Drug and Alcohol abuse in South Africa is on the increase and the state and private companies are not able to meet to the needs of people who abuse drugs and alcohol.
Drug and alcohol abuse normally refers to the misuse of drugs, with can be both legal (over the counter) and illegal drugs and alcohol. The misuse of over the counter drugs is rarely investigated especially in South Africa and when drug abuse is mentioned it normally refers to substances such as dagga, heroine, cocaine, tik etc.
As a society we tend to be more accepting of alcohol abuse in comparison to drug abuse when both are equally dangerous. In reality alcohol is more readily accessible and has a lesser element of danger in relation to the myths that society has about illegal drugs, which are associated with gangsters and crime. Alcohol is easily accessible in many households and poses the same risks as drug abuse.
In South Africa there are provinces that we well known for their drug and alcohol abuse and many interventions are centralised there. The Western Cape for instance is well known for drug abuse especially in relation to gang activity as well as alcohol abuse which is an inheritance from the dop system (when farmers paid workers with cheap wine instead of monetary compensation).
With regular drug and alcohol abuse this can lead to drug and alcohol dependency which is the state when an individual feels that they cannot function without the use of drugs and or alcohol. At this stage the abuse and use of drugs and alcohol does require external intervention as the individual is addicted and the abuse could be hazardous not only to their health and life but also those around them, such as employers, friends, families and loved ones.
In order to combat the increase of there is a need to have more centres that can start to address the issues which are based in communities and that are easily accessible both in terms of location but also admission, meaning more beds for in-patient facilities and affordability.