Understanding Substance Abuse: Impact, Awareness Strategies, and Support Services in Rural Communities

In this assignment we will discuss about nursing and below are the summaries point:- Substance abuse involves hazardous consumption of alcohol and drugs, leading to dependence syndrome. Substance abuse affects not only the individual's physical and mental health but also their immediate family and social circle. Awareness campaigns in rural communities aim to educate about the negative impact of substance abuse and promote healthy lifestyles.

Running head: NURSING ASSIGNMENT
NURSING ASSIGNMENT
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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According to the World Health Organization, substance abuse can be defined as the
hazardous consumption of alcohol and drugs that fall under the category of psychoactive
substances (World Health Organization, 2014). As stated by Galanter et al. (2014), psychoactive
substances can potentially lead to dependence syndrome. Dependence syndrome can be
explained as a combination of behavioral, cognitive and psychological phenomenon that leads to
the development of a strong desire or addiction to consume drugs (Pullen & Oser, 2014).
Individuals engaging in substance abuse experience difficulties in exercising control over self
and prioritize the drug use over other obligations. According to a report, published by the
National Bureau of Economic Research, it has been mentioned that there is a strong connection
between substance abuse and mental wellness (Galanter et al., 2014). Increased dependence on
substance abuse can invariably affect changes in perception, thought-process, mood and
behavior. It should further be mentioned in this regard that substance abuse not only affects the
physical wellbeing of the individuals engaging in it but also severely affects the immediate
family and social circle of the individual. Research studies have invariably talked about a strong
connection between substance abuse and domestic violence which diminishes the standard of life
of the family members of the addicts (Connors et al., 2013). This assignment would majorly
discuss the awareness strategies in relation to substance abuse within the rural community as
mentioned in the case study. It would further talk about the support services that are available
within Victoria and devise recommendation strategies so as to reduce the prevalence of
substance abuse among the men within the rural community.
Research studies have identified that the prevalence of substance abuse within rural and
remote areas is primarily on account of lack of awareness about the negative implication of
substance abuse on the health of people. Sarah’s primary objective in this case would be to

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spread awareness about the negative impact of substance abuse on the physical and mental health
of the people. The three key messages that she would focus on with respect to the problem within
the community awareness campaign would comprise of the following: Substance abuse can
potentially lead to the development of disease, disability or chronic medical condition which
would lead to an increase in medical expenditure. Substance abuse and mental illness are
interconnected to one another and often co-exist. Increased dependence on substance abuse could
lead to behavioral disorder which could negatively affect the social circle of the individual
engaging in substance abuse
The key messages would be imparted to the community members with a supporting
rationale so as to convince them to overcome the addictive behavior and adapt a healthy lifestyle.
The most commonly misused substances within the remote and rural communities of Australia
include alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, over-the-counter pharmaceutical drugs and prescription
medications (MSI, 2013). Uninterrupted use of the mentioned drugs leads to the development of
addiction, which can be defined as a condition that impairs the normal functioning of the
physical as well as the mental health (Stuart et al., 2013). It is important to note in this context
that increased dependence on substance abuse and addiction not only affects the individual
engaging in it but also the family and the immediate community associated with the individual.
Therefore, in this context, it should be mentioned that the first key message would be covered
with the discussion on the harmful effect of substance abuse on the vital organs of the body.
Overconsumption of alcohol or smoking could lead to abnormal weight loss or sudden weight
gain and fluctuate the normal blood pressure range of the human body. Also, excessive alcohol
consumption could lead to liver Cirrhosis. Further, smoking cigarettes could lead to lung cancer,
mouth cancer or even gastric ulcer. Long term effects of alcohol consumption include, distorted

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vision and hearing impairment. On the other hand, long term smoking could lead to infertility
(Martinotti et al., 2015). Moreover, any form of substance abuse could damage the normal
functioning of the brain as well as the nervous system and affect the vital organs of the body that
include the heart, lungs and the liver (Bolin et al., 2015). Therefore, giving up substance abuse
can reasonably add healthy and happier years to the life and at the same time also help in the
prevention of medical cost expenditure for the treatment of the physical health problems.
The second key message would be covered with the discussion on the impact of substance
abuse on the mental health and wellness of the people. Research studies state that, substance
abuse could lead to the development of Schizophrenia, Bipolar disorder, Depressive disorder and
anxiety disorders (MSI, 2013). In addition to this, it could also cause obsessive compulsive
disorder, sleep-wake disorders, sexual dysfunctions and neuro-cognitive disorders (MSI, 2013).
In layman terms, excessive alcohol consumption or drug use could elicit a sense of inferiority,
loneliness and desire to escape from reality which eventually disrupts the mental peace and limits
the normal socializing ability of the person. Therefore, quitting alcohol consumption, smoking or
drugs can help us in maintaining a stable mental health and focus on the primary goals of life.
The third key message would be covered with the discussion on substance abuse and
behavioral problems. It should be mentioned here that, intoxication can completely transform an
individual’s normal behavior into an unhealthy and destructive behavior, which is capable of
causing serious harm to the people who stay in close association with the addict. Increased
substance abuse can trigger attitude pertaining to domestic abuse which could seriously affect the
marital relationship of an individual (Wang et al., 2013). Further, it could also lead to
uncontrolled sexual behavior such as molestation or rape which are identified as criminal
offence. Further domestic violence negatively impacts the upbringing of children in the family.

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Research studies have mentioned that children with an alcoholic parent often perform poorly in
academics and a lower intelligent quotient against children with healthy parents (Bolin et al.,
2015). Also, studies have also shown that immediate family members often fall victims to
anxiety, stress and depression while caring for the individuals indulging in substance abuse
becomes increasingly challenging (Stuartet al., 2013). Therefore, substance abuse behavior
increases the probability of indulging in criminal offense and encountering interpersonal
problems (Abuse & Administration, 2016). Therefore, accessing support programs against
substance abuse can help in preventing problems related to alcohol and drugs.
A wide range of substance-abuse treatment services are available within the region of
Victoria. Studies reveal that approximately 40,000 Victorian residents at present access services
relate to substance abuse (Health.vic.gov.au, 2019). The treatment services include both
community based services as well as residential treatment services so as to provide help to the
people who are in absolute need of it. It should be noted in this context, that the provision of
treatment facility is looked after by a dedicated workforce who aim at delivering effective
treatment through a channel of treatment streams. The treatment streams essentially operate
through the domains of intake, counseling, withdrawal, rehabilitation and pharmacotherapy. The
services are supported and finances by a local service provider in each region. The two important
service strategies available within Victoria include the treatment services for aboriginal against
alcohol and other drugs (owing to the significant proportion of aboriginals within the rural areas
of Victoria) and the family and peer support for individuals with problematic alcohol use.
The Department of Health and Human Services exclusively works with the aboriginal
community members in order to ensure complete access to alcohol and drug treatment services
within the members of the aboriginal community. The specific aboriginal alcohol and drug

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treatment services is offered to the members of the aboriginal community who is either at a risk
of being affected due to substance abuse or is already affected with the problem of substance-
abuse. Further, it should also be noted that majority of the adult community based substance
abuse treatment facilities prioritize care for the aboriginal community members. The Bunjilwarra
Koori Youth Alcohol and Drug Healing Service is an initiative that functions state-wide in order
to provide respite to the aboriginal people (Www2.health.vic.gov.au, 2019). The Aboriginal
community controlled organizations and adult residential rehabilitation services are exclusively
funded by the commonwealth government so as to render complete access to support and
intervention programs. The program operates at several stages. The first includes the
identification of the affected patients or the high risk patients who are exposed heavily to
substance abuse. The specific services for the aboriginals controlled by the Aboriginal
Community Controlled Organization also accepts direct referrals and self-referrals from other
support services such as DirectLine and offers treatment interventions (Health.vic.gov.au, 2019).
The further stages include, administering counseling against drug abuse and enrolling into
rehabilitation for complete withdrawal. A combination of pharmacotherapy along with
counseling is used to ensure withdrawal.
The family and peer support program emphasizes upon the fact that the family members
can assist an accelerated recovery for the patients who have indulged in excessive alcohol-abuse.
Most of the substance abuse treatment facilities work on the basis of a family-focused approach
where they proactively involve the family members in the process of assessment, intervention
planning and recovery (Health.vic.gov.au, 2019). The agencies critically emphasize upon the
needs of the dependent family members and prioritize upon reducing the damaging impact of
substance abuse to them. A number of support services such as mental health counseling, family

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drug education and family drug support services are available to the family members of the client
in order to deal with the challenges of domestic violence as a result of substance abuse. The
Family Drug Help is an initiative of the Self Help Addiction Resource Centre that ensures
provision of services in order to strengthen the physical and mental health of the family members
of patients who have involved in substance abuse. The support services include family
counseling and education about strategies to deal with challenging situations (Health.vic.gov.au,
2019). The Family drug education program typically hosts workshops to educate the family
members of the patients about the important signs and symptoms that predict dependence on
substance abuse and also imparts information about the referrals and support options that are
available for recovery.
Therefore, it can be said that substance abuse is a major problem within the remote and
rural areas and has been deep-rooted for several years. Studies have interestingly shown that
rural adults indulge heavily in significantly higher rate of tobacco use, alcohol use and other
psychoactive drug use. The scenario becomes exceedingly worse to tackle within the rural
communities due to lack of awareness about the negative implication of substance abuse on the
physical and mental health of the people. Also, the restricted accessibility to support services and
knowledge about prevention and recovery has led to the worsening of the scenario. The major
factors that can be considered responsible for the increased dependence of substance abuse
within the rural areas include poor educational background, poverty and unemployment.
Substance abuse can lead to poor physical and mental health outcome and an increased ideation
of committing antisocial activities. Therefore, it is extremely important to conduct awareness
programs of high impact value in order to educate the community population about the risks
involved with increased prevalence of substance abuse.

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It should however be noted that the use of technology could help in conducting the
awareness programs of high impact value. Complying with the following recommendation
strategies would ensure a better outcome. The nurses could make use of technology-based
educational tools such as power point presentation to demonstrate the negative implication of
substance abuse on the physical and mental health of the people can help in creating an impact of
a greater magnitude. This is because a combination of audio visual effect promotes better
understanding of the subject. Further, nurses could also impart education about tele-health
services and effectively implement the service application in order to offer support to the family
members of the distressed individuals (Benavides et al., 2013). Nurses could make use of alcohol
or drug tracker application on the smart phones to monitor the consumption of alcohol or other
drug in individuals enrolled under a rehabilitation program. The use of internet based counseling
services for patients and their immediate family members could also be used by the care
professionals to offer assistance to the patients who do not prefer opting for group-based
rehabilitation (Connors et al., 2014).

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References:
Abuse, S., & Administration, M. H. S. (2016). 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
Benavides-Vaello, S., Strode, A., & Sheeran, B. C. (2013). Using technology in the delivery of
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