Challenges in the Treatment of Drug Abuse in a Nigerian Female Health Worker: A Case Study Applying the Wawa Technique

Drug abuse is a public health problem that has been manifested in many different ways across the globe. For the mental health team, drug abuse represents a challenge that needs to be tackled very seriously. Studies show that people can become addicted to various substances such as cocaine, cannabis, heroine, and even legal drugs such as tobacco, alcohol, or prescription drugs. The available literature indicates that child and adolescent males are particularly at high risk of addiction, but female African drug abusers are exposed to unique forms of cultural taboo and stigma that restrict access to treatment particularly for those who are unemployed, impoverished or uneducated. Thus, untreated drug addiction among African women poses special treatment challenges. Some of the challenges of treating health care workers addicted to prescription drugs such as easy access to drugs are described in this case study. The Wawa technique a component of harmony restoration therapy, was applied to motivate the client to relinquish drug abuse.