A RATHER UNSCIENTIFIC SURVEY requesting 50 people to give their first association to the country of Switzerland yielded five primary answers: chocolate, cheese, mountains, watches and banks. A little stretch of the imagination might even include a few others: neutrality, yodeling, and William Tell! In this picturesque nation of slightly more than 6 million inhabitants, the presence of serious drug and alcohol problems among its people may hardly reach the attention of those more accustomed to enjoying the country for its natural beauty. Did you know that in Switzerland, l About 10-25070 of the young adults have used marijuana l 4-8070 of young adults (ages 15-25) have used it more than 50 times l 2.5%-3.8% have used heroin l 0.6%-l% of those young adults have used heroin more than 10 times l In 1983, there have 7,676 arrests for dangerous drugs, with totals of 17.4 kg of heroin, 13,663 kg of marijuana and 48.5 kg of cocaine confiscated by the police l Capacity level for therapeutic communities in Switzerland are approximately 250. They are essentially small programs, with the highest capacity in two programs being 30 slots and one up to 60. l There are more than 500 treatment slots for methadone maintenance patients, though programs are handled on a canton-to-canton basis. l That the total population addicted to heroin is estimated to be in the area of 15,000 individuals. l In 1982, there were 109 deaths attributed to illegal drugs, compared to 102 deaths in 1979. Other drug-related mortality statistics include alcoholism (1,173), cigarette smoking (4,800) and legal drugs (561). These statistics again demonstrate a well-known factor to individuals involved in substance abuse programs-namely, that geographical conditions and location cannot serve as deterrents to the usage of both licit and illicit substances. In this case, however, the government of Switzerland has undertaken a number of prevention, education and training efforts that can hardly be seen as a stance of neutrality when it comes to the drug problem. Every major city has Drop-in centers, which serve as the outpatient counseling centers for addicted individuals. The centers usually have a young staff, try to avoid useless formal interviews and encourage an environment of informality in order to develop motivation and commitment to become involved. Detoxification centers have only developed in the last few years. However, the larger cities, especially Zurich, have special medical-emergency services for drug-related incidents. An indication of the need for treatment may be viewed by the fact that even centers for homeless people are being more frequently confronted with heroin-addicted applicants. The political and law enforcement attitude towards addiction has become increasingly more stringent, though the majority of individuals in therapeutic communities have been placed as a result of their being permitted to choose between treatment and prison. I would speculate here that the choice to opt for treatment as opposed to incarceration is not unique only to Switzerland! Federal efforts are increasing to provide information and counseling. The Swiss Eidgenossische Drogenkomission edits an annual information report, and most recently the government of the canton of Zurich edited a profound and programmatic report detailing the overall situation in this, the largest of Swiss cities. Specifically, the report highlighted that 40% of all drug-related fatalities occur in Zurich, and that of the total prison population in Switzerlnd, 3OVo are individuals convicted of drugrelated crimes. Private initiatives have also developed to meet the