Public policies for confronting the use of illicit drugs: social perception in a community

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the social perception regarding public policies for confronting the use of drugs of abuse in a community with high indicators of drug-related violence. This is descriptive and transversal research, undertaken in a community in the Northwest of Paraná, using a structured questionnaire administered to 358 inhabitants. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Analysis Software, with simple descriptive analyses being undertaken. Only 13.9% of the interviewees mentioned actions for preventing drug use and combating drug trafficking and violence in the community. The most important problems present in the community were the presence of drugs of abuse (24.9%), the weakness of health care (20.9%), and public safety (13.7%). The action referred to most as essential for combating drug use was increasing policing (55.3%). The interviewees' social perception points to unawareness of, or absence of, actions for preventing and combating drug trafficking in the community.