Assignment #3 Substance Abuse Treatment and Control Mandatory Assignment

The information within this summary of some issues concerning addiction are to be incorporated within your analysis. The summary is there to provoke you to think about the issues of addiction and its current crisis proportions.

When you answer the questions in your analysis, do so using the justice, beneficence and other relevant theories. Your analysis must be at least 3 pages, single spaced with a minimum of 5 separate identified sources.

Remember: The header is: Substance Abuse Treatment and Control

Assignment #3: Substance Abuse Treatment and Control your name

Then skip 1 line and begin your summary.

If you wish to insert relevant graphics, do so. This does not change your responsibility to write at least 3 pages of analysis.

As always, grammar, spelling, paragraphs, sentence structure and content matter. Use your college level vocabulary. This means avoid slang unless necessary.

There are multiple specific ethical issues that predominate in the substance abuse prevention/treatment/punishment fields that warrant more focused attention.

Workers in law enforcement, health care, the judicial system, and substance abuse treatment are constantly faced with ethical dilemmas on an individual as well as a societal level. Ethics is an intellectual approach to moral issues, a philosophical framework from which to critically evaluate the choices and actions people take to deal with various aspects of daily living.

Working in law enforcement, health care, the judicial system, and the substance abuse treatment field presents dilemmas relating to personal beliefs, judgments, and values. The history of how society views persons with addictions is filled with emotion, misperceptions, and biases that have affected the care, treatment and perception of drug abusers. For example, it is not unusual for a person to be perceived negatively just by being labeled a drug abuser.

With the highly charged emotional nature of the substance abuse treatment field, professionals should possess the information and tools to explore ethical dilemmas objectively. By doing so, and by examining their own reactions to the situation, professionals can proceed with the most ethical course of action.

Justice The principle of justice assumes impartiality and equality. It means that a law enforcement officer, judge, or clinician will treat all clients equally and give everyone a due portion of services. Yet, given human nature and budget constraints, how possible is it really to treat everyone equally? How many chances should an addict have rehabilitation services provided when there are a limited number of places available and each is expensive?

Individual Autonomy and Freedom The principle of autonomy assumes that individuals have the right to decide how to live their own lives, as long as their actions do not interfere with the welfare of others. This principle respects the unconditional worth of the individual and promotes the concepts of self-governance, self-determination, and self-rule.

Addicts can also be affected by numerous neuropsychiatric, metabolic, nutritional, and psychological concerns that can affect their judgment. Substance abusers also can experience poor judgment due either to active substance use or to the results of long-term use.

Another other issue involved is whether the individual understands the necessary information to make a sound decision. It may be extremely difficult not to “push” the addict toward a decision by emphasizing certain information, e.g. rehab vs jail or treatment vs job loss.

Beneficence assumes a responsibility to improve and enhance the welfare of others. What does “doing good” really mean? What may be doing good in the eyes of law enforcement, health care, the judicial system or the substance abuse treatment counselor may be seen as doing harm in the eyes of the addict. Professionals need to consider whether it is the department or agency’s culture, the addict’s agenda or the professional’s own agenda. Is the professional’s assumption that the client will not or cannot comply with a treatment program based on fact or on personal perceptions and attitudes about drug abusers?

Given the limited resources available, treatment providers may find it difficult to treat all the clients who seek treatment. Providers will need to plan for the complex decisions that need to be made in such cases. They should consider the following questions:

1. How can business, management, legal or medical professionals and society in general, ensure that resources are distributed fairly?

2. How can such allocations be free of bias and assumptions about certain individuals, cultures, and populations?

3. What are the possible options for preventing, treating, or managing addiction?

4. What are the ethical concerns for society about addiction? (Legal obligations, protection and safety of society’s members, fairness, who pays? doing good).