Fortis Hospital, Vashi Conducts Health Talk on Ills of Drug Consumption & Promotes De-addiction at Modern School

Continuing its endeavor to meaningfully engage with the schoolgoing community, ensuring their overall development, team from Fortis Hospital, on Wednesday conducted a Health Talk on “Ills of Drug Consumption” at Vashi’s Modern School. Over 300 students, aged between 14-17yrs, attended the workshop conducted by Dr Era Dutta, Consultant Psychiatrist & Therapist at Fortis Hospital, Vashi.

As a segment of the School Mental Health Program, headed by Dr Samir Parikh, Director, Department of Mental Health and Behavioural Sciences, Fortis Healthcare Ltd., such sessions are being conducted in multiple centres across the country. Dr Parikh said, “Modelled on social learning theories, this program attempts to channelize the power of peer influence so as to impart adaptive life-skills for healthy all-round personality development amongst school-going youth. Such engaging and interactive sessions has been proven to reduce and prevent the occurrence of problems like substance abuse, aggression & violence and delinquency etc. These sessions enable youth to make the right decisions so there is no detrimental impact on their families, friends and the society as a whole”.

Through this highly-engaging session, Dr Era Dutta helped bring to fore that youth who consume drugs often experience academic difficulties, health-related problems, poor familial and peer relationships, and display of juvenile behavior. These unpleasant experiences can be avoided by avoiding drugs, falling prey to peer pressure and seeking immediate medical & familial help for rehabilitation. Seeking timely help will avoid adverse consequences on one’s friends and family.

Drug consumption, a major risk factor to the physical and emotional health of the youth, has witnessed an alarming increase in numbers, in the recent years. This highlights the need for sensitization and counselling that will help these youth through rehab. “Age-wise, as a crucial phase of their development, timely prevention and sensitization can help them make the right decisions and thereby stay away from undesired habits. Our health talk is based on the premise that prevention is better than cure. We aim to empower impressionable minds to make the right decisions for their bright future," said Dr Era Dutta.

At the Health Talk, Dr Dutta highlighted importance of de-addicting from tobacco, alcohol and other addictive substances. “Peer Pressure is the biggest reason youth get involved in drug consumption. It is therefore detrimental that one stays in the right company and consciously avoids substance abuse, even if one is coerced in an experimental way,” said Dr Era Dutta. The talk urged and taught students ways to resist peer pressure and stay away from drugs.

Extreme pressure of studies is believed to be another factor that leads young students to resort to drug consumption. In a highly competitive environment, lakhs of students vie for few thousand seats, making way for unhealthy race. Parental pressure to excel in academics as well as extra-curricular activities leads to mounting of pressure on the child. Dr Dutta urged teachers and parents to look for signs of distress among children and counsel them before they fall prey to the detrimental habit of drug consumption.

Explaining aim of the talk, Dr Manisha Bobade, Facility Director, Fortis Hospital, Vashi, said, “Through this exercise, we are aiming at spreading awareness amongst highly impressionable minds about the sinister aspects of drug consumption. This session will help youth tackle peers who coerce them into trying drugs experimentatively. It will also equip them with the confidence to confide into their family and friends so that timely medical intervention can be sought. This programme will be taken to other schools over the next couple of months so that maximum number of youth can benefit from this exercise.”

Students gathered for this session also pledged against consumption of drugs at the workshop.

For detailed Press Release - Click here