Description of Drug Addiction
This report describes the impact of drug addiction on the health of an individual. Drug addiction refers to a disease that affects the brain and behavior of an individual and hence leading to the inability to control the use of a legal or an illegal medication. The report discusses the impact that addiction has on their level of function regarding impairment, daily involvement in activities as well as social life. The report also discusses the intervention technique that is appropriate for this condition and the risk that may be involved when this strategy is used. In addition to this, the case study identifies another health professional in the team and the role that they may play in the intervention process (Jay& Jay, 2008).
James is third-year medicine at one of the leading medical colleges in Sidney. James had a great childhood, and he rarely lacked anything both during her primary and high school education. According to his story, the school was easy for him since he scored straight As in most of the exams. He was also excellent in athletes and other games. This made him a darling for his parents and teachers as well. After graduating from high school, James found himself in the wrong company of boys who were using drugs such as Marijuana and heroin (Best et al, 2016). He started attending house parties and soon, he was frequenting nightclubs. By the time James was in his second year of study, he was already highly addicted to drugs. James started performing poorly in school since he could no longer concentrate on his studies. His grades became poor, and he received several warning letters relating to his academic performance. The social life of James was also greatly affected since he started avoiding his parents and he wasn’t interested in interacting with his colleagues at the college. James` parents noticed the change in behavior and decided to take him to Choice Rehabilitation Center where he has been undergoing treatment.
Drug addiction affects not only the user but also the individual’s network of friends and other people close to them; It is, therefore, important to have a well-structured solution-oriented process to help people suffering from drug addiction. An intervention technique is described as successful when an individual accepts helps from family and people close to them (Ramsay & Giovanni, 2017). This is the first step of the recovery process.
My role as a health profession in this intervention technique is to help the patient come to terms with their condition and accept that they have a problem and they need help. Most times, addicts are in denial, and they react angrily and violently when issues relating to drugs are addressed. My role will, therefore, be to ensure that the intervention runs smoothly with the help of James` family. My role will also involve assisting to help individuals transition to rehabilitation programs.
Community Reinforcement and Family Training(CRAFT) intervention model is used to help James with his addiction problem. The model will help people who are close to James make positive changes in his life by interacting with him positively (Morgan& Litzke, 2008). This will eventually ensure that the client is ready for the rehabilitation phase and has accepted the need for change.
James’ Story of Drug Addiction
The intervention will target and individuals level of functioning. The intervention technique will analyze how the client carries out their day to day function when they are sober and how addiction to drugs has affected them. The technique will target behavior change through the influence of close family members who will spend most of the time with the patient during the intervention period.
One of the risks of intervention in drug addiction is that the patient may fail to make to the rehabilitation stage. This may happen because the client is not ready to reform and fight the addiction. This risk will be managed by ensuring that the patient provides all the relevant information that may be necessary for helping the patient deal with addiction (Monti, 2012). This will increase the chances of success of the intervention technique.
There is also a risk of the client being violent and noncooperative. People suffering from drug addiction tend to be irritated easily and violent and therefore, the person undertaking the intervention is at risk of being hurt (Miller, 2013). This challenge will be overcome by ensuring that people close to the patient interact with him more to ensure that they remain calm and realize the need for undergoing rehabilitation.
Cate is the psychologist at the Choice rehabilitation center. She has a huge role to play in the intervention process before the patient is taken for rehabilitation. Her main role is to conduct psychological therapy on James to help him change his behavior and be ready for rehabilitation. Cate focuses on Activity and Participation domain. This focuses on performance qualifiers and capacity qualifier aspects of ICF. Performance qualifier describes the activities of an individual in their current environment. The capacity qualifier focuses on an individual’s ability to execute tasks (Velasquez, 2016). Cate will evaluate the ability of James to perform simple, specific tasks when he is not under the influence of drugs.
Maintaining professionalism throughout the intervention process is important. Professionalism is critical in ensuring that James gets quality services that will help him to transition to the rehabilitation stage (Barry, McGinty, Pescosolido & Goldman,2014). Honesty is one of the characteristics of the health profession. It is important to provide accurate information to the client and give an honest assessment of their condition.
Reliability is another characteristic of professionalism which is important in the intervention strategy. Reliability involves being capable of fulfilling the expectations of the client. It is important to ensure that I provide my expertise, knowledge, and skills towards helping James recover from the addiction (Sanders, 2011). Promises made to the client should be fulfilled on a timely basis. I will ensure that I help James understand the importance of accepting the need to quit drugs and undergo rehabilitation.
Competence is another professional characteristic that is critical in clinical intervention. I should be able to demonstrate the ability to perform tasks and activities related to my professionalism with perfection.
The intervention strategy developed for James is tailor-made to suit the personality and characteristics of James. It is critical that the strategies are suited to the personal needs of James to ensure that the strategy puts into consideration the needs of the client.
Intervention Technique for Drug Addiction
One of the strategies that are used in this intervention technique is organizing one on one interaction to be able to understand the behavioral change of an individual. I will organize personal interaction sections which are separate from group interaction (Everitt & Robbins,2016). This will provide an opportunity for James to express himself in a free manner and hence to give me an opportunity to understand his social life. This helps in properly preparing the client for rehabilitation.
The other person-centered strategy that will be used in intervention for James is ensuring that people who are closest to him spend the most time with him. By doing this, James will be able to listen to the people that he trusts most, and hence they will be able to influence him to quit drugs (Paulus & Stewart, 2014). Reformed addicts who have undergone similar circumstances will also give their testimonies and share stories on their recovery journey. By doing this, James will be able to easily associate himself with persons who have been through similar ordeals and hence develop the desire to overcome addiction.
Conclusion
This paper discusses the impact of drug addiction on an individual and the people close to them. The paper begins with a description of how drug addiction has impacted on the level of functioning of an individual and the limitations it has had on them. The paper also discusses the role of the other health professionals and discusses the professionalism characteristics that are relevant in this case.
References
Barry, C. L., McGinty, E. E., Pescosolido, B. A., & Goldman, H. H. (2014). Stigma, discrimination, treatment effectiveness, and policy: public views about drug addiction and mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 65(10), 1269-1272.
Best, D., Beckwith, M., Haslam, C., Alexander Haslam, S., Jetten, J., Mawson, E., & Lubman, D. I. (2016). Overcoming alcohol and other drug addiction as a process of social identity transition: the social identity model of recovery (SIMOR). Addiction Research & Theory, 24(2), 111-123.
Correia, C. J., Murphy, J. G., & Barnett, N. P. (2012). College student alcohol abuse: A guide to assessment, intervention, and prevention. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons.
Everitt, B. J., & Robbins, T. W. (2016). Drug addiction: updating actions to habits to compulsions ten years on. Annual review of psychology, 67, 23-50.
Jay, J., & Jay, D. (2008). Love first: A family’s guide to intervention. Center City, Minn: Hazelden.
Miller, P. M. (2013). Interventions for addiction. San Diego: Academic Press.
Monti, P. (2012). Adolescents, Alcohol, and Substance Abuse: Reaching Teens through Brief Interventions. New York: Guilford Publications.
Morgan, O. J., & Litzke, C. H. (2008). Family intervention in substance abuse: Current best practices. New York: Haworth Press.
Paulus, M. P., & Stewart, J. L. (2014). Interoception and drug addiction. Neuropharmacology, 76, 342-350.
Ramsay, R. R., & Giovanni, G. D. (2017). Structure-Based Drug Design for Diagnosis and Treatment of Neurological Diseases. S.l.: Frontiers Media SA.
Sanders, M. (2011). Slipping through the cracks: Intervention strategies for clients with multiple addictions and disorders. Deerfield Beach, Fla: Health Communications.
Velasquez, M. M. (2016). Group treatment for substance abuse: A stages-of-change therapy manual.
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