The number of drug addicts in the Vitebsk region is decreasing, but their preferences are changing
In addition, 64 patients have achieved stable remission and are close to being removed from the register. Currently, there are various mechanisms in the region that allow a dependent person to be taken off the needle and overcome addiction to "mixes" and other substances. Last year, 60 people went through the methadone program, and about 38 continue substitution therapy.
The rehabilitation direction is actively developing. A social rehabilitation department with 30 beds has been established at the Polotsk Regional Psychiatric Hospital. Beds have also been allocated for these purposes in the narcological department of the regional center for narcology and psychiatry. In the village of Shchuchino, Vitebsk district, the rehabilitation center "Zhizn" operates, admitting dependent individuals from all over the region.
Indeed, the incidence of drug addiction in the Vitebsk region is one of the lowest in the republic, the number of episodic cases of consumption in the region is steadily decreasing (155 were detected last year), and the number of registered drug users is minimal compared to other regions. However, there are several points that concern doctors.
As noted by Igor Svirgunov, deputy chief physician for narcology at the center, the structure of consumption has changed in favor of synthetic and designer drugs. Cannabinoids are currently at the top, accounting for 40%, pushing heroin and opium down a notch. The forbidden psychotropic substance Alpha-PVP is popular among youth.
The main mass of drug users are young people under 35 years of age.
The influx of psychoactive substances into the region for distribution or transit also causes concern. For comparison, medical professionals register facts of psychoactive substance use in only half of the region's districts, with the problem most affecting large cities and Vitebsk, Tolochin, Orsha, and Senno districts. However, drug trafficking crimes were not recorded in the past year only in Gluboksky district. In addition, the northern region ranks third in terms of the number of large drug seizures.
So far, law enforcement agencies are managing to contain the situation, and medical professionals are actively working on prevention, introducing new forms of work with the younger generation to make them resistant to the temptations imposed by drug developers and sellers. But at any moment, this Sword of Damocles can fall upon young heads.