on Adolescent Development Therefore, it is important for counselors to consider these stages to help them address the issue of substance abuse among adolescents. In the habitual stage, most adolescents take drugs to help them modify their moods.
• A New Alcohol and Drug-Abuse Rehabilitation Center in Liverpool Hospital, Sydney The hospital, in response to this distress, has decided to bring help closer to the people of Liverpool by the construction of the annex facility.
• Drug Abuse as an Ethical Issue On the side of duties and obligations, the societal norms stipulate that individuals should be caring to other members of the society especially the children and the old.
• Drug Abuse. “Nine Years Under” Book by Sheri Booker The book is thought provoking and important because it allows representing the difficult social situation and the problems of gang violence and drugs in the United States from the personal point of view.
• Reasons Behind Youth’s Engagement to Drug Abuse in the 21st Century Although youths in the 21st century engage in drug abuse due to several factors, it suffices to declare factors such as the rising unemployment status, peer pressure, and their hiked tendency to copy their parents’ […]
• Drug Abuse as a Social Problem This poses as problem to the society because many of the people who are unemployed will resort to different ways of seeking money and pleasure.
• Substance Abuse: Prevention Strategies and National Benchmarks Still, this desire to get away from problems by means of substances instead of making effort to improve an individual’s environment contributed to the evolution of the challenge of substance abuse into a real public […]
• Monitoring the Future: National Survey Results on Drug Use National survey results on drug use obtained by Monitoring the Future have a significant value to the development of various approaches with regard to the prevention of drug abuse.
• Drug Courts and Detoxification: Approach to Drug Abuse Treatment However, since 1989, the US federal system has been providing the majority of drug abusers with proper treatment or education with the help of a drug court option.
• Drug Abuse in Adolescents Aged 15-19 Years Old: A Public Health Menace In addition, the objectives of the paper are as follows: the first aim is to analyze the collected data and produce a review of the information.
• Sports as a Solution to Youth Substance Abuse: Dr. Collingwood’s View His comments made me realize that it would be unwise by the end of the day for any parent to leave their children under the mercy of the media where they learned that doing drugs […]
• The DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) Program’s Effectiveness While evaluating the effectiveness of the DARE program analysis in accordance with the methodologies and evaluation criteria used, the given assessments refer to various methods of the analysis of participants, as well as various data […]
• Depression and Drug Dependence Treatment and Support She states that her father was the main person who was able to give the right pieces of advice and she was not afraid of making the wrong decision.
• Drug Abuse and Dependence: Insights from Clients and Professionals If either the client or the professional wishes to determine the extent to which an individual is dependent on drugs, the only thing he or she would have to do is read the individual’s behavior.
• Substance Misuse in American Youth: A Socio-Cultural Analysis The paper analyzes studies regarding some of the most widespread types of substances, as well as discusses the role of the rap culture in the growing number of young addicts in the U.S.
• Financial Planning for Drug Abuse Prevention in Virginia Estates Therefore, the first preferred sources for the program are the County Commission and the Alabama Department of Corrections. The program can be financed by the Montgomery County Commission in the short term and Alabama Department […]
• Drug Use Among Parolees and Probationers: A Comprehensive Plan To reduce drug use in probationers and the probability of a new crime, the approach to drug testing needs to be changed.
• Drug Abuse and Its Psychological Effects The purpose of this paper is to explore in more depth the psychological effects of addiction on the family and inner circle of the addict.
• Drug Abuse, Aggression and Antisocial Behavior The use of abusive drugs can cause anger in people because of the effect they have on the brain. An example of how alcohol can cause aggression in a person is that it impairs an […]
• Policies for Pregnant Women With Drug Abuse Thus, out of all the offered policies, financial support for therapy is the best one, as it motivates prevention and treatment, which, in turn, causes the improvement of this situation.
• The Formative Evaluation: Program of Addressing Drug Abuse in Schools The proposed program sought to educate students about the challenges of drug abuse, its impacts on academic performance, and the best techniques to avoid the vice.
• Alcohol and Drug Abuse in Canada Therefore, it contributes as a central factor in the essence of the character, and it is crucial to understand the core definition and the elements that foster the ideology.
• Mitigating Drug Abuse in Pine View School The inclusion of professionals in the fields of health care, counseling, and drugs is expected to promote the delivery of desirable results.
• Drug Abuse and Its Negative Effects This paper aims to highlight what the field of psychology says about the negative effects of drugs and why people continue using despite the consequences. The main effect is that it creates a memory of […]
• Prevention Programs: Drug Abuse Resistance Education This program focuses on handling peer pressure among youths, a crucial cause of drug abuse in the country. The program is also grounded on sound research, which offers the critical elements vital to handling the […]
• Drug Abuse Among Homeless Young Adults in New Jersey The reason why young adults in New Jersey get involved in drugs and alcohol after becoming homeless is to manage their situations in an attempt to attain the tentative pleasure of life despite their problems. […]
• Drug Abuse Effects on Health and Nervous System These numerous damages severely affect the quality of the brains work and the health of the nervous system. While discussing the effects of drug addiction, it is essential to notice that it has a devastating […]
• Alcoholism, Domestic Violence and Drug Abuse Kaur and Ajinkya researched to investigate the “psychological impact of adult alcoholism on spouses and children”. The work of Kaur and Ajinkya, reveals a link between chronic alcoholism and emotional problems on the spouse and […]
• The Health Issues Associated With Drug Abuse It is therefore imperative to develop strategies for health promotion to reduce the number of teenagers, the most at-risk family member when it comes to drug abuse.
• Fentanyl – Drug Profile and Specific and Drug Abuse The drug has the effect of depressing the respiratory center, constricting the pupils, as well as depressing the cough reflex. The remainder 75% of fentanyl is swallowed and absorbed in G-tract.
• Cases of Drug Abuse Amongst Nursing Professionals It is noteworthy that at the top of the information, the date posted is Monday, February 14, 2011, yet against the information, the date is February 11, 2011.
• The Treatment of Drug Abuse Any medical practitioner treating a drug abuse patient has to be careful in many aspects, like: He has to be careful on the issue that if the addiction has effected the brain of the patient.
• Workplace Drug Abuse Over the past years, the issue of drug abuse in the workplace, whether the issue concerns the employees or their families, has become quite significant in the global context.
• Drug Abuse and Addiction Holimon has succeeded in reviving some of her family relations, and she is still putting a lot of effort to get ahead in this area to the fullest extent possible.
• Intervention Techniques Focusing Drug Abuse and Alcoholism A technique of Family Intervention needs the concern, care and supremacy of love to penetrate the denial and start the treatment.
• Critical Issues in Education: Drug Abuse and Alcoholism For this case, the ministry concerned has a very hard task of ensuring there are no critical issues that are left unsolved that relate to education, failure to which will affect the performance of students […]
• Biopsychosocial Experience in Drug Abuse Treatment There has to be a preventive strategy in every intervention procedure to avoid the occurrence of a disease. I find the course of treatment in this intervention beneficial for the creation of the needed preventive […]
• Addictive Behavior Programs and Drug Abuse Trends The involvement of stakeholders is an essential condition for the effectiveness of this model of work and its results, and all the roles should be allocated in accordance with the capabilities of the program’s participants.
• Social Behaviour as a Science: Drug Abuse in Youth Thus, the application of social psychology to the phenomenon of youth drug abuse helps to explain how social factors impact the prevalence of and risk for drug abuse.
• ACTIQ Prescription Drug Abuse The fast-acting characteristic of ACTIQ is a result of being absorbed in the mucosal lining of the mouth. ACTIQ is a synthetic drug that is available as lozenges/lollipops, which are designed to be sucked in […]
• Prescription Drug Abuse and Lebanon Students The first two authors are the representatives of the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health at the American University of Beirut, and Martins is from the Department of Mental Health, the John Hopkins University.
• Addressing the Drug Abuse in Parolees and Probationers The aim of the program is to address the drug abuse in parolees and probationers during their probations and decrease the use of drugs in them.
• Problem of Drug Abuse in Schools The research worked on the hypothesis that the treatment would reduce or result in the total cessation of drug use, and better relations with family and friends.
• Youth Drug Abuse Among, Education, and Policies Although drug abuse encompasses improper use of drugs disregarding the prescriptions of medical practitioners, the principal challenges of drug abuse occasion from abuse of drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and marijuana.
• Prescription Drug Abuse in the United States The combination of Ibuprofen and acetaminophen are effective for the patients, who want to reduce and control the level of pain.
• Drug Abuse and Medicaid Program The emergence of alcohol and drug abuse as a problem and the intensification of people with mental health problems, have exposed the society to the likelihood of involvement of the population in substance abuse.
• Drug Abuse: Age, Gender and Addictive Susceptibility This incorporates the aspects of gender where males and females possess varying biological constitutions that might affect the prescribed treatments in the realms of addiction. It is important to consider the rapidity and susceptibility of […]
• Prevention Research: The Fight Against Drug Abuse It is agreeable that US’s ‘War on Drugs’ has been an effective substance abuse prevention plan despite the hiccups that the program faces and its inability to attain some of its designated mandates within the […]
• Drug Abuse Prevention Programs Additionally, it is possible to prospect the success of the program in case the required readiness from the community can be unveiled prior to the program execution.
• The Cultural Context and Ethics of Prevention of Drug Abuse The first prevention strategy outlined in the document is the involvement of young people in all levels of the prevention program establishment. Concurrently, it is crucial to relate this technique with the subject of culture […]
• Use of Psychotropic Medications in the Treatment of Drug Abuse This is because the mental illness is, literally, the one that sustains the abuse of drugs and thus after it is healed; the patient will have no reason to continue abusing the drugs.
• Drug Abuse: Awareness Amongst the Youths This project is going to carry out a public awareness campaign with the aim of educating the young people on the hazards related to the vice of drug and substance abuse. The awareness campaign is […]
• Spirituality Effect on Drug Abuse Treatment Programs The hypothesis of the study was that spirituality is appropriate in the formal treatment of addiction; the study confirmed this hypothesis.
• Drug Abuse and Religious Spirituality Concept Particularly, this high rate of relapses was determined by Olmstead et al.as a direct result of a degree of failure on the part of drug abuse treatment programs to sufficiently address the primary reason why […]
• Drug Abuse and Harmful Health Effects The principle recognizes the importance of helping drug addicts out of the activity but also sees the importance of protecting their rights to health matters if the country is to realize economic development.
• The Extent of Drug Abuse Among People in America Toronto Mayor Rob Ford Said He Lied about Crack Cocaine Use Because He Was Embarrassed Mayor lied about the use of crack cocaine The article titled “Toronto Mayor Rob Ford said he lied about crack […]
• Drug Use and Abuse in America: Historical Analysis The new law was similar to the Boggs Act of 1951 in that it employed the same formula of using perceived increase in drug use in the country.
• Drug Abuse and Society Regardless of the many intervention measures that can be adopted to solve this problem of drug abuse, the most effective intervention measure is to create awareness to youths to enable them change their behaviors and […]
• Prescription Painkillers, the New Drug Abuse of Choice Studies attribute the recent increase in the misuse of prescription drugs to an increase in the use of the Internet, which facilitates the growth of illegitimate online drug stores and uncontrolled online prescription drug sales.
• Music Analysis: Drug Abuse in Music So in this song the artist is also lamenting the dangers of drugs and the theme of the music is one that advocates against tackling the problem with issues of drug abuse by arguing the […]
• Drug Abuse: Comprehensive Review The effects associated with drug abuse tend to vary depending on an individual’s age and the phase of drug abuse that the person is in.
• Adolescent’s Drug Abuse and Therapy Success When one accepts to put up with negative peer pressure, they end up giving up the personal trusts and values thus the pressure becomes a form of a negative force.”Does peer pressure affect the decision […]
• What Are Influences That Cause Drug Abuse on Youth?
• What Are Some Solutions to Drug Abuse?
• What Are the Primary Causes and Effects of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Among Young People?
• What Causes Teenage Drug Abuse?
• What Does Drug Abuse Truly?
• Why Do Children Need to Be Educated About Drug Abuse?
• Why Has the American Government Not Managed to Stop Drug Abuse All These Years?
• How Does Drug Abuse Affect Personal Development of Hong Kong Teenagers?
• How Does Pericarditis Form Due to Drug Abuse?
• How Drug Abuse Ruins Families and Destroys Relationships?
• How Does Prescription Drug Abuse Affect Teens?
• Does the Drug Abuse Resistance Education Program Work?
• What Is the Drug of Abuse?
• What Are the Four Types of Drugs Abused?
• Which Is an Example of Drug Abuse?
• What Is the Leading Cause of Drug Abuse?
• What Are the Causes and Effects of Drug Abuse?
• What Are the Main Consequences of Drug Abuse?
• How Does Drug Abuse Affect Our Society?
• How Can We Prevent Drug Abuse?
• Why Is It Essential to Prevent Drugs?
• What Are the Ten Most Abused Drugs?
• How Do Drugs Affect Mental Health?
• What Are the Effects of Drug Abuse on Youths?
• What Is the Connection Between Adolescents From Divorced Families and Drug Abuse?
• Are Alcohol and Drug Abuse the Most Common Issues of Today?
• What Is Athletes’ Motivation for Performance-Enhancement Drug Abuse?
• What Is the Correlation Between Parietal and Adolescent Drug Abuse?
• How Is Dealing With Teenage Drug Abuse?
• What Is the Difference Between Drug Use and Drug Abuse?
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419 Drugs Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples

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• Drug Addiction: Advantages and Disadvantages
• Drug Abuse among Teenagers Causes and Effects
• Impacts of Drugs on the Society
• Drug and Alcohol Abuse among Young People
• Causes and Effects of Drug Addiction
• Ethical and Legal Implications of Prescribing Drugs
• Teenage Drug Addiction Problem
• Case Study of Drug Addiction The case study provides a platform for evaluating treatment priorities and agencies crucial for the full recovery of substance abuse patients.
• Shoppers Drug Mart: History, Founder, SWOT Analysis This paper aims to provide a full review of Shoppers Drug Mart’s internal and external operations. The author examines the history of the company and its founder, Murray Koffler.
• Drug Addiction in America: Effects and Solutions The problem of illegal drug use is a major health issue in the United States, it affects thousands of people, the specified concern must be handled on the level of state policies.
• Drug Abuse and Theories Explaining It This paper aims to examine several theories explaining drug addiction. The theories for analysis are biological, psychological, and sociological.
• The Crisis of Drug Addiction This essay will focus on the crisis of drug addiction in general. It will also include some factors that lead to drug abuse. The paper will cover the dynamics of drug addiction in the USA.
• Monopoly Drugs Versus Generic Drugs When a pharmaceutical company creates a new drug it may apply for and be granted a patent that is a legal protection that shelters an invention from being used, copied, or traded without permission.
• Shoppers Drug Mart Company’s Retail Networks The paper presents the analysis of business concept applications on the example of the Shoppers Drug Mart company. It suggests ways to maintain the market share of retail networks.
• Drug and Substance Abuse: Sociological Causes and Explanations It is normal to think that drug and substance abuse affects only consumers. However, it also affects various aspects of society.
• The Use of Performance-Enhancing Drugs The information herein identifies particular risk factors that expose the global community to the objectionable concerns linked with the goods.
• Drug Legalization from the Utilitarian Perspective The focus of the paper will be mainly on marijuana use, and such utilitarian principles as the principle of utility and the felicific calculus will be primarily applied.
• Classification of Legal and Illegal Drugs The classification of drugs as either legal or illegal provides a baseline foundation for the effect on victims and the attribute of addiction.
• Apis Mellifica as a Homeopathic Drug for Headaches Homeopathy is one of the systems of alternative medicine. The paper investigates the effectiveness of using a homeopathic drug to address headaches.
• Alcohol and Drug Abuse in the Workplace Alcohol and drug abuse is one of the major causes of accidents in the workplace. Random alcohol and drug tests would discourage employees of organization from abusing alcohol or drugs.
• Arguments For and Against Allowing Drug Use in Sports The main argument supporting the drug use in sports is that the drugs are medicines, improving the organism ability to mobilize its potential.
• Alcohol, Tobacco, and Illegal Drugs: Use Consequences Although tobacco, alcohol, and drugs cause severe physical and mental health problems and spoil a person’s social life, the image created for them contributes to harm devaluation.
• The Influence of Drugs and Social Media Limitless online resources are used to search for helpful information and to harass, torment anonymously, or provoke others.
• Why Government Needs Drug Control Policy? The use of stopping drugs trafficked to or through the US territory should be evaluated since it usually causes strained relations from the countries where the drugs originate from.
• Social Problems Related to Alcohol and Drugs The present paper will explain the content of three articles relating to the issue of Alcohol and drug use while also providing a personal reflection on the readings.
• Victimless Crimes: Drug Abuse and Sex Work This work’s primary objective is to research and analyze victimless crimes, namely drug abuse and sex work, from the viewpoint of criminology.
• Canadians’ Reaction to Alcohol as a Newly-Invented Illicit Drug The possible reaction of Canadians to alcohol, if it was a newly-invented illicit drug, will differ depending on their personal characteristics and external circumstances.
• Drug Abuse in Homeless Community The number of homeless people is continuously increasing, creating a severe threat to a country’s general well-being.
• The Relationship Between Drugs and Addiction to Crime Systemic crime emerges from the arrangement of drug circulation. It includes conflicts over the region in rival drug traders, attacks, and executions committed in involved groups.
• Drug Theme in “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin In the story “Sonny’s Blues” by Baldwin, Sonny’s friend felt responsible for what was happening to Sonny because he told him that taking heroine felt great.
• Drug Abuse and Its Effects on Families Because of the lack of control that a substance abuse patient has over their actions, families of the people that develop chemical dependency are under constant threat.
• Drug Interactions Prevention in Nursing Guidelines The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed new guidelines to dictate how and when medications should be provided.
• Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation’s Retail and Services Shoppers Drug Mart pays significant attention to the development of an efficient retail network that makes the business attractive to customers.
• Drug Misuse and Its Effects on Children Health and body functioning are negatively affected, and the condition may manifest itself in drug dependence or an array of other harmful and problematic behaviors.
• The Link Between Drug Abuse and Corruption This paper discusses that drug abuse and corruption deserve attention. It introduces causes and reasons for drug abuse and corruption.
• Drug Enforcement and War on Drugs “War on Drugs” has both positive and negative impact on criminal justice, creating certain stereotypes and putting pressure on the law enforcement agencies.
• Performance Enhancing Drugs Legalization in Sports The question that was going to be answered through various arguments in this paper was whether these drugs should be legalized.
• “Should Drugs Be Legalized?” by William Bennett The war against drugs in the United States has reached a new level. Such an outcome is conditional upon the recent measures that politicians are discussing.
• Drug Safety Approach in Administration and Nursing It is important to assess the safety of drugs prescribed to patients to detect possible side effects, inefficiency, or danger for patients.
• Drug Dependency: Construction of a Rehabilitation Center Creating a program that would act as a foundation to help drug addicts recover from drug usage would help lessen drug dependency.
• How Can Illegal Drugs Be Prevented From Entering Prison?
• Can Economic Aid Make a Difference in the Flow of Drugs?
• Are Novel Drugs Riskier for Patients Than Less Novel Drugs?
• Can the Drugs Problem Be Tackled Primarily Through Legal Enforcement?
• Do Drugs Are Barriers to Our Future?
• Are Anabolic Steroids Really Pernicious Deleterious Drugs?
• How Can Kids Best Be Convinced Not for Do Drugs?
• Have Newer Cardiovascular Drugs Reduced Hospitalization?
• Are Illegal Drugs Inferior Goods in the U.S.?
• How Dangerous Are Drugs?
• Are Psychotherapeutic Drugs Overprescribed for Treating Mental Illness?
• How Dangerous Are Drugs and What Can We Do About the Drug Problem?
• Are Drugs Taking Away the Excitement in Sports?
• How Antidepressant Drugs Work Effect Us?
• Does Medicaid Pay Too Much for Prescription Drugs?
• Are Drugs More Detrimental to Educational Attainment?
• Are Diet Drugs Are Safe for People?
• Can Pharmacogenomics Improve Drugs Safely?
• Does Price Reveal Poor-Quality Drugs?
• How Are Biosimilar Drugs More Extensive Than Those of Generic?
• Are Illegal Drugs Inferior Goods?
• Does Previous Marijuana Use Increase the Use of Other Drugs?
• How Are Drugs and Alcohol Affecting the Teenagers?
• Are Any Drugs Derived From the Ocean Presently Approved?
• Are the More Educated More Likely to Use New Drugs?
• Does Coffee Contain Drugs?
• Has the Time Come to Legalize Drugs?
• How Cost-Effective Are New Cancer Drugs in the U.S.?
• Are Adolescents With Abusive Parents at a Greater Risk of Abusing Drugs?
• Can Production and Trafficking of Illicit Drugs Be Reduced?
• Drugs and Substance Abuse in College: Effects and Treatments The paper will give a review of a treatment approach to drug abuse and describe the effects of substance abuse on a person who is in college.
• Doctors’ Knowledge on Drug Prescription The reason why doctors have little knowledge of the drugs they prescribe is misplaced priorities during clinical trials.
• War on Drugs: Fighting the Way We Are Not Likely to Win The spread of drugs is showing a steady growth trend; its adverse consequences are very multifaceted both for the drug addicts themselves and for the society in which they exist.
• A Right to Experimental Drugs The question of whether patients should have access to experimental drugs for treatment is based on the ethical standards governing the protection of humans in this area.
• Juvenile Drug Abuse Problems Analysis This essay describes the problem of juvenile drug use and applies the relevant delinquency theory. Additionally, the interventions or programs to fix the issue will be highlighted.
• The Theme of Drug Abuse in Egan’s Book In her novel “A Visit from the Goon Squad”, Jennifer Egan discusses a number of problems of modern society. Among them is the problem of drug abuse.
• Adolescent Drug Abuse, Their Awareness and Prevention This essay provides a critique of an article written by Chakravarthy, Shah, and Lotfipour about adolescent drug abuse prevention interventions.
• Drug Abuse and Alcohol-Related Crimes in Adolescents The current paper focuses on the topic of drug abuse and alcohol-related crimes among teenagers, showing that substances remain the most notable factor in juvenile crime.
• Effects of Drug Use on Society Every society encounters a variety of problems that it needs to address, and one of the most common is drug use among the population.
• Drugs and Social Life in Iceland The nature of drug use in Iceland can be described as experimental — young people see something new in them and decide to try it out.
• Cause and Effect of Drug Addiction As a result of drug misuse, there are changes in the functioning of neurological pathways in the human brain, with the associated physical; and mental health deterioration.
• Trade and Usage Control: Drug Enforcement Administration The paper looks into the history of the drug enforcement agency, the factors that led to its formation, its goals, and its comparison with the federal bureau of narcotics.
• Drug Abuse Relation to the Violent Behavior Various groups of drugs greatly vary and relate to violence in different ways. Any person with heavy drug habits may act negatively and involve in violent acts punishable by law.
• Miami Drug Wars of the 70s and 80s Drug use is a subject that has raised controversies for decades. This paper focuses on the drug wars in Miami outlining their social, political, and economic impacts.
• Causes and Consequences of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Drug addiction is a psychological and physical disorder that affects the brain of an individual. It is caused by dependence on drugs, alcohol, and specific behaviors.
• Consumption of Illicit Drugs in the United States Tackling the drug problem in America requires a two-pronged strategy that focuses on the demand and supply side of the problem.
• Drug Addiction: A Choice or a Medical Disease? This article examines two opposing points of view on the problem of drug addiction – does a person have a choice to be a drug addict or is drug addiction a medical disease?
• The Practice of Nursing Research: Drug Round Tabards The study has several implications for hospitals and nurses involved in medication distribution. It demonstrates that the implementation of drug round tabards is worth attention.
• Social Factors of Substance Drug Abuse Substance abuse refers to the pattern of continued use, despite adverse consequences. Socio determinants of substance abuse imply social factors that affect the outcome of drugs.
• Criminalizing Drug Usage: Effects and Consequences This paper critically examines the views that criminalization of drug use leads to greater social problems and harms individuals.
• Mechanism of Action and Clinical Application of Antiviral Drugs Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome was first reported in 1981 by the Centers for Disease Control, with the identification of the HIV-1 as the causative agent.
• Nurse Misconduct and Drug Diversion as Legal Issue The paper analyzes the case of nurse misconduct associated with drug diversion and identifies improvement strategies to avoid the problem in the future.
• Drug Use and Heroin Addiction: Informative Speech The illegality of drugs makes it impossible to research the actual numbers of people using drugs and situations making these persons initiate drug abuse and harm their health.
• Drug Courts Policy and Its Evaluation Drug courts mark a considerable approach in the struggle to combat drugs. This paper gives a clear description and analysis of the drug court program since the 1980s.
• Drug Addiction and Best Treatment Practices This paper will determine the role of treatment in the recovery process and analyze the best evidence-based practices.
• Drug Addiction as Moral Failure The paper shows that drug abuse cannot be viewed as a moral failure. Kuhar’s scientific examinations made him come to that conclusion.
• Drug Misuse, Abuse, and Their Factors Addiction is a recurrent, chronic disorder characterized by compulsive substance seeking and use despite harmful consequences.
• Six Stages of Change: Treatment Approaches for Drug Addiction Recovery from addiction leads to lifestyle change. Individuals whose loved ones undergo the recovery process may feel long when they have doubtful expectations.
• The Effect of Prohibition Alcohol and Drug Use Although Prohibition reduced consumption in the initial period, it does not imply that it realized success; neither did it make the community better.
• The Drug Trafficking as Organized Crime Drug trafficking is among the recently organized crimes, and it has a direct influence on the economy as it earns a lot of money.
• Pharmaceutical Industry: Drug Development Drug development is a lengthy process but rightly so since the result should be playing a curative role and not disease inducer.
• How Drugs Influence the Crimes This essay discusses five major questions about ‘Drug and Crimes’, namely, what is the extent to which the drug subculture influences criminal behavior?, etc.
• Legalization of Marijuana and Other Illegal Drugs The essay relates both the pros and cons of legalizing drugs, but since there is a solid argument for both sides, a conclusion cannot be reached unless more research is conducted.
• Research Drug Safety Approaches Adverse effects of drugs implemented in certain treatment and care plans began to be noted a long time ago by health care specialists and scientists.
• Criminal Justice System: Drugs and Crime The main objective of the criminal justice system is ensuring delivery of justice for all. It mainly concentrates in detection of crime.
• Organized Crime and Drug Trafficking Offenders This paper discusses organized crime and drug trafficking, as well as the legal rights of the convicted and the relationships between the offenses.
• Nurse Practitioner as a Drug Prescriber Nurse Practitioners have a plethora of professional duties in their schedules that they are obliged to follow. This paper presents issues of a nurse practitioner as a prescriber.
• Illegal Drug Use in Nurses: Discussion There are reasons why nurses are at risk of developing a drug addiction, which means that there is a high chance for practitioners to work with nurses who illegally use drugs.
• Drug Addiction: A Disease or a Choice? Drug addiction remains a serious health concern for contemporary society. The problem of whether drug addiction can be viewed as a disease or a choice remains topical.
• Drug Errors: Enhancing Care Quality and Safety Though numerous new technologies have been developed to improve healthcare delivery, drug errors continue to be an issue in the United States.
• The legalization of recreational marijuana: pros and cons.
• Should drug users be criminalized or treated?
• Are drug companies liable for the opioid crisis?
• Are safe injection sites effective in preventing drug overdoses?
• The gateway drug theory: reality or a myth?
• Are mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses justified?
• The impact of zero tolerance drug policies in schools.
• The therapeutic potential of psychedelic substances.
• Why is drug testing essential in the workplace?
• Should drug education programs be mandatory in schools?
• Public Policies Related to Drug Addiction Public policies related to drug addiction need to be enforced in a compassionate manner that pays attention to the unique needs of American society.
• Drugs: Myths and Misconceptions Starting from the very beginning of the twentieth century and ending even today, drugs as a topic have been surrounded by a mass of myths and misconceptions.
• Negative Effects of Drugs on Voice The essay explores the influence of drug intake on the singer’s voice and illustrate the importance of the topic for the singer’s vocal cords maintenance.
• National Association for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors This paper will consider the fourth principle of the organization’s ethical code, which reads: “Working in a culturally diverse world.”
• Drug Testing in Pharmacology The aim of this paper is to analyze and review drug tests within the population of third-world countries and define whether these trials are ethical.
• Mandatory Drug Tests for Nursing Students Nursing schools have therefore tried to address this issue and one of the most commonly used tools is the mandatory drug test.
• Therapeutic Drug Monitoring (TDM) Assays Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) refers to the measurement of chemical or biochemical parameters in the lab to inform drug prescribing procedures.
• The Role of Forensics in the War on Drugs This essay looks at chemicals that are used by forensic experts and the role forensics play in the war on drugs.
• The Effects of Drugs on a Man’s Reproductive System In this article, the author examines the reasons why drug and alcohol abuse negatively affects the reproductive health of men.
• Carl Hart’s Talk on Racism, Poverty, and Drugs In his TED Talk, Carl Hart, a professor of neuroscience at Columbia University who studies drug addiction, exposes a relationship between racism, poverty, and drugs.
• Legalization of Marijuana: The Pros and Cons of the Drug From an evaluation of the pros and cons listed in the paper, it is clear that marijuana holds more harm than the risk to society.
• Drugs in Perspective: Models of Addiction The moral model of addiction is a notion that has very little in common with biological or genetic components of addiction. The disease model of addiction is a lifelong addiction.
• Drugs and Drug Related Crimes Obviously the current strategy of the government isn’t working and it is backfiring. The government needs to do something new.
• Food and Drug Administration History The paper provides a brief introduction, background, and history of the FDA and the ways in which it operates, and the practices implemented.
• Psychotherapy and Counseling for Drug Abuse Treatment Drugs are the biggest vice of humanity, along with the mental and moral deviations, horrible diseases of modern times, social neglect and abuse it causes and goes along with.
• Drug Abuse Case: Jenny G This paper present the case of drug abuse. Jenny G., a 48-year-old recovering IV drug abuser, presents with general malaise, anorexia, abdominal pain, and slight jaundice.
• Fear Appeal in Anti-Drug Abuse Public Campaign The problem of prescription drug abuse has become a crucial concern for Florida residents. The public campaign proposes raising awareness about the dangers of prescription drugs.
• Drug-Drug and Food-Drug Interactions Drug-drug interactions occur when a medicine interferes or affects the activity of a second drug when administered together.
• Drugs and Jazz in James Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues” In his short story Sonny’s Blues, James Baldwin uses drugs and jazz music as both literal concepts and metaphorical images to portray the suffering of African Americans.
• Crisis of Chemical Dependence: Drug Abuse Drug abuse mainly begins during teenage. The first part of this essay discusses social and cultural determinants of substance abuse. The second part focuses on the dynamics of addiction.
• Drug Abuse and Its Impact on Creativity The boosting effect of drugs on creativity is a myth because changes in thinking are a brain reaction to a narcotic that is temporary yet severe.
• Sexually Transmitted Diseases Transmission Involving Drug Use Preventive techniques need to target drug addicts and sex workers to combat the STD epidemic and offer interventions to reduce risky sexual behaviors and drug use.
• Psychotropic Drugs Usage, Effects, Consequences Numerous aspects determine the effectiveness of drug therapy with psychotropic medication, for example, the appropriateness of the choice of pills for the disease.
• Drug Legalization: Arguments For and Against Some people would say that the U.S. should stop the war on drugs because this war caused enormous imprisonment of small-time drug dealers.
• Analysis of Drug Classification The article argues drug reactions depend considerably on patients and administration methods, that’s why employees must know the basics of drug classification.
• Patient Rights to Experimental Drugs The paper discusses why patients should have the right to decide if they would like to use drugs that have not been proven effective when there are no other treatment options.
• Drug Abuse in the United States’ Social Context Drug abuse is one of the problems affecting people in the United States. Society has contributed to the continued misuse of drugs today, through bad parenting or the environment.
• Quality Patient Care: Drug Errors and Nurses The role played by nurses in patient care cannot be underestimated and therefore any idea that can make it even better is something that should be highly encouraged.
• Drug Testing Problem Reflection The paper discusses a need for the maintenance of a drug test policy. In the present world, this issue is further exacerbated by the legalization of marijuana in all states.
• Pharmacology: Drug Licensing Opportunity Obtaining a license for a new drug is a very costly and time consuming affair. Any pharmaceutical company would have to weigh all its options before embarking on such a process.
• Mandatory Drug Testing for Welfare Recipients Mandatory drug testing should be implemented in the US to ensure that taxpayer money is allocated to the assistance of socially and economically disadvantaged persons.
• War on Drugs Through a Socio-Political Framework Drug addiction is a problem that concerns not only the health of particular members of society suffering from this disease but also the country as a whole.
• Eli Lilly and Company: Drug Firm Analysis Eli Lilly and Company is an American drug firm whose head office is situated in Indianapolis. Eli Lilly and Company cares about its clientele by monitoring the benefits and risks of its drugs.
• The Drug Enforcement Administration Business Model This paper evaluates the business canvas of the Drug Enforcement Administration and provides recommendations for the improvement of cooperation with partners.
• The Phenomenon of The Use of Prescription Drugs The need to have a prescription before the drugs are acquired is usually applied in order to prevent illegal distribution, and effective use of such medicine.
• The Issue of Misuse of Prescription Drugs The paper discusses the growing problem of prescription drug abuse in the United States, its consequences such as addiction and overdose, and possible solutions.
• Drug Abuse During Pregnancy: Policy Options Heated discussions on whether or not drug abuse during pregnancy should be illegal due to the potential risks to the developing fetus or child persist.
• Disclosure and Nondisclosure in Drugs Prescription The case focuses on the ethical and legal implications of prescribing new medication currently in the development stage for a child under the age of 12.
• Leadership in Drug Abuse Program Development Within the context of a potential intervention for drug abuse, the roles and competencies of leaders are the primary emphasis of this paper.
• Drugs and Violence Go Hand in Hand From the point of view of American researchers, substance abuse increases the chances of subjects being drawn into conflict relationships.
• The war on drugs: the causes of its failures.
• The impact of the war on drugs on minorities.
• The link between the war on drugs and mass incarceration.
• Alternatives to the war on drugs.
• The war on drugs and human rights violations.
• The economic costs of the war on drugs.
• The effects of the war on drugs on drug prices and availability.
• The impact of drug prohibition on drug use patterns.
• The influence of the war on drugs on drug-producing countries.
• Unintended adverse effects of the war on drugs.
• Alcohol in the Drugs and Behavior Context It is no secret that alcohol and human health are incompatible things. The most significant influence of alcohol falls on the cerebral cortex.
• Alcohol and Drug Foundation’s Public Relations The campaign conducted by Alcohol and Drug Foundation is a vivid example of how the theories and practices of PR can help alter people’s behavior.
• Illegal Drugs: Types and Influences Illegal drugs include substances that affect the body and the brain of a person. They are divided into several groups, depending on the method of use and the impact on the brain.
• Wellbutrin and Lexapro: Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitters Wellbutrin and Lexapro are effective drugs in the fight against depressive disorder. However, the drugs are addictive.
• Drugs and Behavior: History of Alcohol in America The ordinary colonial American drank roughly twice as much alcohol in 1770 as it does today—about three and a half gallons annually.
• Incretin Mimetic Drugs for Type 2 Diabetes In patients with type 2 diabetes, there is a significant decrease in the incretin effect and a decrease in insulin secretion in response to an oral load.
• Drug Addiction: The Brain Disease Drug addiction acts similarly to neurological diseases. Substances directly affected the brain, with addiction being the most acute phase of substance use disorder.
• Random Drug Testing at the Workplace Employees in law enforcement, public health and safety, and national security should all be subjected to random drug testing.
• Drug Repurposing in Cancer Treatment This article examines the concept of drug repurposing in the context of pharmaceutical companies’ innovation policy: the methods and economic feasibility of repurposing drugs.
• Ethics of Using Experimental Drugs It is necessary to examine whether terminal patients have a moral right to the experimental treatment and suggest possible outcomes for this type of cure.
• Economic Evaluation: Prevention of Suicide and Drug Overdose The economic evaluation of the provided scenario was conducted in four dimensions: cost-of-illness, programmatic, benefit-cost, and cost-effectiveness analyses.
• The War on Drugs in the United States The United States government’s combat with substance abuse is called the “War on Drugs,” addressing the campaign initiated by President Nixon.
• Zero Discrimination for People Who Use Drugs From all of the above, it follows that HIV-infected prisoners should have the same access to timely and high-quality medical care as the population.
• The Drug Abuse Problem in Indiana Drug usage is one of Indiana’s most serious societal problems, affecting the state’s health, economy, behavioral, and criminal elements.
• The Effect of an Antimicrobial Drug on Gene Expression This paper critically evaluates methods and techniques that can be used to assess the effect of an antimicrobial drug on global gene expression.
• The Ethical Side of Drug Patents In modern times, the property is no longer strictly bound to any physical representation since it can also be intellectual and intangible.
• Overcoming the Drug Abuse Addiction The use of narcotic drugs brings irreparable harm to health and diminishes the quality of life. Opioid abuse is a predominant problem that continues to be a concern.
• The Problems of Drug Misuse and Abuse and Their Management This research aims to determine the best ways to prescript drugs, the importance of drug interactions, and the potential dangers of drug abuse.
• The Anti-Drug Programs in Boston The history of drug abuse across the US has been a challenge for decades. There were various anti-drug programs introduced in Boston to curb the spread of its use in the city.
• Drug Prescription Issues and Abuse This paper aims to determine the best ways to prescript drugs, the importance of drug interactions, and the potential dangers of drug abuse.
• History of Drug Use in Incarceration The history of drug use in prisons go beyond 2008 with some documents indicating a steady rise in drug use between 1980 and 2008.
• Rohypnol and Illegal Drugs in Clinical Trials The current paper discusses Rohypnol. It is a generic drug known as flunitrazepam which contains lorazepam, diazepam, and alprazolam.
• Media Misinformation About Drug Use The United States is one of the countries with the strictest policies, rules, and regulations against the peddling and abuse of illicit drugs.
• A Spontaneous Reporting System for Drug Safety Surveillance Post-marketing in clinical trials uses a spontaneous reporting system for drug safety surveillance where potential AEs induced by the drugs are detected.
• The Influence of Drugs and Alcohol on Date Rape While drugs can affect mental health and make the victim forget everything, the perpetrators indulge in alcohol abuse to escape the blame and deny non-consensual sex.
• Drug Abuse Demographics in Prisons Drug abuse, including alcohol, is a big problem for the people contained in prisons, both in the United States and worldwide.
• Drug-Resistant Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Strains As with any other infectious disease, TB exhibits specific signs and symptoms that help distinguish it from other illnesses.
• Correlation of HIV, AIDS in White Males Who Are Injection Drug Users The testable hypothesis for this work states that socioeconomic status is correlated with HIV/AIDS in white males who are injection drug users.
• Assessment and Therapeutic Approaches for Drug Addiction Clients The paper uses various drug addiction assessment methods to examine the severity, give clinicians insight into the problem and assist in psychotherapy.
• COVID-19 Epidemic and Alcohol and Drug Addiction The sudden life changes during the COVID-19 epidemic make it difficult for people who suffer from alcohol and drug dependence to fight their addictions.
• High-Level Drug Trafficking in Australia Media articles explain the problem of narcotics trafficking across the Australian border. Australia is an effective participant in international drug trafficking organizations.
• Drug Addiction and Stigmatization The horrifying nature of stigmatization is one of the perplexing factors of drug addiction, so society should understand the role of mental and physical help for such people.
• Drug Addiction: Analysis of Goeders and Guerin Research Goeders & Guerin (1994) point out that anxiety and stress may be involved in drug use and increased risk of dependency, as these are involved in the etiology of cocaine use.
• COVID-19 and Drugs at Schools as Public Health Issues This paper discusses two articles on community and public health issues, specifically, concerning COVID vaccination and drugs at schools.
• Drugs for Neglected Disease Initiative There is a significant unmet need for the treatment of many neglected diseases, as well as for patient groups impacted by these.
• Drug Abuse at the Workplace and a Policy to Address It In this proposal, a policy to address worker substance abuse and addiction, will be discussed, with both its major goals and potential benefits being outlines.
• Act Liability for Price-Fixing of Generic Drugs The United States Department of Justice reported that Apotex Corporation, among other drug manufacturers, paid over $400 to settle violations of the False Claims Act.
• The Emergence of Drug-Resistant Pathogens The drug-resistant pathogens phenomenon has endangered the efficacy of drugs such as antibiotics which have helped transform modern medicine and saved countless lives.
• Non-Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sports The use of drugs is prohibited in professional sports. As for the drugs that do not improve performance, they also require control.
• Forensic Drug Analysis Course: Reflection The most interesting part of the course is the study of various techniques for the analysis of substances and their impact on forensic research.
• The Adverse Consequences of Substance Use Tool and the Psychoactive Drug History
• Vaccine and Antiviral Drug Supply and Distribution Problem
• Drug Addiction Treatment & Benchmark Program
• The Mexican Drug War and “Queen of the South”
• Improving Drug Administration in Healthcare Facility
• Decriminalizing the Simple Possession of Illegal Drugs
• Law Enforcement of Drug Business on the Demand Side
• Evaluating Harm Reduction Program for Drug Users
• Effects of the War on Drugs on Latinos in the US and the Role of Stereotypes
• Drug Cartels in Mexico: Definition, Background, Mexican War on Drugs
• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Globalization
• Types of Drugs and Types of Domestic Abuse Correlation
• Drug Production During Crisis: The Case of COVID-19
• High U.S. Drug Prices: Health Policy Log
• Why Adolescents Take Drugs: Human Development
• Prescription Drug Abuse Problem
• War on Drugs: Causes and Problems
• Drug War in Border Cities: Causes and Consequences
• Court Decisions on Drug Offenders
• Drug Use and Addiction Correlations
• Support for the Legalization of the Drug Consumption
• Drug and Alcohol Addiction Treatment Program
• Analysis of Drugs in American Society by E. Goode
• Male Health Drugs:Overview and Effects
• Alcohol and Other Drug Use Among the Aboriginal and Torres Islander People
• The Problem of Legalizing Drugs
• Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986: Crack vs. Cocaine Sentencing Disparity
• Escalating Drug Prices: Solution to the Problem
• Drugs and Alcohol Influence on Drivers
• How Liquid Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry is Used in Drug Screening
• Random Drug Testing: Pros and Cons
• Drugs in the Modern Sports
• Drug Issues in Watertown, New York
• Accessory Plus Incorporated’s Drug Abuse Case
• Racism, Racial Profiling and Bias in the War on Drugs
• Children Insecurity in the Context of Mother’s Drug Misuse
• Variables That Impact Sentencing Decision of Judges in Drug Offender Cases
• The Effectiveness of Drugs in Medicine
• Drug Trafficking and Terrorism in the Middle East
• Drugs and Crime Committed Under the Influence
• Combating the Local Drug Distribution in Missouri
• Colombian and Mexican Drug Cartels and Their Impact in the U.S.
• Prescription Drug Abuse as a Community Health Issue
• Crime Trends: Drug Abuse in Adults and Juveniles
• Substance Abuse: Alcohol and Drugs in the Movie “Ray”
• “Addicts Who Survived” by David Courtwright: American Addiction to Narcotics Problem and Anti-drug Policies
• The Interrelationship Among a Bacterial Pathogen and Antimicrobial Drugs
• Should All or Certain Drugs Be Legalized?
• Drug Release: Ethical Dilemma in Pharmaceutics
• Drug Abuse in Correction Facilities
• Distribution of Fake Drugs: Analysis of a Criminal Case
• Medication Safety and Drug Therapy Process
• Reducing the Number of Adverse Drug Events Among Older Adults: An Action Plan
• A Study of Drug Allergy, Iron Poisoning and Abnormal Bone Mineral Metabolism
• Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act Amendment
• Schizophrenia Treatment With Approved Drug
• Drugs and Crime Description: Federal Drug Statutes
• Patients Receiving Antipsychotic Drugs: Neuroleptic Syndrome
• Reducing Adverse Drug Events Among Older Adults
• The U.S. Drug Prices Assessment
• The Drug Courts: The Question of Drug Abuse
• Judicial Process in Drug Offender Cases: Research Design
• Drugs for Treating Schizophrenia and Mood Disorders
• The Importation of Drugs into the United States
• Drug Courts and Criminal Courts Compared
• Regulation of Drug Compounding
• Americcan College of Radiology Protocol and Cancer Therapy Response to Antiangiogenetic Drug
• Community Health: Prescription Drug Abuse
• The Concept of the “War on Drugs”
• Two Acts on Drug Law Comparison
• Drug Addiction: Elimination of Incarcerations
• Health Issue Analysis: Prescription Drug Abuse
• Juveniles and Drugs in the US
• The Control the Availability of Illicit Drugs
• “Addicts Who Survived” by David Courtwright: Crucial Work on Drug Addiction
• Pharmacogenomics Impact on Individual Drug Effectiveness
• Drug Use and Biological Development in Adolescents
• Reality in Drug Addiction Research: Ethnography
• The Drug Abuse in the U.S. Navy: The Problem Analysis
• The High Cost of Specialty Drugs
• Overmedication of Children With Psychotropic Drugs
• Misguided Perception of Drug Addiction
• International Drug Policy in Russia and the US
• OxyContin as a Legitimate Drug and a Drug of Abuse
• Drug Dealing on College Campuses
• Drug Trade. “Crack” Book by David Farber
• Combating the Local Drug Distribution
• Drug Abuse Factors: Substance Use Disorder
• Prescription Drug Cost Transparency
• Effects of Drugs on the State of Consciousness
• Response to a Journal Article on Drug Control Policy
• Ilaris(R)-Drug Usage in U.S. and Australia
• The Problem of Increased Morbidity From Adverse Drug Events in Older Adults
• Drug Abuse and Addiction: Risk Factors
• Bacterial Cells and Chemotherapeutic Drugs
• Detention of a Minor While Using Drugs
• The Relations Between Drug Abuse and Criminal Justice
• Cocaine as a Drug Chosen for Medical Research
• Drug and Alcohol Abuse in Organizations
• Specialty Drugs Costs and Insurance
• Drug Abuse: Impaired American Society
• The Issue of Drug Abuse in the Community of Kinsburg
• Caffeine and Performance of Drugs in Adolescents
• Adolescent Drug Abuse: Diagnosis and Cultural Awareness
• Support Services and the Case Review: Drug and Alcohol Addiction
• Health Reform Bill on Drugs in the United States
• Research Design for a New Drug That Reduces Appetite
• The Money Factor in Drug and Alcohol Treatment
• The Problem of Prescription Drug Abuse in the United States
• Performance Enhancing Drugs and the Student Athletes
• A Health Issue Analysis: Prescription Drug Abuse
• Clandestine Drug Laboratory Dangers
• Drug Use, Dealing and Violence
• Global Trends Affecting a Local Drug and Alcohol Rehab Centers
• Drugs to Wipe Out Traumatic Memories
• Mexican Drug Cartels: A Transnational Threat
• Information Technology and Mexican Drug Cartels
• Investigating the Issue of Drug Trafficking Through the Points
• Profession of US Drug Enforcement Agent
• Random Drug Test on College Athletes
• Drugs and Society Violent Crime: Public Drunkenness
• Opioid Drug Regulation: Legislative Letter
• American Prohibition and the War Against Drugs
• Drug Abuse and Drug Addiction and Various Policies Related to Drugs
• Drug Abuse and Crime Correlation
• Mandatory Job Drug Test Should Be Allowed
• Drug Addiction: The Problem of Xanax Abuse and Its Consequences
• Physical Privacy and Drug Testing
• Sports Violations: Drug Use in Baseball
• Anti-Drugs, Alcohol and Tobacco Education Programs
• “Blood for Sale” and “Drug Dilemmas”: Articles Reviews
• Legalizing Drugs, an Irrational and Harmful Choice
• Drug Abuse Among Teenagers
• Mifepristone Drug: To Approve or to Disapprove?
• Criminal Justice Ethics: Police Corruption & Drug Sales
• Prescribed Drugs With Complementary and Alternative Medicines
• Current Sources of Evidence-Based Standards and Guidelines for Prescribing Psychiatric Drugs
• Drug Addiction Is a Chronic Disease
• Drug Trafficking: Investigation on Frank Lucas
• Law: Drug Treatment and Testing Orders
• Drug Use in the Workplace: The Case of Acme-Antiroadrunner Inc.
• Violence in the 20th-Century Latin America: Colombian Drug Wars, Dictatorship in Chile, and Undiscovered Personal Tragedies
• E-Prescribing Drug Technology in the Healthcare
• Computerized Provider Order Entry Against Drug Errors
• Drug Monitoring and Florida’s State Strategies
• Drug Prescription Policy Analysis
• Prescription Drug Misuse in Elderly Patients
• Improper Drug Administration as a Nursing Practice Issue
• Food and Drug Administration – Regulatory Agency
• Soderbergh’s Traffic and the U.S. War on Drugs
• Public Policy Meeting: Prescription Drug Supply and Cost
• Health Policy: 340B Drug Pricing Program
• Brain Gain: The Underground World of Neuroenhancing Drugs
• Drug-Dealing Organizations in Latin American Politics
• Drugs and Society: Drug Use and Its Impact on Culture and Society
• Random Drug Testing in Schools
• Psychoactive Drugs, Society, and Human Behaviour
• Black Theology and Its Impact on Drug Addiction
• Drug and Alcohol Abuse Treatment Effectiveness
• Drug Trafficking Reduction in the United States
• Undercover Police Investigations in Drug-Related Crimes
• “Adolescent Alcoholism and Drug Addiction” by Choate
• Behind the War on Drugs
• Drug Test on Welfare Recipients
• Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs and Aspirin
• Drug Abuse Treatment in Nursing
• Pramlintide as Anti-Diabetic Drug
• Antiseizure Medications and Antipsychotic Drugs
• Addressing the Growing Cost of the Prescription Drugs
• Pharmacy and Policy: Inappropriate Prescription of Drugs
• Teenage Drug and Substance Abuse
• Drug Abuse Among Homeless People in Miami
• The Problem of Drug Use and Heroin Addiction in US
• Using Free and Secure Trade to Smuggle Drugs
• Food and Drug Administration Fast-Track Approval
• Computerized Entry of Drug Prescribing Order
• Healthcare Financing and Drug Addiction
• Ethics of Abortion and Over-the-Counter Drugs
• Drug Therapy: Nicotine Interference with Contraceptives
• Drugs Comparison: Montelukast, Flovent and Albuterol
• Prescription Drug Use in the United States
• Drug Safety Approach in Advanced Nursing Practice
• Drug Abuse, HIV/AIDS, and Songs on Social Issues
• Drug War Failure and Associated Problems
• Adverse Drug Events: Evidence-Based Project
• Miami-Dade Community Needs: Alcohol and Drug Addiction
• Drug Addiction among Nurses
• Can Hospitals Manufacture Drugs in the US?
• Prescription Drugs Prices and Services in Florida
• Female Drug Abuser’s Recovery Care Plan
• Nonmedical Use of Drugs and Negative Sexual Events
• The War on Drugs and the Corrections System
• Drug Dependency and Behavioral Addictions
• Casinos: Occupational Safety and Drug-Free Workplace
• Adverse Drug Events and Nurses’ Awareness
• Drug War’s Impact on the US Correction System
• American Drug War and Its Ineffectiveness
• How Mexico Drug Cartels Are Supporting Conflicts?
• Sentencing Policies on Drug Offences
• Drug Dealing Reasons in East Harlem, New York City
• American Great Wall to Reduce the Number of Illegal Immigrants and Illegal Drugs
• Analysis of Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis: Characteristics, Treatment and Prevention
• Illicit Drug Use Among American Youths
• Minimizing Prescription Drug Abuse in Oklahoma
• Performance Enhancing Drugs and Professional Sport
• Sociology: Prevention of Alcohol and Drug Problem
• Drugs and Prison Overcrowding
• Drug’s, Poverty’s and Beauty’s Effects on Health

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StudyCorgi . "419 Drugs Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples." September 9, 2021. https://studycorgi.com/ideas/drugs-essay-topics/.

StudyCorgi . 2021. "419 Drugs Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples." September 9, 2021. https://studycorgi.com/ideas/drugs-essay-topics/.

These essay examples and topics on Drugs were carefully selected by the StudyCorgi editorial team. They meet our highest standards in terms of grammar, punctuation, style, and fact accuracy. Please ensure you properly reference the materials if you’re using them to write your assignment.

This essay topic collection was updated on January 22, 2024 .