DRUG REHABILITATION FOR CHILDREN
The recent Federal House of Representatives Committee on Family and Human Services report The Winnable War on Drugs recommends various ways to protect children addicted to illicit drugs or with parents that are addicted to illicit drugs and drug maintenance substances.
(See recommendations 2 to 6)
The Drug Advisory Council of Australia Comments
Whilst the recommendations have merit they fall short of world’s best practice.
Key to family support is the URGENT need for drug detoxification and rehabilitation programs that cater for the needs of both parents and their children.
To ensure that illicit drug users are diverted into effective rehabilitation and stay in the program until completion to a drug free state, Australia needs our courts to direct and supervise the rehabilitation.
ALL illicit drug users must be diverted into detoxification and then rehabilitation.
In the event that children are involved as addicts or part of an addicted family the court supervision would apply to them.
In the case of new born babies born with a drug addiction obtained during pregnancy of the mother both would be subject to supervision.
Court supervision must determine a rehabilitation outcome of drug free status before any supervision would cease.
A study of the Swedish drug rehabilitation programs should be urgently implemented and a policy objective set to reduce illicit drug use by 80 per cent.
Lets ditch harm minimization for world’s best practice.
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.
35/2007