Cannabis Use Minimization Plan for Adolescents: A Report

This report addresses the critical issue of cannabis use among adolescents, framing addiction as a chronic disease with a focus on a systemic approach to treatment. It delves into the biopsychosocial model, highlighting the biological, psychological, and social factors influencing adolescent health and addiction. The report identifies cannabis as a prevalent substance among adolescents, detailing its short-term and long-term adverse effects. It addresses the stigmatization and discrimination faced by adolescents during recovery, presenting a case vignette of an 18-year-old with cannabis addiction. The core of the report outlines a comprehensive care plan, emphasizing motivational enhancement therapy, coping strategies, and a robust support system involving family, community, and referral services. The report concludes by providing a list of relevant references that support the information presented, covering the topics discussed.

Education
al plan
Minimization of Cannabis use among the
adolescents

Addiction & systemic approach
in the treatment
 Addiction – A relentless, deviation amplifying
system and a primary chronic disease related to
motivation, reward and memory.
 Systemic approach
 Systemic treatment has been categorised in to the
following: - family, family involved, full inclusion of
the family therapy (DiClemente, 2018).

Bio psychosocial model of
addiction
 The biopsychsocial model is an
important theoretical model used by
the therapist in recent times.
 It combines the biological,
psychological and the social
influences on the health of an
individual.
 This approach complies with the
definition of Health proposed by
WHO, which states health to be a
complete wellbeing and not just
absence of diseases.

Model of addiction
continuation…..
Factors coming
under the biological
 Gender
 Disability
 Physical illness
 Neurochemistry
 Stress reactivity
 Effect of medicines
 Genetic
vulnerability
Factors included under
Psychological are:-
 Memory and learning
 Belief’s and attitudes
 Personality
 Behaviour
 Cognition
 Emotions
 Past experience
 Coping up skills
Factors falling under
social:-
 Social Support
 Background of the Family
 Traditions and cultures
 Socioeconomic Status
 Education
 Community

Population and substance of choice
 Population chosen- Adolescents
 Choice of substance- Cannabis
 Cannabis is the most the most commonly
used drugs in Australia
 It is the second most common drug type that
has been identified at the toxicology for the
accidental deaths in the year 2016 (Copeland,
Clement & Swift, 2014)
 In 2017, cannabis was recorded as the most
commonly used illicit substance by the
cohort, with 17 % of the adolescents reporting
the use of cannabis( Australian Institute of
Health and Welfare, 2018).

Ill effects of cannabis
 Short term effects like – Mild euphoria
 Mental illness
 Perceptual alterations
 Feelings of hunger
 Panic reactions ,confusion, feeling of paranoia
 Long term effects like physical dependence (Volkow et al., 2017)
 Cancer in the upper respiratory tract, chronic bronchitis, permanent
damage to the airways (Volkow et al., 2017).
 Cannabis use has contributed to 0.2 % of the total burden of disease and
injuries in the year 2015 and 8.3 % of the entire burden due to the use
of the illicit drugs (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2018).

Issue faced by the adolescents during the
recovery process
 Stigmatization and discrimination
 Stigma can negatively affect a number of
areas like the willingness to access the health
care, it increases the chance of harm.
 It affects the self esteem of the patient.

Case vignette
 Name of the patient: Ron
 Age: 18 years
 Ron has been presented in the acute mental health department with cannabis
addiction. The patient had been presented as a referral from the primary care
physician for the evaluation of is symptoms. The patient stated, that he did not
like to go to school, since he had joined the school and have started taking the
drugs. According to his reports, he first took cannabis when he was just 16
years old and initially only took a couple of hits in the social setting. Over the
time he had realised that he cannot stay without cannabis and has a strong
craving for the daily use.
 Ron had reported about his previous 2 unsuccessful attempt of quitting
cannabis. Once when he stopped completely, it resulted in terrible dreams,
poor sleep, sweating, no appetite, irritability, cramps and strong cravings for
cannabis.

Care plan for Ron
 Motivational enhancement therapy can be used for Ron.
 The motivational enhancement therapy can be defined as a counselling
approach helping individual to resolve their ambivalence about engaging
in the treatment procedures Miranda et al., 2017).
 The motivational enhancement therapy provides treatment against
cannabis and generally follows the bio psychosocial model of addiction.
 Motivational interviews for building the plan for change
 Teaching coping strategies for the high risk situation
 Also encourage physical examination
 Assess the anxiety level in the client and the significant others
 Approaching the client in a non-judgemental manner

Support system for Ron ..
 Family members (coping with the withdrawal
symptoms, keeping the drug out of reach ,
providing medicines on time, psychological
support).
 Community support (group based activities,
social participation).
 Referral services (Dietician, therapist- music
therapy)

References
 Al Ghaferi, H., Bond, C., & Matheson, C. (2017). Does the biopsychosocial-
spiritual model of addiction apply in an Islamic context? A qualitative
study of Jordanian addicts in treatment. Drug and alcohol dependence,
172, 14-20.
 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, (2018). Alcohol, tobacco &
other drugs in Australia. Access date: 31.8.2019. Retrieved from:
https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-austr
alia/contents/drug-types/cannabis
 Bahorik, A. L., Leibowitz, A., Sterling, S. A., Travis, A., Weisner, C., & Satre,
D. D. (2017). Patterns of marijuana use among psychiatry patients with
depression and its impact on recovery. Journal of affective disorders, 213,
168-171.
 Copeland, J., Clement, N., & Swift, W. (2014). Cannabis use, harms and
the management of cannabis use disorder. Neuropsychiatry, 4(1), 55.

References
 DiClemente, C. C. (2018). Addiction and change: How addictions develop
and addicted people recover. Guilford Publications.
 Matthews, S., Dwyer, R., & Snoek, A. (2017). Stigma and self-stigma in
addiction. Journal of bioethical inquiry, 14(2), 275-286.
 Miranda Jr, R., Treloar, H., Blanchard, A., Justus, A., Monti, P. M., Chun, T., ...
& Gwaltney, C. J. (2017). Topiramate and motivational enhancement
therapy for cannabis use among youth: a randomized placebo‐controlled
pilot study. Addiction biology, 22(3), 779-790.
 Olson, D., Russell, C. S., & Sprenkle, D. H. (2014). Circumplex model:
Systemic assessment and treatment of families. Routledge.
 Volkow, N. D., Baler, R. D., Compton, W. M., & Weiss, S. R. (2014). Adverse
health effects of marijuana use. New England Journal of Medicine, 370(23),
2219-2227.