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Drug Prevention Course
Welcome to this accredited 3-contact-hour Continuing Education course with instant online processing and certification 24/7. Study the course below, take the 12-question multiple-choice TEST, register and pay online. If you score 75% or above, you may print your CE certificate on your printer as soon as you finish. If you have difficulty printing your certificate, click here.. You may retake the test. Drug Prevention: How to live drugfree, www.learnwell.org/drugfree.htm . Prevention quiz: http://www.edc.org/hec/thisweek/quiz1.htm For self-study and exploration:
1. TESTING FOR DRUG USE
2. USE AND EFFECT OF DRUGS
MARIJUANA DEFINITION: American or Indian hemp used as mind-altering drug. It increases blood pressure, contains more carcinogens than cigarettes. It contains THC. Its resign is called hashish. EFFECTS INCLUDE: Muscular tremors, transient muscular rigidity, euphoria, relaxed inhibitions, disorientation, coated tongue, marijuana debris in mouth, odor of burnt marijuana, gait ataxia, impaired perception and attention, impaired coordination and balance, thick, slurred speech, impaired divided attention, destroys brain cells, hilarity without cause, time distortion, bloodshot eyes, dry mouth and throat. EFFECTS OF OVERDOSE INCLUDE: Fatigue, paranoia. DURATION: Onset 8 - 9 seconds, Peak 10 - 30 minutes, Loaded 2 - 3 hours, Normal 3 - 6 hours ADMINISTRATION: Smoked, Injected, Orally INHALANTS DEFINITION: Gas or vapors which are inhaled to produce a high. Hypertension and increased pulse rate. EFFECTS INCLUDE: Impaired coordination and balance, disorientation or confusion, thick slurred speech, gait ataxia, odor of substance used, impaired divided attention, very alert, keen senses, hallucinations, dizziness, scrambled words and disconnected sentences. EFFECTS OF OVERDOSE INCLUDE: Coma, brain damage, cardiac arrhythmia, death. DURATION: 6 - 8 hours ADMINISTRATION: Inhaled METHAMPHETAMINE is a central nervous
system stimulant with a high potential for abuse and dependence. A synthetic
drug, methamphetamine is closely related chemically to amphetamine, but produces
greater effects on the central nervous system. The drug's euphoric effects are
similar to but longer lasting than those of cocaine. Methamphetamine takes the
form of a white, odorless, and bitter- tasting crystalline powder, readily
soluble in water or alcohol. Street methamphetamine is referred to by many names
including "meth," "speed," "zip,"
"go-fast," "cristy," "chalk," and
"crank."
3.TREATMENT AND PREVENTION OF DRUG ABUSE
Prevention programs should be designed to enhance "protective factors" and move toward reversing or reducing known "risk factors." Prevention programs should target all forms of drug abuse, including the use of tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and inhalants. Prevention programs should include skills to resist drugs when offered, strengthen personal commitments against drug use, and increase social competency (e.g., in communications, peer relationships, self-efficacy, and assertiveness), in conjunction with reinforcement of attitudes against drug use. Prevention programs for adolescents should include interactive methods, such as peer discussion groups, rather than didactic teaching techniques alone. Prevention programs should include a parents' or caregivers' component that reinforces what the children are learning-such as facts about drugs and their harmful effects-and that opens opportunities for family discussions about use of legal and illegal substances and family policies about their use. Prevention programs should be long-term, over the school career with repeat interventions to reinforce the original prevention goals. For example, school-based efforts directed at elementary and middle school students should include booster sessions to help with critical transitions from middle to high school. Family-focused prevention efforts have a greater impact than strategies that focus on parents only or children only. Community programs that include media campaigns and policy changes, such as new regulations that restrict access to alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs, are more effective when they are accompanied by school and family interventions. Community programs need to strengthen norms against drug use in all drug abuse prevention settings, including the family, the school, and the community. Schools offer opportunities to reach all populations and also serve as important settings for specific subpopulations at risk for drug abuse, such as children with behavior problems or learning disabilities and those who are potential dropouts. Prevention programming should be adapted to address the specific nature of the drug abuse problem in the local community. The higher the level of risk of the target population, the more intensive the prevention effort must be and the earlier it must begin. Prevention programs should be age-specific, developmentally appropriate, and culturally sensitive. Effective prevention programs are cost-effective. For every dollar spent on drug use prevention, communities can save 4 to 5 dollars in costs for drug abuse treatment and counseling. (Source: Know the prevention principles.) Drug Abuse Prevention reduces risks and increases
protection. True OR False "Kids Connection," offers children ages seven to fifteen a way to share their feelings, have fun, make new friends and gain factual information regarding alcohol and other drugs by providing them with an education/support group that meets once a week for ten weeks. Each session begins with the children sharing their feelings by using laminated cards which reflect their emotional states. A discussion period regarding alcohol and other drug issues follows. Afterward, they do "something fun" which reinforces the lesson for the day. For example, one activity shows how people get addicted. The kids coat their hands with shaving cream, which at first feels good and makes their skin soft and smooth. But once they've rubbed them together and all the cream has been absorbed, their hands are sticky and "yucky," and more shaving cream is required. A processing period helps them understand that like the shaving cream, alcohol and other drugs may feel good at first, but that the effects soon wear off and they're left only with the need for more. (Source: www.ncadd.org )
Steps in Stopping Substance Abuse: 1. assessment, 2. treatment planning, 3. changing behavior, 4. groups and families, 5. maintaining behavioral changes, and 6. rehabilitation. Study this web-site for 3 hours for an approved (RN-CEP 11430, MFT- PCE 39) 3-hours Continuing Education Certificate (0.3 CEUs). Click here for the self-correcting test
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1.1
The field of Drug-Abuse includes the use of all harmful drugs, namely 1) use of
illegal drugs, 2) misuse of medications, and the 3) misuse of products with
caffeine. Consider if you or those close to you fall into any of the above
areas. If there is a chance that that is the case, first note and document your
observations over a one-month period, and if needed and appropriate, test for
drug use. 
