Drug Abuse
文章日期:2010年10月14日

【明報專訊】In October 2009, the government launched a trial scheme for drug-testing secondary students in Tai Po. Commissioner of Narcotics Sally Wong Pik-yee (禁毒專員黃碧兒) said in a press release the scheme was aimed at keeping students from drugs and providing those who did drugs with appropriate help. In the pilot test, six or seven students refused to be tested, and about 500 students were deemed unsuitable for testing after preliminary assessment. The pilot scheme has closed, and no student has tested positive. Though it is disputable if the scheme has proved successful, the government has announced it will be extended to all schools in Hong Kong.

According to the Narcotics Division of the Security Bureau, though the number of newly reported drug abusers under 16 came down from 577 in 2007 to 129 in the first quarter of 2010, 12.2% of teenagers under 16 do drugs. The average age of newly reported drug users is 23. That suggests teenagers are most vulnerable to drug abuse. Risk factors in juvenile drug abuse include "having parents or siblings with drug problems, family disruption, poor attachment or communication with parents; child abuse, low school grades, truancy, exclusion from school, childhood conduct disorder, crime, mental disorder and social deprivation".

It is suggested that, apart from those mentioned above, social influence is a risk factor. It may increase teenagers' susceptibility to drug use. Peer drug use is the strongest of such social influences. While a drug-abusing peer group may increase the risk, a drug-free peer group may reduce it. Therefore, the government's school drug testing scheme may be effective in minimising drug use as it deals with the peer group as a whole.

However, the mass media's influence should not be overlooked. Celebrities may sometimes be teenagers' role models in fashion, but they may be a bad influence on them. Some celebrities have been arrested for drug abuse. It is hoped that what has happened to them will give youngsters to realise drug abuse is dangerous.