ILOILO City – As of June 4, 36,817 persons who claimed to be drug users have surrendered to various police stations in Western Visayas since June 2016 when the government launched a crackdown on illegal drugs, according to the Department of Health (DOH) Region 6.
The province with the most number of surrenderers is Negros Occidental (11,976).
Iloilo province has 7,595 surrenderers; Capiz, 5,527; Bacolod City, 3,981; Iloilo City, 3,381; Aklan, 1,928; Antique, 1,708; and Guimaras, 721.
Of the 36,817 surrenderers, 40 percent (14,730) underwent medical assessment, the first step in the rehabilitation process.
What happened to the 60 percent?
According to DOH-6 senior health program officer John Richard Lapascua, some surrenderers could no longer be located in their given addresses.
They may have moved elsewhere, were busy with their jobs, have died or were imprisoned, said Lapascua.
Some may be “malayo sila sa (far from) community-based treatment services,” he added.
Of the 14,730 surrenderers who were assessed, 41 percent (5,857) were determined to be “low risk” and/or with “mild substance use disorder” while 108 were assessed to have “moderate substance use disorder.”
DOH-6 data showed that 1,497 or 27 percent of the drug users who agreed to undergo rehabilitation have so far completed the process and moved to the next stage – aftercare.
Community-based treatment services are being offered by municipal police stations, faith- or religious-based organizations or Technical Education Skills and Development Authority, among others, said Lapascua.
“Low risk” drug surrenders are made to undergo one month of rehabilitation and six months of aftercare program while those with “mild substance use disorder” have four months of rehabilitation and six months of aftercare.
Those with “moderate substance use disorder”, on the other hand, have to take six months of rehabilitation then six months of aftercare.
DOH-6 data showed six surrenderers (four from Aklan and two from Capiz) assessed to have “severe substance use disorder” were referred to the rehabilitation center of the department in Barangay Rumbang, Pototan, Iloilo./PN
