to help rid Bermuda of its drug and alcohol problem, members of the Hamilton Lions Club were told this week.

Dr. Sandy Patton, substance abuse treatment coordinator for the National Drug Strategy, said: "People have been looking at treatment from an individual perspective...We've got to get to the point in thinking more in terms of the family. Research and literature suggest families may be one of the primary causes for alcohol and drug use.

"The family really is the hope,'' he said in his speech on Wednesday. "If we can save the family here in Bermuda, we can do a lot.

"It's particularly true in the black and Portuguese communities where family values and beliefs are of a stronger realm. Families are far more important than in corresponding white culture. If we have these strengths we should be using them and moving away from the individual form of counselling.'' Dr. Patton, who said he was not speaking in an official capacity, said there are many different theories why people begin to use drugs and alcohol but literature and supporting research show the family has the most influence.

"Parents who neglect or abuse their children end up with children with low self-esteem and they use alcohol and drugs as a way of managing life.

"There may be a cyclical relationship,'' he said. "Alcohol and drug use may be causing dysfunctional family relationships to develop and dysfunctional family relationships may be causing alcohol and drug abuse.'' He added that people who drink or use drugs might be sending a message that it is good to drink responsibly or it might be viewed that it is acceptable to drink for certain reasons, such as a hard day at work.

"If parents don't have much self-esteem, there's a high probability these attributes will not be passed down to children,'' he said.