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The Center for Substance Abuse and Addiction (CASA) recently released a new report, Adolescent Substance Use: America's #1 Public Health Problem, that calls teen smoking, drinking, misusing prescription drugs and using illegal drugs a public health problem of epidemic proportion.
The report goes on to identify substance abuse as the primary origin of the complex brain disease of addiction. Because the adolescent brain is still developing, teens are more likely to take risks like...
read moreCommunity prevention works to increase health in the places where people live, work, learn and play - and businesses have a huge role to play in promoting prevention, both within and outside the workplace. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have announced $10 million in grant funding to implement and evaluate comprehensive worksite wellness policies.
The grants will support establishment and evaluation of comprehensive workplace health promotion programs across the nation...
read moreThe Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has published a new fact sheet called, Highlights of the 2009 National Youth Gang Survey. This fact sheet presents findings from the National Gang Center's 2009 National Youth Gang Survey which collects data from a large, representative sample of local law enforcement agencies to monitor the size and scope of the national gang problem. The fact sheet discusses the prevalence of gangs in the U.S., rates of gang activity and...
read moreThe Leadership READS Initiative is a nationwide effort to teach parents techniques to minimize teen alcohol consumption and drug use. Leadership READS will be implemented state-by-state by First Spouses through their statewide networks. The first book recommended for parents in the initiative is, Messengers In Denim: The Amazing Things Parents Can Learn From Teens by Parnell Donahue, M.D. (Mapletree Publishing, 2010, MapletreePublishing.com).
Dr. Donahue, a...
read moreThe Public Health Institute (PHI) today welcomed the release of the National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy. This blueprint for realigning the country's health system is recognition, at long last, of the paramount role that prevention should play in promoting health, containing medical care costs and reducing the burden of disease.
"This is a breakthrough moment for health in the United States," said Mary A. Pittman, Ph.D., president and CEO of PHI. "or...
read moreSelf-checkout (SCO) options in off-sale (e.g., markets, liquor stores and the like) alcohol outlets (e.g., grocery store chains) represent a potential source of illicit access to alcohol.
A recent exploratory study examined the ability of young adults to purchase alcohol through self-checkout lanes without being asked for age verification. Two hundred and sixteen stores with self-checkout lanes were randomly selected in five southern California counties. Pseudo-patrons independently...
read moreCADCA's Policy Change Toolbox was developed to provide coalitions with a catalog of environmental policy changes implemented at the local level by community anti-drug coalitions from all over the United States. It supplies the user with a directory of unique and specific local ordinances, policies, and regulations that community anti-drug coalitions have worked to enact, and a description of the steps taken by coalitions to make these changes occur.
Whether your coalition is well-...
read more'Tis the season for prom and graduation time and current research from Liberty Mutual Insurance and SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) suggests this season could be dangerous for underage youth.
According to a national survey of more than 2,500 eleventh and twelfth graders, researchers found 90 percent of these teens believed their counterparts were more likely to drink and drive on prom night and 79 percent believed the same to be true for graduation night.
...
read moreBy Join Together
A type of problem-solving therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) may help treat depression in people within residential treatment programs for drug and alcohol abuse, a new study suggests. The therapy may also help reduce substance abuse.
HealthDay reports that many people who are struggling with both depression and substance abuse issues do not receive treatment for...
read moreBy Join Together
High school students who are gay, lesbian or bisexual are more likely than heterosexual students to smoke, drink, use drugs and engage in other unhealthy behaviors, according to a survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The survey of 156,000 high school students is the largest of its kind conducted by the federal...
read morePlease see the attached announcement and nomination packet for an opportunity to submit a nomination for consideration of the most exemplary substance abuse prevention advocate, professional, volunteer, youth, program, group, coalition, or community partner in Washington State this year. Please take advantage of this exciting opportunity to honor community prevention leaders for their outstanding efforts. Nominations are due by 5pm on August 23rd.
Also, if you would like to nominate...
read moreA comprehensive series of one-hour, weekly online trainings beginning in June will explore multiple aspects of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) populations. The online trainings are sponsored by the Southwest Interdisciplinary Research Center through Arizona State University. Participation in the online trainings is free and no RSVP is required.
You can participate in one or all of the trainings.
Click...
read moreRon Hertel, OSPI's Program Supervisor for Readiness to Learn, Mental Health and Compassionate Schools, recently announced that a video has been posted to YouTube based on the book,The Heart of Learning and Teaching, and the Compassionate Schools Initiative in Washington State.
The direct link is http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_profilepage&v=NHX2GH57qFU.
...
read moreThe Federal Interagency Task Force for Drug Endangered Children (DEC Task Force) held an event May 31, 2011 to highlight the need for a cohesive and coordinated federal response to the problem of drug-endangered children.
Stemming in part from the methamphetamine crisis, the Drug Endangered Children (DEC) movement began in the last decade to respond to the growing phenomenon of finding children living among the squalor of meth labs located in homes and other areas where children were...
read moreA new report shows that alcohol dependence is four times more likely to occur among adults with mental illness than among adults with no mental illness (9.6 percent versus 2.2 percent). Based on a nationwide survey conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the report also shows that the rate of alcohol dependency increases as the severity of the mental illness increases. For example, while 7.9 percent of those with mild mental illness were alcohol...
read moreContact Us
Washington State Health Care Authority
Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery
P.O. Box 45330 Olympia, WA 98504-5330
Email: DBHRAthenaTeam@hca.wa.gov
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