Prevalence and Pattern of Drug Abuse among Public tertiary Institutions Students in Osun State

Abstract

Drug abuse in Nigeria's higher education institutions was the subject of this study. The study specifically aimed to identify the drugs that Nigerian tertiary students commonly abuse, assess the prevalence of drug abuse among students at tertiary institutions as reported by WHO and UNDOC for the 2018–2022 period, and identify the most drug-abusing institutions. The collection of data for the study was sourced from both primary and secondary to investigate the objectives. A stratified and purposive sampling technique was used to select 360 respondents (students) from higher institutions in Osun State. The validity and reliability of the instrument were confirmed by giving the test instrument to experts in the field of testing and measurement. Data were analyzed using F-test inferential statistics, mean, and standard deviation in descriptive statistics. The study concluded that the incidence of drug abuse was rampant among Nigerian higher education students, especially in the University and Polytechnic of the study area. Drugs such as cocaine, steroids, tramadol, and weed used illegally have turned many students into drug addicts and this affects their academic performance which makes the growth of the nation and human capital development beclouded. Therefore the study recommends that the management of higher institutions particularly universities and polytechnics should set up high-power committees on how to reduce drug abuse among students, functioning drug abuse units and medical laboratory centers should be set up to conduct drug tests for the students immediately after they resume for their academic session this will help in identifying students that usually abuse drug on time with appropriate remedy put in place for them.