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 * Name:** Matt Nickerson
 * Student Number:** n7209029
 * Tutor/Time: Thursday 1 - 2 pm**

//How healthy is Generation Y? What are the key public health issues facing this generation, and what are the driving social and cultural forces behind these issues? //


 * Cultural Artefact**



Generation Y has developed a drug problem that could be a big issue for years to come. This artefact gives a clear negative message associated with the youth of today and Drugs. It shows the results of taking drugs may be as bad as holding a gun to your head or passing out as the girl in the picture has done. Different cultures have developed social rituals and rules around drug use as a way to control their impact on society. In 2004 Australian institute of health and wellness conducted a study on generation Y claiming 38% of Australians aged 14 years to 29 years old had used an illicit drug in their lifetime. As the above picture clearly shows it is the more ‘dangerous’ drugs they are trying to get the message across about like ice and heroin rather than marijuana which may not be as harmful.


 * Public Health Issue**

There are a lot of Public health issues that relate to drug use within the youth of today. Some of these include the costs of rehab centres, treatments for drug affected people, campaigns to stop drug use and obviously the health costs for those who are heavily affected not to mention the immediate effect on people who have to deal with drug users under the influence who may be harmed physically and mentally. The Australian government has just released a new drug control strategy. The new drug control strategy boosts community-based anti-drug programs, encourages healthcare providers to screen for drug problems before addiction sets in and expands treatment beyond specialty centers to mainstream healthcare facilities. (ADS, 2011)


 * Literature Review**

An illicit drug is defined as a drug whose production, sale or possession is prohibited (MCDS 2004). Illicit drugs such as marijuana, heroin, ecstasy and cocaine; the use of volatile substances such as glue, solvent and petrol as inhalants; and the non-medical use of prescribed drugs are all considered illicit. (AIHW,2006)

As well as affecting the personal lives of individuals, illicit drug use has an impact on many aspects of Australian society, including individual and community health; family and community functioning; crime and violence; and the social cohesion of our society. In economic terms this translates to an additional burden on the community. (Vignau, 2003). It is clear that all articles related to Drug abuse in youths state that it is a challenging social issue and presents problems for students of all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. As earlier stated 38% of Australian youths of today have tried an illicit drug in their life, this shows that almost half of the Gen Y kids have the possibility of being affected in one way or another by drug abuse.

One obvious negative of drug abuse is the money that the users are costing the government and people of Australia. Although some of the costs of this issue are not able to be recorded like extra costs of welfare and health and law services, the government expenditure can be. In addition to those measurable costs though, a number of costs associated with illicit drug use are not quantifiable, such as pain and suffering resulting from a reduced quality of life. Since its launch in November 1997, the Commonwealth Government has allocated $516m to the National Illicit Drug Strategy, for a range of supply-reduction and demand-reduction measures. (ABS, 2010)

Over the past ten years it has been a common theme among literature to attempt to stop the increase in drug use amongst Generation Y. There have been many different methodologies put forward to attempt to slow if not stop the drug problem in youths all together. A common theme throughout all of the scholarly articles is to stop drug abuse before it happens. This is why over 100 million dollars is spent annually on advertisements to prevent drugs and try and deter people that may be thinking about taking them away from the substance. (ABS, 2007).

Many years ago it was obvious in most scholarly articles that Drug abuse in youth was not a topic too be too worried about. Due to most people in the 70’s or 80’s using marijuana it was almost (although never legalized) seen as being ok. It was once said taking drugs like marijuana does not tend to harm anybody but yourself it is the ‘party’ drugs that the kids of today take that causes harm to not only themselves but usually people that cross there paths.”(Newman, 2002)

One of the goals of the National Drug Society (NDS) is to help the public understand the causes of drug abuse and to prevent its onset. Prevention science has made great progress in recent years. Many prevention interventions are being tested in “real-world” settings so they can be more easily adapted for community use. Scientists are studying a broader range of populations and topics. They have identified, for example, effective interventions with younger populations to help prevent risk behaviors before drug abuse occurs.

Researchers are also studying older teens that are already using drugs to find ways to prevent further abuse or addiction. Practical issues, such as cost-benefit analyses, are being studied. Presenting these findings to the public is one of the NDS most important responsibilities.

Obviously with all studies there are limitations especially when there are unmeasurable objectives. For example it would be impossible to measure the amount of people e.g family, friends or relatives that are affected by a youth that is close to them taking or distributing drugs. Also there would be a lot of cases of drug users that never make it into the system that still may have wrecked there lives or somebody elses.


 * Cultural and Social Analysis**

Based on responses to the 2004 NDSHS, 38% of the Australian population aged 14 years to 28 had used any illicit drug at least once in their lifetime, and 15% had used any illicit drug at least once in the previous 12 months. Marijuana/cannabis was the most common illicit drug used, with one in three persons (34%) having used it at least once in their lifetime and 11% of the population having used it in the previous 12 months. In 2004, the five most common illicit drugs ever used were marijuana/cannabis (34%), meth/amphetamine (9%), hallucinogens, ecstasy (both 8%), and pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes (6%).(AIHW,2010)

The six most common illicit drugs used in the previous 12 months were marijuana/cannabis (11%), ecstasy, meth/amphetamine, and pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes (all 3%), tranquillisers/sleeping pills and cocaine (1%). (AIHW, 2004)

“Sex, Drugs and rock ‘n’ roll is more than just an innocuous catchphrase. For a long time now celebrities in music unashamadely advocate the use of illegal drugs. Young fans when they are in there prime of being moulded often imitate the lifestyles of these popstars right down to the drugs they may use. Also along with pop stars, there have been a number of sports stars caught using illegal drug. As a lot of kids look up to these people as there idols they sometimes believe in the concept of “being a mini version of these people.”(Moon, 1999) One clear example of this is in the song 'New York' by Jay Z and Alycia Keys. One of the last lines in the song is "MDMA got you feeling like champion, the city never sleeps." It is obvious that many Gen Yers after hearing this line would have tried MDMA which shows the negative impact these 'celebrities' can have. As it is easy to tell this creates major problems with drug use. Although in Australia we may not be as directly affected as countries like America by these pop stars it is still a massive issue that needs to be addressed.

The awareness of drug abuse in generation Y is extremely important for the simple fact that it can save lives. Although somebody may not be directly involved with a drug user they still may be affected by their behaviour both physically and mentally (Chou, 1998). This is why it is most important to help stop or alert people of anybody that is using drugs. This issue should be discussed heavily by not just people that are involved but also people that have never had anything to do with the topic. With keeping everybody aware of the dangers of illegal drugs they may be able to spot somebody who has an issue before it is too late and not just save one life but many that may be linked to this person.

It is obvious that public health experts should continue to research this topic and attempt to stop the youth of generation Y believing it is ok to use illicit drugs. A big weight falls on the shoulders of all public health experts in regards to not only stopping these youths before they become affected but also helping to pull out the ones who have already been dragged in.


 * My Discussion (Reflection Task)**

The chosen artefact represents the youth of today and there problem with ‘shooting up’. The picture depicts a young person passed out on the ground with needle holes in their arm. It also has a chalk gun, which chalk on the ground usually represents a death this also has a double meaning of a gun which is obviously extremely dangerous and the above mentioned chalk.

This artefact is an extremely good case in point because it represents all the dangers that ‘shooting’ up with drugs represents. With a high number of Generation Y youths using drugs this advertisement definitely drives home the message of the risks associated with involving yourself with these drugs. All of these issues that have been mentioned in the literature relate heavily to me personally with a lot of my close friends being involved in drugs. I have first hand seen the aftermath of drug abuse in young kids and what it does to there family and there own lives.

I have learnt a lot of very interesting statistics as a result of this assessment piece and was extremely surprised with the high number of youths that do take part in illegal drugs. After completing this assessment I have been made to research a lot more and discovered a lot of articles throughout the course of the assignment. It will definitely help me with future assessment due to my ability to review literature improving immensely across the assignment.


 * Reference List**

Ashery, R.S.; Robertson, E.B.; and Kumpfer K.L., eds. (1998) //Drug Abuse Prevention Through Family Interventions//. NIDA Research Monograph No. 177. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2011). Australian Social Trends,. Retrieved from: []

Australian Government: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2011). Young Australians: their health and wellbeing 2011. Retrieved from: []

Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. (2011). National Suicide Prevention Strategy. Retrieved from: []

Australian Government Office for Youth. (2010). National Strategy for Young Australians. Retrieved from: []

Chou, C.; Montgomery, S.; Pentz, M.; Rohrbach, L.; Johnson, C.; Flay, B.; and Mackinnon, D. (1998) Effects of a community-based prevention program in decreasing drug use in high-risk adolescents. //American Journal of Public Health// 88:944–948,

Evans, Jeff.(2008) "Illicit drug use dips in youth, spikes in boomers." //Family Practice News// 38.19: 26. //Health Reference//

Dishion, T.; Kavanagh, K.; Schneiger, A.K.J.; Nelson, S.; and Kaufman, N. (2002) Preventing early adolescent substance use: A family centered strategy for the public middle school. //Prevention Science// 3(3):191–202,

Gerstein, D.R. and Green, L.W., eds.(1993) //Preventing Drug Abuse: What Do We Know?// Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Mascord, K. (2006). National Survey of Young Australians. Mission Australia. []

Johnston, L.D.; O’Malley, P.M.; and Bachman, J.G. //Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975–2002. Volume 1: Secondary School Students//. Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Kosterman, R.; Hawkins, J.D.; Spoth, R.; Haggerty, K.P.; and Zhu, K.(1997) Effects of a preventive parent-training intervention on observed family interactions: Proximal outcomes from Preparing for the Drug Free Years.//Journal of Community Psychology// 25(4):337–352.

Moon, D.; Hecht, M.; Jackson, K.; and Spellers, R.(1999) Ethnic and gender differences and similarities in adolescent drug use and refusals of drug offers. //Substance Use and Misuse// 34(8):1059–1083,

Reflections

DRINKS AND GEN Y? - BLOODY IDIOTS

A very well written project that confronts all of the unfortunate negative aspects of drinking. This topic is obviously one that a lot of people would have a personal interest in and the artefact that was used to represent your case was spot on. As i am sure a lot of people in this course have experienced a 'hangover' and what is associated with it this topic of generation Y and the way they deceive it is of great interest. A well referenced article with that is summed up perfectly by the title "Drinks and Gen Y? - Bloody Idiots".