Shaking Off Addiction

来源 :China Pictorial | 被引量 : 0次 | 上传用户:liuzixing0210
下载到本地 , 更方便阅读
声明 : 本文档内容版权归属内容提供方 , 如果您对本文有版权争议 , 可与客服联系进行内容授权或下架
论文部分内容阅读
  Zhongshan City is located in central southern Guangdong Province. The southern division of Zhongshan No. 2 People’s Hospital provides medical services such as a methadone clinic and compulsory detoxification.
  Mr. Li, 50 years old, is a patient who has received such treatment there for a year. He was caught abusing drugs by police and admitted into detoxification treatment. He was transferred to the hospital from a drug rehabilitation center when he was diagnosed with a severe heart disease, so that he could receive better medical treatment during his rehabilitation.
  “I feel much better here, where I can read and play poker every day,” grins Li. According to Dr. Qian, the facilities there are sufficient to treat his heart disease, and Li will receive a coronary bypass as soon as he recovers from detoxification.


   No-Refusal Hospital
  Drug abuse is a global issue. In recent years, China has frequently cracked down on drug-related crimes. Helping drug abusers conquer addiction and get their lives back on track has become a daunting social task.
  In the past, public security organizations could barely find proper places to house drug abusers who suffered from serious, often contagious diseases such as AIDS or hepatitis. Things have changed over the past few years. The municipal government of Zhongshan, for instance, blazed a new path by linking departments of public security and health to help victims overcome addiction while their diseases are treated.


  The southern division of Zhongshan No. 2 People’s Hospital is one place where such compassionate care is given.
  According to Wang Jun, head of the division, it began providing medical services for patients in custody of the local drug rehabilitation center in June 2011 and transferring them to other hospitals when necessary.
  “This hospital is tackling problems that have plagued us for so long time,” asserts Tan Pei’an, vice mayor of Zhongshan and director of the municipal public security bureau.
   Community Rehabilitation


  In China, detoxification can be either compulsory or voluntary. It’s not strange to see many repeat abusers fall back into old ways after rehabilitation. Today, many methadone treatment clinics have been established to manage the situation.   According to Wang Gaoxi, president of Zhongshan Drug Control Association, methadone is a narcotic analgesic similar to morphine that effectively and persistently controls addiction to opioids such as heroin.
  In Western countries such as Britain and the United States, methadone therapy is believed to be one of the most effective methods to control heroin addiction; it is delivered to addicts free of charge.
  Guangdong Lianzhong Social General Service Center is a social organization specializing in drug control and psychological consultation. Every year, the municipal government of Zhongshan provides 2 million yuan to the center for drug treatment at the community level, which helps track down abusers who refuse to cooperate.
  In the fall of 2015, Zhuhai College under Jilin University joined hands with Lianzhong to offer undergraduate courses concerning drug control for social workers, and the first class of students are scheduled to graduate in 2017, which will provide greater manpower to help the situation.


   Busy Hands
  After leaving a rehabilitation center, many recovered addicts have trouble finding a job, making a relapse more likely. Thus, a crucial issue has been how to help them find employment and support themselves. A successful model emerged from the Sunshine Project in Guizhou Province.
  In the Sunshine Employment Home in Qingzhen Town, Guiyang, the provincial seat, 36-year-old Chen Ying sews enthusiastically. “I was unlucky enough to get involved with heroin while working in Guangxi (Zhuang Autonomous Region) in 1997,” recalls Chen. “I haven’t touched drugs since I left the rehabilitation center thanks to support from my family and the community. But I tried everything to secure a job, yet no one dared hire someone like me. I was desperate until the community finally gave me a hand.”
  At first, she assembled electronic components, and now she makes clothes. “Most of our orders are school or work uniforms,”she reveals. “And business is pretty stable.”Every month, Chen earns more than 2,000 yuan, enough to pay the bills.
  Over 100 people like Chen Ying work in the Sunshine Employment Home. In five years, it has provided jobs for some 400 recovered addicts, many of whom learned valuable techniques that help secure longterm employment. Across Guizhou, 140 enterprises have been committed to partnerships with the Sunshine Project, creating jobs for more than 2,000 people.
  “We enjoy tax breaks and rebates from the local government as well as the privilege of making school and work uniforms for government clients,” illustrates supervisor Huang Fei. “Over the years, I have been running the Sunshine Employment Home. I have experienced rejection, suspicion, and friendship. Today, we are family. This is how it works. I hope that everyone here continues living with dignity.”
其他文献
The 24th New Delhi World Book Fair, one of the largest in Asia, kicked off in January 2016, attracting heaps of publishers and dealers from countries, such as China, France, Germany, the United States
期刊
China’s first comprehensive bill to regulate charitable activities was submitted to the second plenary meeting of the fourth session of the 12th National People’s Congress (NPC) on the afternoon of Ma
期刊
On March 20, the China National Centre for the Performing Arts Orchestra (NCPA Orchestra) performed Tapiola and Symphony Opus 5 by Sibelius, as well as the Piano Concerto of Schumann. The performance
期刊
A simple blurry black and white picture in a cheap book about China’s ancient and ethnic villages was my inspiration to hop on a long and bumpy ride from Guilin to Sanjiang, a small town in northern G
期刊
“Bay Area Economy” refers to an economic effect derived from port and town clusters along coastal areas. According to a study by the World Bank, 60 percent of the world’s total economic output comes f
期刊
Alongside rapid social and economic development, charity work has gained increasing attention in China, and more diversified philanthropic organizations have emerged. However, to the general public, t
期刊
“Big science” is a new concept proposed by international scientific and technological circles in recent years, and refers to research projects featuring heavy investment, plentiful researchers, advanc
期刊
On March 25, 2016, Liu Huifeng, the program officer for Ocean Heaven Plan, worked late into the night to prepare for World Autism Awareness Day on April 2. His team will release a video depicting a mo
期刊
Vintage culture and swing have developed hand-in-hand in China during the last years. To document this trend, we explored vintage shops in the Gulou area of Beijing and interviewed two emblematic memb
期刊
At the November 12, 2015 launch ceremony of the China Global Philanthropy Institute (CGPI), He Qiaonu, a well-known female Chinese entrepreneur, stood next to Bill Gates, the wealthiest man in the wor
期刊