Over the past four years, a group of Palestinian, Israeli and US substance abuse professionals have been developing a program to cooperatively build a system to measure drug use trends in Israel and Palestinian Authority. There have been over 10 major training events throughout Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza Strip. An article in Addiction has been published and a book will be released by Prager Press in Nov 2001, documenting the array of efforts. The US Department of State has recently awarded UCLA and its Israeli and Palestinian partners a $500,000 two-year grant to build a system for collecting drug use trend information in the Middle East. This project will be underway by April 1, 2001.The public health implications of collecting drug use information for policy planning are obvious. Of equal importance is the building of cooperation in this troubled area of the world. On this count, the project has already reaped major benefits. Science-based treatment manuals have been translated from English into Hebrew and Arabic. Tri-lateral meetings of health officials, law enforcement representatives, and political figures have occurred to promote this portfolio of work. While not all of the discussions have been positive and cooperative, the overwhelming impact of the work to date is to underscore the common problem that drug use poses to all people and cultures. The project is a public health and research project that uses these topics to promote peace and health in this region.
Learning Objectives: The participants in this session will learn about the importance of drug use data collection designed to assist policy makers and about the public health implications that result from these efforts.
Keywords: Drug Addiction, Data Collection
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.