[Top 10 drug traps] ⑥ Outside schools, hospitals, and even prisons… A ‘drug network’ that is difficult to break off

“The world has changed.”

Ms. A (19), who dropped out of high school in her second year of high school, said this, saying that after dropping out of school, the number of unprotected interactions through social media (SNS) with strangers increased.

Adolescents outside of school also form relationships.

Those whom Yonhap News met testified that they were pushed out of school and home and were easily exposed to the ‘temptation of drugs.’

Ms. B (18) said about the boyfriend she met two years ago through

It is said that friends witnessed underground rappers using drugs, and were also introduced to drug-related connections on Discord, an online chat platform.

Although the routes through which out-of-school youth are exposed to drugs are becoming more diverse, the reality is that there are too many gaps in the prevention education and support system to protect them.

◇ There is preventive education at an out-of-school support center... "I can't do it"

According to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family's '2025 Survey on Out-of-School Youth', 1.2% of respondents said they had used narcotic drugs after dropping out of school, up 0.2 percentage points from 1.0% at the time of the 2023 survey.

One in 100 people also testify that the reality is worse than this.

Group C (17) told a story about how his friends tried to obtain fentanyl patches, a narcotic painkiller.

It is said that they found and followed the method of obtaining fentanyl patches introduced in the media on the Internet, but were unable to obtain them because the doctor refused to prescribe them.

Last year, the government designated drug prevention education as mandatory education at 222 out-of-school youth support centers nationwide.

Starting this year, the number of training sessions was expanded from once a year to more than twice a year.

However, testimonies continued that even if training was provided, the number of actual participants was small and it was difficult to reach young people who did not use the support center.

Miss A said, “Honestly, who will listen?” and added, “There are a lot of kids who don’t go even if they do.”

In the case of Group C, he said that he had used the support center for about 5 to 6 months, but had never received any drug prevention education.

One center contacted by Yonhap News conducted drug prevention education twice this year for about 140 registered teenagers, but the number of actual participants was only a few dozen.

Another center official explained, “We are not yet putting much effort into drug prevention education.”

◇ There are also cases of strengthening ‘drug networks’ in hospitals and prisons.

Drugs that started from peer relationships turn people around them into 'drug addicts' as well.

Park Sang-gyu, Secretary General of DAPCOC, the Drug Addiction Prevention and Rehabilitation Center for Universities, pointed out, “Most adolescents start using drugs through their friends,” and added, “The only people around them who use drugs are those who do drugs and those who sell drugs.”

He then pointed out, “Even if I say I can’t live like this anymore, I can’t escape from that bondage.”

The experience of Mr. D (25), who started using drugs as a teenager, also shows the influence of peer relationships.

Mr. D attended an international school in Vietnam during his second year of middle school and saw his friends using drugs.

It is said that she became curious about this and began taking medication, and also sought medication from adults she met through her boyfriend and friends at the time.

He said, "Everyone did drugs without thinking, and didn't even think about it being a crime. My friends said, 'Hey, this is good,' so I started doing it."

If you cannot break away from existing relationships, there is a risk that medication will be repeated.

Paradoxically, a ‘drug network’ is formed even in hospitals where people are admitted for treatment.

Mr. D testified that he was admitted to a mental hospital due to depression and panic disorder around the age of 20, and that he first took Philopon after meeting a patient of the same age.

In the addiction treatment field, there is also concern about the so-called 'malppong' phenomenon, in which patients vividly talk about sensations or experiences from past medication, thereby stimulating the desire to re-administer medication.

Lim Gyeong-eon, head of the nursing division at Incheon Chamsarang Hospital, explained, "It is true that gathering together hospitalized patients or self-help groups creates a network that recurs," adding, "At our hospital alone, patients are creating bands and telegram rooms to exchange information."

Director Lim said that there are cases where patients continue the relationships they formed at the hospital even after discharge, sharing their experiences with drug use, which ultimately leads to re-medication.

He then pointed out that gathering drug addicted patients in a shared hospital room could increase the risk of relapse.

Although interactions between patients for treatment may help with recovery, there is a need to manage some relationships to prevent them from leading to re-medication.

Correctional facilities also become spaces where drug-related connections are heavily formed.

Kim Hee-jun, a representative lawyer at LKB Pyeongsan who was in charge of drug investigations during his time as a prosecutor, emphasized, "Drug offenders are only imprisoned among themselves, so human networking is strengthened. At the very least, measures are needed to not house drug users and supply offenders in the same room."

In January of this year, the Ministry of Justice established a new drug offender rehabilitation department in four correctional institutions, including Gwangju Prison, Busan Prison, Hwaseong Vocational Training Prison, and Cheongju Women's Prison.

We are also pursuing a plan to operate a rehabilitation program according to the level of addiction and link it with community treatment and rehabilitation after release from prison.

◇ The bondage of drugs created by personal connections… “We need to support the formation of social networks.”

In the testimonies of people with drug experience contacted by Yonhap News, 'human relationships' always appeared.

From people I met through social media to friends and lovers, the hands that gave me drugs were diverse.

Beyond treating addiction to the drugs themselves and receiving criminal punishment, breaking away from the connections previously formed for drug administration and sales was another task for them.

Ultimately, forming a social network to support them is also considered an essential task.

Secretary-General Park Sang-gyu of Dapkok emphasized that youth who have experienced drugs should be supported so that they can escape from the connections formed around drugs and re-adapt to society, adding, “We must provide a bridge for them to come back.”

In line with this, experts say that it is necessary to establish a support system that extends from early detection to treatment, rehabilitation, and return to society.

In this process, another human relationship comes into play. The families around them are worried that they might be labeled as 'drug addicts' during the application process.

Park Seung-hyeon, vice president of Daedong Hospital, said, "Even if a teenager is caught using drugs, there are cases where not only he or she but also his/her family does not want to send him or her to a psychiatric hospital. They think they just need to come to their senses and not do it."

This phenomenon appears more clearly in teenagers who have not yet entered social life.

In fact, there are about 100 drug addiction patients who receive inpatient treatment at Daedong Hospital each year, but only one or two of them are teenagers, Deputy Director Park explains.

Deputy Director Park emphasized, “Guardians of adolescents are worried that their children will experience worse outcomes if they stay with adult patients,” adding, “But there is no place that can meet such expectations.”

Younghwan Yoon, director of Gyeonggi Provincial Psychiatric Hospital, also emphasized that adolescent drug addiction requires a different approach from that of adults.

Director Yoon said, “When a teenager has a drug problem, parents, guardians, and schools are often busy hiding it,” and added, “We need to establish a dedicated treatment center for teenagers and create a network between parents, schools, and local centers to respond systematically.”