Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Ernesto A. Randolfi, PhD, Health and Human Peformance, Montana State University - Billings, 1500 University Drive Montana State University-Billings, Billings, MT 59101, 406-657-2123, randolfi@msubillings.edu

As a divided nation that only recently began to allow limited travel between the north (Turkish Cypriots) and south (Greek Cypriots) of this country, one is able to discover fascinating cultural influences on health behaviors. During a recent Fulbright Scholar appointment to Cyprus, the presenter was assigned the task of training substance abuse counselors and other health promotion professionals from both sides of the Island in science based drug prevention methods and strategies. In examining current drug use data, one finds that this population has some of the lowest drug use patterns of any European country. This presentation will highlight and offer explanations for the current low incidence of illegal drug use and compare this to the relatively high harmful use of tobacco and alcohol. Although the low use of illegal drugs is encouraging from a public health perspective, the country is experiencing rapid societal change and a number of recent deaths from drug overdoses have caught the attention of the Island's people and its leaders. This presentation will examine factors related to the increase in illegal drug use and suggest needed reforms in drug prevention programming and in research.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation participants will

• Be able to compare and contrast current drug use data from north and south Cyprus with that from other European countries and the United States.
• Understand the cultural and social determinants related to the growing drug problem in Cyprus.
• Evaluate the need for specific etiological and intervention based research to assist this population in its drug control efforts.

Keywords: International, Substance Abuse Prevention

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered