Women, adolescents struggle to access treatment in Bangladesh’s male-dominated drug rehab centres

Dhaka, Aug 26 (SocialNews.XYZ) Bangladesh's drug rehabilitation system is grappling with the challenge of meeting the needs of women and adolescents, with government-run centres offering limited capacity amid a growing number of people seeking treatment, local media reported on Wednesday.

The surge in women and children receiving treatment at these centres over the past decade, exposed the growing demand for services that remain largely male-dominated.

The crisis is deepened by lengthy waiting lists, staff shortages, disparities in access and high relapse rates, leaving many people addicted to drugs without the long-term support, Bangladesh’s leading newspaper 'The Daily Star' reported.

According to Assistant Director for rehabilitation and treatment at Bangladesh's Department of Narcotics Control (DNC), Mohammad Zakir Hossain, government rehabilitation centres have just 199 beds, compared with 6,190 beds in private facilities.

Speaking to 'The Daily Star', he described the existing capacity as “very insufficient” to meet the needs of the country’s estimated 8.2 million drug-addicted people.

At the Central Drug Addiction Treatment Centre in Tejgaon, Bangladesh’s main government-run facility, women and children have historically limited access to beds, with the centre’s 124-bed capacity divided into 90 for men, 24 for women and 10 for children.

Although the facility is being expanded into a 250-bed hospital, treatment remains restricted to 28 adult male patients.

Citing the DNC annual findings, 'The Daily Star' reported that around 80 per cent of drug users are within the 15 to 30 year age group, leaving adolescents and young adults particularly vulnerable.

Ariful Haque, a psychologist at Oasis De-addiction and Mental Health Counselling Centre, said peer pressure, curiosity, stress, family crises and weak parental supervision are among the key factors that drive adolescents towards using drugs.

“When we ask them why they started, many say friends, seniors or peer groups influenced them,” he said.

Quazi Lutful Kabir, chief consultant at the Tejgaon centre, said that the facility has only four doctors against 18 sanctioned posts, while it also faces shortages of nurses and other staff.

According to the DNC annual report, rehabilitation services remain inadequate and unevenly distributed, especially in areas outside major urban centres.

It called for addiction to be treated as a chronic disease and for stronger rehabilitation and follow-up support given the persistent challenge of relapse.

“According to our assessment, around 35 per cent of patients can stay away from drugs after treatment, while around 65 percent relapse after returning to the same environment or peer groups,” said Kabir.

Source: IANS