Substance abuse remains a significant social problem in the U.S., particularly among youth aged 12-17, with 22 million Americans affected. The most commonly abused substances include marijuana, cocaine, and psychotherapeutic drugs, leading to severe socio-economic and health consequences, including increased crime rates and health complications. Urgent action is needed, emphasizing social work approaches to provide support and rehabilitation for victims.

1. Sample essay on Social Work: Substance Abuse
Among social problems the US struggles to overcome is that of
substance abuse. According to survey, there is some progress made
especially in terms of reduction of illicit drug use in all the states
(McCaffrey, 2007). The situation, is however far from over since young
people carry on with substance abuse. The substances that are
commonly abused include, alcohol, heroin, marijuana, alcohol, cocaine,
psychotherapeutic drugs as well as other illicit drugs. So much as such
drugs continue to be abused, there are some social aspects of the
nation that will continue to be affected. The worst thing arises from the
fact children as young as the age of 12 years are involved in drug use.
Another point that is crucial that comes from consequences of
substance and drugs abuse affect Americans on their socio-economic
backgrounds, ethnic, educational levels and racial identities.
According to estimates, about 22 million Americans struggle to
overcome substance and drugs abuse, something that demands urgent
measures. Studies indicate these Americans are aged 12 years and
above, with the largest percentage of registered cases among young
starts aged 12 and 17 years. Out of the substance and drug abuse, the
most used is marijuana with an estimated 14.6 million users. It is
followed by cocaine with estimated 2 million current users, followed by
hallucinogens which is abused by close to 1 million people. Close to
170,000 people have also been found to be users of heroin. On that
same note, majority of people are reported to be users of
psychotherapeutic drugs without medical reasons. The National Survey
on Drug use and Health, 2004 showed an estimated 6 million people
used different kinds of psychotherapeutic drugs. Out of these, 4.4
million used pain relievers, 1.6 million used tranquilizers, 0.3 million
used sedatives while 1.2 million used stimulants (McCaffrey, 2007).
As it is indicated above, the American society is at great risk since the
young generation is largely affected by drug use and they are major

2. abusers as indicated by their ages from 12 to 17. Drugs and substance
abuse rate, regrettably varies according to the ethnic or racial groups
that are within the society. According to the survey, rate was higher in
Alaska Native youths who were of American Indian, registering 26%.
People from mixed races recorded 12.2 while 11 percent were white
youths. Hispanic youths were 10 percent while Black youths using the
drug were 9.3 percent. Lastly, only 6 percent comprised Asian youth’s
illegal abusing substances. This indicates that substance and drug abuse
is an actual threat in the American society.
It is clearly evident there is danger of substance abuse due to negative
social indicators such as financial difficulties, family disruptions,
domestic abuse and violence, educational failures, child abuse and
other kinds of crimes. It is estimated US loses close to $ 600 billion
every year on the productivity affected, crime and health related issues
cause by abuse of substances (Substance Abuse, 2013). Note individuals
who abuse drugs are part of a great public concern for American
government. The negative health related concerns that are caused by
substance abuse include domestic violence, teenage pregnancies,
suicide, homicides and other related complications, STI and HIV/AIDS.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Report,
2010, motor vehicle crashes are greatly attributed to substance abuse.
Data from the US Department of Health and Human Services (2013)
indicates use of cocaine leads to some serious complications like
cardiovascular activities, an aspect that can lead to heart attacks among
abusers. Also, there I proof that a large percentage of HIV/AIDS cases in
the US are the result of drug injection behaviors. These individuals go
on and infect their sexual partners with the HIV virus thus increasing
the death rate. It is common knowledge that in the US, crime is a major
issue, especially among racial minorities. A large number of those
arrested for assault, homicide and theft, tested positive for abuse of
substance. Maternal drug abuse leads to numerous child defects at
birth. Majority of expectant mothers taking drugs at any given time in

3. the course of their pregnancy might make the infant suffer from
specific biological problems. On the same line, infant mortality rates,
premature births, miscarriages and underweight births in the US are
largely the cause of prenatal drug exposure.
The illustrations and analysis above show substance abuse is in fact, a
real social issue in the American community. The fact young generation
is mostly affected with the problem is an indication the country lacks
citizens who are responsible and with the ability of building the nation.
To improve the situation, action needs to be taken immediately. The
government has already played a crucial role by enacting a couple of
laws regulating circulation of illicit drugs, though, less has been attained
so far since the problem continues to exist. Precisely because of this,
the ideal approach towards elimination of the problem is adopting
social approaches. This means social work can play a significant role in
making sure that victims get assistance in accordance to their
situations.
Note the solution to substance abuse involves different kinds of aspects
of victims. This arises from the fact drug addiction is quite a complex
issue and there are different kinds of treatment that entail components
like school, the family, work and the community at large. There are
different reasons that drive people into drug abuse, among them is
unemployment. As such, social remedy is supposed to include helping
victims through training and rehabilitating them so as to ensure they
secure jobs for purposes of self-sustenance. Apart from
pharmacological treatment, there is also the need to focus on behavior
part of the same, an aspect that entails counseling victims as well as
restoring them. Social work practice is also a great approach that helps
rehabilitees and informs the public about consequences of substance
abuse.
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5. References
Drug involvement of fatally injured drivers: Traffic Safety Facts. (2010).
National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation.
Washington, DC. P.1. Retrieved January 13, 2014 from http://www-
nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811415.pdf.
McCaffrey, B. (2007). II. America’s Drug Abuse Profile. The National
Drug Control Strategy.
Retrieved January 13, 2014 from
https://www.ncjrs.gov/htm/chapter2.htm
Substance Abuse. (2013). U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services. Retrieved January 13,
2014 from http://healthypeople.gov/2020/lhi/substanceabuse.aspx
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