Dagga (cannabis) usage among medical students in Johannesburg

Of 1 020 undergraduate medical students at the University of the Witwatersrand surveyed in 1981 as regards attitudes to and patterns of illicit drug use 868 completed the questionnaire; 32,4% had tried dagga (cannabis) and 16,4% were still using the drug. There was a large increase in the number of students using the drug as they advanced through their studies (6% of the 1st-year class as against 24% of the 5th-year class). The timing of dagga use and previous experimentation with habit-forming drugs are mentioned, and reasons for non-experimentation and attitudes towards legalization of dagga are analysed.