Introduction: In modern society, the abuse of tobacco, alcohol and other psychoactive substances is a major social problem that does not exclude health professionals. The latter have an important mission to provide patients with quality health care. Some of them are exposed to stress due to work overload, which can lead to the use of psychoactive substances. Purpose: As the topic was not often the subject of discussion, the purpose of the diploma thesis was to present the frequency of abuse of psychoactive substance among healthcare professionals. Four objectives were pursued: to explain the problem of psychoactive substance abuse, to identify why substance abuse occurs among healthcare professionals, to explain the link between substance abuse and the work environment, and to indicate treatment options. Methods: A descriptive method of work was used with a systematic review of scientific and professional Slovenian and English literature. The articles were searched in four databases, and four phrases were used in the search. Results: 103 results were found using the study flow chart. The final analysis included 8 studies published between 2011 and 2018. Five thematic categories (work environment, healthcare professionals, stress, law, psychoactive substance use practices) were identified. Discussion and conclusion: The problem of psychoactive substance abuse in health (due to stress) in the workplace is extremely rarely addressed. Some authors treat the problem very broadly, others very narrowly. In many ways, substance abuse has a negative impact on the user as well as society as a whole. Some study authors studied a specific profile of healthcare professionals, while others included more or all of the profiles of healthcare professionals in the discussion. It is even more difficult to find research that has examined substance abuse among healthcare professionals in relation to the work environment. In some cases, health professionals abuse psychoactive substances as a defense strategy, as a result of overwork and stress in the work environment. It is problematic that some health professionals view psychoactive substance abuse as an acceptable and stimulating coping strategy for managing emotional distress. It is important to recognize the signs and symptoms of psychoactive substance abuse problems. The effectiveness of safety and health measures in the workplace can be enhanced by implementing appropriate legislation, a combination of policies and programs covering general forms of prevention, hazard identification, risk assessment, health monitoring and rehabilitation.
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