ST JAMES, Jamaica — The National Council on Drug Abuse (NCDA) says it will be undertaking research in 2023 to determine the extent of access to and use of substances among the population.

The research comes out of a rapid situation assessment done earlier this year among secondary-school students, which showed an increase in the popularity of substances such as molly, edibles and vaping.

“We are starting early next year to do a research study with support from the Ministry of Health & Wellness, coming out of this rapid situation assessment, to be able to determine what is happening nationally among the population ages 12 to 65 years old,” said the NCDA’s Research Analyst, Uki Atkinson.

She was addressing a town hall meeting staged by the entity at West Jamaica Conference Centre in Mount Salem, St James, on Tuesday.

Atkinson noted that the rapid assessment was done in May 2022 and took the form of focus group discussions among 160 students in urban and rural areas across 13 parishes.

She noted that the students spoke about drug use and its effects as well as the glorification of substances in music, accessibility and more.

Atkinson said that the NCDA has also partnered with the Ministry of Education and Youth to increase the capacity of schools to conduct screenings and brief interventions.

Key personnel such as guidance counsellors, Health and Family Life Education teachers, deans of discipline, and nurses will be targeted for training.

“We are also reviewing the guidelines for drug use in schools. These guidelines were developed and updated as far back as 2015 and there is a need for them to be reflective of the current situation,” Atkinson noted.

The NCDA will also be conducting a series of targeted interventions for parents, as well as a public education campaign, and is calling on the support of the public and private sectors, civil society and the Diaspora.

The NCDA town hall was part of activities for Drug Awareness Month in November under the theme ‘Drug Free Lifestyle Trending’ and was aimed at increasing public awareness about substance abuse, prevention and treatment.

The forum included presentations from the NCDA in addition to key representatives from education, health, law enforcement, the church, youth, businesses, and community interests.