STAGE 1. Assessing needs

What steps should be completed?

Step 1: Explore the magnitude, characteristics and consequences of drug use

INFORMATION PROVIDED BY PERSONAL SOURCES

Some planning manuals differentiate four personal sources from which valuable information about drug use, its determinants, consequences and development in the area can be obtained. These are: social actors, key informants, qualified informants and opinion leaders.¹

• A social actor is a person linked to a social group, who contributes values and has the necessary resources to defend the interests of the community within a society. They adopt the role of mediator between the individual and the government (local, regional, etc.) with the desire to transform the society. This role can be taken by members of associations or non-governmental organisations, or people linked to social movements in the area.
• A key informant is someone who is fully acquainted with the target population, who is in contact with it and can serve as a link to it. They can be someone in the intervention’s target population, drug users, ex-drug users, people who work directly with the population, and workers in certain establishments, such as bars, pharmacies, etc.
• A qualified informant has technical knowledge of various aspects related to drugs in the area. They are usually professionals in the health or social services, teachers, members of the security forces, etc.
• An opinion leader is a person whose views are credible and relevant to members of a population or community. They are a reference person in the community and exert influence upon it. This would be the case, for example, of a neighbourhood or community leader.

 

The same person can possibly fulfil several of these roles. If the assessment of needs identifies and incorporates the perspective of each of these profiles, you will get a more complete view of the drug-use problems in the area. Select the most relevant questions to ask each informant type to get a better understanding of the situation.

Reference

¹ Suárez H, Cheroni S, Failache F. et al. (2011). Elaboración de diagnósticos locales sobre la problemática de consumo de drogas. Guía metodológica de investigación para la acción [Local diagnoses for the problem of drug use. Methodological guide to research for action]. Washington, D.C. CICAF/SSM/OAS