Drug Abuse
Town/City
Introduction
The ethical issue in this case concerns drug abuse among the city workers that work in the city of London. This issue has become rampant in the city, and this has posed several challenges, which are detrimental to the individual workers, as well as their families. I have prepared this report to elaborate the extent to which my bank has an obligation to address drug abuse.
Ethical issue
Drugs such as cocaine that are served with drinks have the potential to make individuals use alcohol. It is likely to make the city workers be addicted, which eventually make them less productive as well as irresponsible. In addition, this will negatively affect the performance of several companies affecting the economy of the city and that of the nation. Drug abuse is a concern, not only because it has adverse effects on city workers, their families, and their friends, but also their destructive influence, which spreads to every sector of the society or city. Drug use harms city workers in numerous ways—via lost productivity on the job and increased absences from work, irresponsibility at family level, high medical costs, and drug-connected crime (Hoffman & Froemke 2007).
The human, as well as financial costs of drug use, are intolerable and place a massive burden on the nation. For the sake of city workers, the society and the future, there is need to do everything in the power to confront this threat to the public health and public safety in the city. Therefore, in order to solve this ethical concern, there is a need for all the stakeholders in the city to come together and give workable solutions to the drug menace (Bukoski & Sloboda, 2003, p. 54). This is because drug and alcohol abuse is a gigantic and complex problem, involving multitude factors, as well as conditions. Successfully addressing this problem needs a similarly wide variety of responses. Nonetheless, the efforts to control substance abuse in the city too often become fragmented due to, with antidrug groups uninformed of what others might be doing—or that they exist at all. In addition, antidrug programs are regularly driven by financing, which concentrates on targets that might be only loosely tied to the urgent needs of the city (Hoffman & Froemke, 2007, p. 5).
Application of Ethical Theory
As a bank operating within the environment, it is obligated to assist the society in eradicating such menace as drug abuse. One of the ethical theories, which shall guide it is the virtue ethics. This theory states that an able body should exercise its virtues of assisting the society change some vices, which crop up. As a bank, it is morally obligated to help the society. With the mind of execising corporate social responsibility, they should also have no option but to assist the society to contain this problem. One other ethical theory which govern the bank is the duty or ethics of care. It is are obligated, as a family, which cares, to provide care and facilitation of any project that our neighbors require.
Recommendations
In order to reduce drug abuse among the city workers, there is a need to carry out education on the effects of drugs on the individual and the family. Education will be effective because it will create awareness on the employees who might opt to abandon misuse of drugs. There is a need to deliver a wide-ranging, evidence-based alcohol and drug education as well as health promotion programs, which reinforce wellbeing and spirit among city workers. Education aims to prevent drug use by promoting efficient development, as increasing self-understanding, as well as self-acceptance via activities comprising clarification of values and responsible decision making (Bukoski & Sloboda, 2003). Reliable with information dissemination methods, effective education was found to have a persuasive impact on drug-use behavior. In addition, though there have been vast strides in raising awareness concerning the dangers of misusing drugs, numerous city workers are still not aware that the misuse or abuse of drugs may be as, resulting to addiction and even death. Stakeholders in the city need to be healthier educated concerning the dangers of the misuse and abuse of drugs. Through this, the workers abandon the drugs and lead productive lives. Education will be effective because many employers in the city do not offer in-depth training on substance abuse; frequently, substance abuse education is limited to the workplace. Furthermore, city workers in companies might only get limited training on dangers posed by abusing drugs. Educating managers on substance abuse is vitally vital, since even brief interventions by managers have proven efficient in eliminating substance abuse among city workers who abuse drugs; however, are not yet addicted to them. Educating managers about impacts of drug abuse will encourage awareness of this increasing problem amongst workers. In addition, there is a need to start drug awareness campaigns that will create awareness of drugs at a great level. These campaigns need to make ads, which go viral on the media, so everybody is targeted (Califano 2008).
There is the need strengthen as well as maintaining laws protecting the city from the harm caused by illegal drugs and new psychoactive substances among the city workers. Highlights comprise the government’s increased investment in a number of police and stronger police powers to deal with misuse of the drug, and legal changes to crack down on the trafficking of illegal drugs. Furthermore, through the local authorities as well as government, there should be noteworthy law enforcement policies to reduce substance abuse among the city workers. There should be policies that will govern the use of drugs in the city in order to reduce drug abuse. The policies should prohibit the use of illegal drugs, which means that policies governing the use of drugs should be strict to discourage abuse of drugs. There should be laws that will discourage sell of drugs in streets to curb the increasing use of drugs among the city workers. The government, therefore, will need to strengthen its reforms to liquor licensing regulation, as well as that govern drugs, which comprise conduct a comprehensive appraisal of the most efficient strategies. Highlights comprise the complete implementation of the government’s plan based on law enforcement, an apparent appraisal of what works for future reforms, and well-targeted enforcement. There is a need to increase the number of police charged with the responsibility of controlling abuse of drugs in the city. The personnel, therefore, are not trained and will work effectively (Barnard & Keane 2006).
Limitations
Despite the effort that my bank will apply so as to curb the menace, some limitations will derail the process. One of the limitations is unforeseen support from other agencies, which are crucial in ensuring the success of this exercise. The solution to this is to establish a comprehensive plan that will make sure that the addiction level is reduced to zero. This means for city workers who have begun using drugs or have already the use of drugs to addition, the solution will be to undergo treatment. The treatment method that will be used should be tailored founded on the specific drug the worker abused. The most efficient treatment methods to drug abuse focus on the whole life of the person affected, comprising his/her medical requirements, relationship problems, work needs, and psychological requirements. In general, the treatment method that will be applied will use a combination of behavioral therapy interventions as well as medications to lower the worker’s need or desire for use of the drug. This will give the worker the skills to refrain abusing drugs in future (Verster, 2012).
Another limitation is the unavailability of enough rehabilitation centers within the city. Rehab centers are the best institutions for those addicted with drugs. The city workers with drug addiction challenges need to be treated with utmost good care. It may only be done if rehab centers are available and they offer good treatment and assistance to the victims of drug use (Califano 2008). In addition, the rehabilitation centers must be more efficient in their activities. Another limitation with rehab centers is that it uses a complicated technique of rejuvenating their patients. Majority of the rehabs start treatment by lessening the dosage of the drugs. Nevertheless, this is not always efficient as once the worker is discharged from the rehab, they use to reduce in dosage as excuse to return to their previous foul habits. What the rehabs must do is arrange for patients to go “cold turkey,” that is, go totally off the drugs. In this manner, a sense of eternalness is set upon the worker, and they are mentally oriented that they are retracting from substance abuse for life. Furthermore, psychological treatment must go hand-in-hand with physiological treatments. Therefore, the authorities in the city should build more rehab centers to deal with the increasing number of workers who abuse the drugs in the city. The rehab centers should too ensure that the number of personnel, as well as the facilities, are adequate. It will ensure that the centers provide quality services to the affected workers (Barnard & Keane 2006).
Conclusion
In conclusion, at present drug abuse is threatening the foundation of the society. The number of addicted city workers is growing in number every day, demolishing the entire economy of the nation. Thousands of productive workers and the dream of their managers are shattering every day as a result of one wrong step taken. This problem is almost beyond anyone's control because established drug markets are continually catering the thirst of drug for hundreds of addicts, and there is virtually no one to curtail the monstrous efforts of these friends. It therefore, means that there is a need to engender strategies that will reduce this problem among city workers. These include effective treatment methods, education, building rehabilitation centers, and law enforcement policies. Nevertheless, this will help reduce or totally eliminate the substance abuse problem.
List of References
Barnard, M., & Keane, F. 2006. “Drug Addiction and Families”. London, GBR: Jessica Kingsley.
Bukoski, W. J., & Sloboda, Z. 2003. “Handbook of drug abuse prevention: Theory, science, and practice”. New York, NY [u.a.: Kluwer Acad./Plenum Publ.
Califano, J. A. 2008. “High Society: How Substance Abuse Ravages America and What to do about it”. New York, NY: Public Affairs.
Collins, D. J., & Lapsley, H. M. 2008. “The costs of tobacco, alcohol and illicit drug abuse to Australian Society in 2004/05”. Retrieved from http://www.health.gov.au/internet/drugstrategy/publishing.nsf/Content/34F55AF632F67 B70CA2573F60005D42B/$File/mono64.pdf.
Hoffman, J., & Froemke, S. 2007. “Addiction: Why can't they just stop? : new knowledge, new treatments, new hope”. New York: Rodale, Inc.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2003. “The practice of drug abuse epidemiology”. New York: United Nations.
Verster, J. C. 2012. “Drug abuse and addiction in medical illness: Causes, consequences and treatment”. New York, NY: Springer.
Wilson, R. W., & Kolander, C. A. 2011. “Drug abuse prevention: A school and community partnership”. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
