Utilizing cultural and social determinants of health to address substance use prevention among native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities

Substance use is the second most identified health disparity issue in rural Hawaiian communities. Native Hawaiian youth report the highest rates of substance use, especially early initiation, and the highest need for substance and alcohol treatment among ethnic groups in Hawai‘i. This learning session will present an overview of youth substance use in Hawai‘i and briefly explore regional and ethnic differences in the data. It will also discuss risk and protective factors for substance use in the broader Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) community, and will present a cultural and social determinants of health framework that could be utilized to address substance use prevention among NHPI populations.