STAGE 1. Assessing needs
What steps should be completed?
Step 1: Explore the magnitude, characteristics and consequences of drug use
The sociodemographic indicators related to drugs are the social and demographic variables that have a relationship with drug use or abuse, or any other drug-related problems. The most relevant include age, gender, socioeconomic status, geographical area, and level of education.
Problems related to drug use affect people in the same region in different ways, according to sociodemographic variables. For example, the problems found in neighbourhoods with middle or high socioeconomic status often differ from those found in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Therefore, a more precise picture of the magnitude, characteristics and consequences of the phenomenon in the different population profiles in the region can be obtained by taking into account this type of indicator when collecting information on drug use and its related problems. The Commission on Social Determinants of Health, sponsored by the World Health Organization, has demonstrated that social class, age, gender, ethnicity and region are clear factors that generate health inequality (WHO, 2009).1 Collecting this type of information will be especially important when making decisions about the priority population on which to focus the intervention. Additional information on social inequality can be found at the following link: 
In general, you will have no difficulty in finding this type of information, as the epidemiological data that are periodically collected on drugs are almost always separated at least by age and gender, and sometimes also by other sociodemographic variables.
It may be useful to take into account the following guidelines when collecting information about sociodemographic data:
© COPOLAD. Cooperation Programme between Latin America, the Caribbean and the European Union on Drugs Policies.
