CHILDREN AT RISK
Children are at risk from parents that use illicit drugs.
A new report indicates that children in families where one or both of the parents are using illicit drugs are subject to domestic violence, neglect, abuse, high stress, lack of routine, absence from school and a negative social environment.
In excess of 50,000 children in Australia are negatively impacted by a parent that uses illicit drugs.
Children exposed to families where illicit drugs are used have to deal with the mental problems, bad behavior, violence and abuse of the illicit drug using parent.
(The full report is available from www.ancd.org.au)
The Drug Advisory Council of Australia Comments-
The best way to deal with the abuse of children is to deal with the problems of the parents by using the Courts to direct the addicted parent into detoxification and rehabilitation to get them drug free.
Families where parents use illicit drugs subject their children to more problems than other families so the children are themselves in need of more social supports.
By eliminating the addiction of parents the children are major beneficiaries.
Babies of addicted mothers are being born with the same addiction.
Australian rehabilitation of illicit drug users MUST be family friendly and provide support for other parents and the children’s problems as well.
When researching drug issues, authorities must distinguish between illicit drugs and legal drugs because the solutions are different as it is the USE of illicit drugs that is at issue.
More detoxification & rehabilitation that gets illicit drug users drug free.
Court ordered and supervised detoxification & rehabilitation.
Less illicit drug users, drug pushers and drug related crimes.
17/2007