2024
New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) in Uzbekistan: Motives and Psychosocial Needs among Youth
The emergence and popularity of NPS, such as mephedrone, and alpha-pvp, among young people in Uzbekistan are growing due to their availability through Internet platforms and interest in new trendy substances among peers, as well as the desire to have fun and get high. There is no reliable information about the number of users, their motivation to use NPS, as well as the psychological and social assistance they need.
2024
Opioid Agonist Maintenance Treatment in Kyrgyzstan: Assessing Patients’ Changing Medical and Psychosocial Needs Over the Course of Treatment
Zhyldyz Bakirova,
Ulla Pape,
Ingo Ilja Michels
The opioid agonist maintenance treatment (OAMT) programme in Kyrgyzstan has two objectives: to provide drug treatment and to prevent HIV infections among people who inject drugs (PWID). This study ex...
2024
Five Years of SOLID Project
SOLID – short for Social Work and strengthening NGOs in development cooperation to treat drug addiction” – is an international research project funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) f...
2024
Behind Bars: Understanding Prisoner Perception of Penitentiary Rehabilitation in Kazakhstan
Dalida Mukasheva,
Nurlan Tulkinbayev,
Mariya Prilutskaya,
Dinara Yessimova,
Heino Stöver
This study focuses on identifying factors that, from the perspective of prisoners, contribute to positive perceptions of rehabilitation (correction) in prison. A survey was conducted of 645 soon-to-b...
2024
HIV and Hepatitis C in Central Asia and China: Understanding Vulnerabilities and Social Work Responses
In 2015, the United Nations Member States adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030. The SDGs are a global development framework consisting of seventeen interrelated goals, designed to serve as (...)
2024
Characterological Features and Behavioral Patterns of Youth Using NPS (Mephedrone, Alpha-PVP, Spice, Psychoactive Substances in Tablet Form)
New psychoactive substances (NPS), with frequently changing chemical formulas, have become a challenge
since the mid-20th century worldwide and pose a threat due to their use and associated health complications. The cost, legal
status, and accessibility through various internet channels have contributed to the rapid spread of NPS. Objective: To
identify the patterns of NPS use among youth in Tashkent (Uzbekistan).
2023
Virtual Digital Psychotherapist App–Based Treatment in Patients With Methamphetamine Use Disorder (Echo-APP): Single-Arm Pilot Feasibility and Efficacy Study
Tianzhen Chen,
Liyu Chen,
Shuo Li,
Jiang Du,
Hang Su,
Haifeng Jiang,
Qianying Wu,
Lei Zhang,
Jiayi Bao,
Min Zhao
Substance use disorder is one of the severe public health problems worldwide. Inequitable resources, discrimination, and physical distances limit patients’ access to medical help. Automated conversat...
2023
Social Work and Health in Prisons: Studies from Central Asia and China
This publication deals with the development of social work and health in prisons in Central Asia and China. The focus on social work in prison might seem odd at first sight. The topic is difficult, as the relations between social work services for people in prison and the management of penal institutions are fraught with tension and conflict.
2022
COVID-19 Vaccination Among People with Drug Addictions: A Cross-Sectional Study
The challenges of the coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic dictate the need to ensure equal access to treatment and prevention services. This has become especially relevant in the context of widespread campaigns for vaccination of the population. Meanwhile, significant issues arise in the coverage of immunoprophylaxis for vulnerable social groups and in particular those who use psychoactive substances (PS). The uptake of and attitudes to COVID-19 vaccines in people with drug addictions remain uncertain.
2021
Social Work and Strengthening of NGOs in Development Cooperation to Treat Drug Addiction
Social work is one of the youngest scientific disciplines, it has developed itself as a discipline to address individuals, families and communities in social crisis (poverty, low level of education, unemployment, diseases, social isolation). In the last decade also problems with (...)