SANDAKAN – Sabah needs proper alcohol and drug rehabilitation facilities as the existing ones resemble prisons, which is not the best environment for addicts to focus on getting clean, according to a psychiatry specialist.
Universiti Malaysia Sabah Hospital’s Dr Nicholas Pang Tze Ping said alcohol and drug addiction is interconnected with mental health issues.
He added that the existing rehabilitation centres in Sabah, such as the one in Bukit Padang, are not conducive as “the conditions are like in prison, and mental problems need to be cured with the right treatment”.
“Mental health problems could be reasons driving individuals to consume alcohol and (use) drugs. It is important for us to treat the causes of mental health such as high levels of stress, among others.”
He added that drugs and alcohol could cause a person to experience hallucinations and delusions as well as behaving violently and acting out of control.
“Cases of physical assaults, thefts, rapes, deaths, accidents are among the effects of continuous drug and alcohol abuse. The effects of serious mental health problems also lead to many cases of deaths.”
Pang said this when delivering his presentation as the guest speaker for the Circus Arts Therapy health awareness workshop, in collaboration with Edulife Bhd and the Association for the Prevention of Alcohol Misuse today.
The workshop was held at the Dewan Hintun Toiva Kampung Kobusak in Penampang, and attended by more than 60 people from the communities in Kapayan, Penampang and Kota Kinabalu.
The programme aimed to provide awareness and information about therapy among the community as well as to educate them about alcohol and drug abuse.
Kapayan assemblywoman Jannie Lasimbang, who funded the workshop with her constituency funds, said she agreed with Pang that the government should set up an alcohol and drug rehabilitation centre in the state.
“A rehabilitation centre will definitely give hope and help recovery, especially those who are still in the early stages of addiction.
“I observe that there is an increased consumption of alcohol and drugs among the people in my area. This is worrying and it is causing many (mental health) cases, including depression, anxiety and suicide.
“It is important that we spread awareness among our community with programmes such as this. I believe continuous effort is a good start,” she said in a statement after the event.
Lasimbang added that drug abuse is not new in Malaysia and the National Anti-Drug Agency and other agencies have worked hard to prevent drug abuse.
She said she hoped the community would also become more aware of the people around them including their family members, and not to be ashamed to seek early treatment. – November 11, 2023
