Gov’t to launch drug rehab boarding camp for teens
The government will officially launch a camp program offering rehabilitation for teenagers addicted to drugs in the latter half of the year, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family said Tuesday.
The 12-day program, aimed at helping young people overcome drug addiction, will be operated by the Korea Youth Counselling and Welfare Institute, which is under the ministry’s direct control.
The program, which will have a capacity of 20 participants, will take place in the National Youth Healing Center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province.
The program’s official launch comes after a similar one was carried out last year on a trial basis.
The institute has already drawn up details about the program in cooperation with the Gyeonggi branch of the Korean Association Against Drug Abuse.
According to the institute, the program will target middle and high school students and out-of-school youth addicted to narcotics, such as phentermine, fentanyl and methylphenidate, after they have abused such prescription drugs.
Phentermine is used to lessen appetite, while fentanyl is used as a painkiller. Methylphenidate is for treating ADHD.
According to Ministry of Food and Drug Safety data, the number of people aged between 13 and 19 who were prescribed phentermine and fentanyl patches in 2022 stood at 5,287 and 383, respectively, while the number of those prescribed methylphenidate was tallied at 41,000.
The program will also offer alcoholism treatment, considering that adolescents’ alcohol use has become a grave social issue, along with drug addiction.
“The program will focus on non-pharmacological treatment such as cognitive behavioral therapy to help teenagers realize they have become addicted to drugs,” an official from the institute said.
The family ministry noted that it has been cooperating with the National Police Agency, the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office and the drug ministry to recruit patients, vowing to offer them follow-up care for up to six months after they leave the program.