Adair County Substance Abuse Problem

Adair County is located in the Northeast Missouri region and has a population of 25,607 (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  It is 1 of Missouri’s 114 counties and is ranked 42^nd in terms of population (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  Adair County is not considered a primary healthcare shortage area but is considered a mental health professional shortage area by the Health Resources and Services Administration.  In Adair County, 50.98% of youth believe that it would be easy to get cigarettes and 41.78% have friends who smoke (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  One of the objectives in Healthy People 2020 is to reduce tobacco initiation and use by adolescents and adults.  An estimated 60.59% of youth in Adair County believe that it would be easy to get alcohol and 53.24% have friends who drink alcohol (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  Youth who use alcohol are at greater risk of developing abuse problems later on in life due to chronic abuse in early years of life.  In Adair County, 29.34% of youth believe that it would be easy to get marijuana and 17.58% of youth believe that it would be easy to get other drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, and ecstasy (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  Missouri youth tend to perceive marijuana as being safer than other illegal drugs and safer than tobacco (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).

Current Substance Use for Grades 6 through 12

Substance	Adair County %	Missouri %
Cigarettes	18.1	13.7
Chewing Tobacco	5.93	6.1
Alcohol	19.3	19.8
Binge Drinking	14.33	11.40
Marijuana	5.34	9.4
Inhalants	3.24	3.0
Prescription drugs not prescribed for student	4.47	6.70
Over the counter drugs	4.63	4.80

               

                   In Central Missouri, an estimated 6.93% of residents age 12 and over use illegal drugs and 7.65% are abusing alcohol (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  Public safety, health care, crime, and public assistance are among the areas impacted by substance abuse.  In 2009, Adair County had 24 alcohol-related traffic crashes, a higher rate than the previous year (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  Of the 2009 alcohol-related crashes, 1 crash resulted in the loss of life and 7 resulted in injuries (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  Alcohol-related crashes are more likely to produce fatalities and injuries compared to non-alcohol-related crashes.

                In 2009, Adair County had 137 DUI arrests, 160 liquor law violations, 131 drug arrests and 24 methamphetamine laboratory seizures in 2009 (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 1).  The manufacture of methamphetamine has been particularly problematic for rural Missouri.  Missouri is the number one state in the country for methamphetamine trafficking.  In 2002, one of every six methamphetamine labs confiscated in the United States was Missouri (Gundy, 2006, p. 7).  According to the Kirksville Police Department, methamphetamine is their number one crime problem.  This high prevalence of methamphetamine abuse leads to 40% of school dropouts in Adair County (Gundy, 2006, p. 7).

                In state fiscal year 2010, 229 Adair County residents were admitted to substance abuse treatment at publicly-funded facilities.  Perceptions, attitudes, and community norms of students, parents, and community members about substance abuse and violence were recently surveyed community-wide.  In Northeast Missouri and statewide, alcohol and marijuana are the most common substance abuse problems presenting for treatment. In Northeast Missouri, the next most common drug problem is methamphetamine (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 2).  Peer pressure was felt to be a primary reason for substance abuse for students in the middle and high school schools (Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County, 2011, p. 2).


References:

Behavioral Health Profile for Adair County (2011, July 1). In Missouri Department of Mental Health.

Retrieved October 16, 2011, from http://dmh.mo.gov/ada/countylinks/adair_link.htm

Gundy, K.V. (2006). Substance Abuse in Rural and Small Town America [Electronic Version].  Reports on

                Rural America, 1(2), 7-10.