Luis Hora drug rehab center soon to rise

HAPPY WEEKEND

Gina Dizon

BAUKO, Mountain Province - A drug treatment and rehabilitation center shall soon be built at the grounds of Luis Hora Memorial regional Hospital following consultation from the public here May 18.  

The regional facility with initial P65 million sourced from the Department of Health shall cater to alcoholics and drug dependents purposely from the five provinces of the Cordillera Administrative Region and accommodate patients from other places.

The facility shall be conducting multi- therapy services including psychotherapy, physical development, medical services, counseling and the provision of skills trainings to drug dependent-patients aside from drug tests.

LHRMH medical center chief Dr. Glen Mathew Baggao said service cost is P10, 000 to P15,000 per patient per month.

Dalog said support be accessed from Philhealth and a bill to be passed to this effect to Congress including drug dependents as Philhealth beneficiaries.  

Dr. Karen Balanza of Baguio General Hospital said there are 1.3 million drug users in the country mostly among minors up to 19 years old, having reached high school education, and unemployed. 

Drugs commonly used are alcohol and the illegal marijuana or cannabis sativa and methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.

In Mountain Province, apart from unrecorded situations, there are 14 cases of alcohol and drug dependency, Balanza said.

In said consultation, concerns rose that the center be preventive with advocacy on anti- drug use and conduct of drug tests among secondary and college students.

It is common knowledge that some high school and college students and other out of school youth are into drug use.

The conduct of mandatory drug tests among students was forwarded amidst questions on its constitutionality as violative to privacy.

In previous years, the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB)  conducted  mandatory random drug testing among students in private and public schools nationwide amidst  questions on the legality of drug tests.

This in reference to a national memorandum circular issued by former president Gloria Arroyo to school district officials subjecting all elementary and high school students nationwide including tertiary and vocational institutions to random drug tests.

Also, Supreme Court declared the constitutionality of drug tests in a ruling dated Nov. 3, 2007 on a case between Department of Justice and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and justifiable in view of the proliferation of illegal drugs where the youth and school children usually end up as victims.

RA 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 requires students to undergo random drug testing to stamp out illegal drugs in the country and protect the citizens especially the youth from the effects of drugs.     

Section 36 of RA 9165 requires mandatory drug testing of candidates for public office, students of secondary and tertiary schools in reference to student’s handbook, officers and employees of public and private offices, and persons charged before the prosecutor’s office with certain offenses.

Related concerns were asked on the waste management system of the rehab unit with Baggao’s ready answer that there shall be installed facilities for this.