School groups to fight drugs
All primary and secondary schools may soon set up peer support groups to beat teenage drug abuse.
Last year there were close to 17,000 drug abusers in Hong Kong, about 3,000 were aged under 21, it was revealed in the Second International Conference on Drug Abuse.
Although there is a seven percent decrease in the number of young drug abusers compared to 1995, the Education Department feels there is still need for action.
Pilot studies of peer support groups have been set up in nine primary schools and nine secondary schools.
Commissioned by the Education Department, the final report of the study would be released in a few weeks, according to Professor Gabriele van Lingen of the University of Hong Kong.
Professor Lingen said the concept of training students as peer helpers was borrowed from the Student Assistance Programme widely used in the States.
She said students' involvement in the help programme was significant.
'Adolescence is a time when teenagers want to be independent of their families. When there's a problem, they will talk to each other instead of reaching out to their parents,' said Professor Lingen.
As a result, peers are likely to detect any problems their friends have before teachers or parents do.
'In the Peer Helper Programme, we will train students to identify if their friends are having problems. They are to look out for unusual behaviour, talk and listen to their friends.' Professor Lingen said trust-building was essential, but said there were limitations in the programme.
'We realise that the helpers might be facing serious situations, that is why teachers, staff and students involved in the programme will meet regularly.' Professor Lingen said students would be making referrals to and getting help from adults.
Another area of students' responsibility is to help returning students integrate back into school life after their treatment for drugs.
'It is necessary to have support within the school and get them back to school.' Professor Lingen said the programme would take a team-based approach which involved parents and community support.
Alice Tsang Shook-yin, education officer of the Education Department, said the Peer Helper Programme in the 18 schools which took part in the pilot study would continue until the end of this year.
She said the Education Department would expand the programme to all schools in Hong Kong when the final study report came out in a few weeks.
'We hope every school sets up a peer support group to beat drugs. But we also have to take the resources and money involved into account.'
