Investing in prevention, early intervention and health promotion across the lifespan in order to stop or reduce the impact of addiction disorders is a proven strategy in communities.
Talk to Your Kids
Start a conversation with the young people in your life to make sure they know the facts and help give them tools to keep them drug free.
- Start Talking! – Ohio provides excellent resources for adults to use in teaching kids about how to avoid substance misuse.
- Generation RX – provides educational materials for all age groups about safe medication practices and preventing misuse of prescription drugs
- NIDA for Teens – The National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens (NIDA for Teens) provides educational materials and interactive games for teens, teachers and parents.
Become a member of the Summit County Opiate Task Force youth led prevention program at your school Project P.A.N.D.A. - Teen Institute.
If your school doesn’t have a youth led prevention program, contact Project P.A.N.D.A. at 330-315-3761 to get involved.
Support Prevention Initiatives
Prevention aims to reduce underlying risk factors and promote protective factors that affect the likelihood of developing behavioral health disorders, including substance use disorders, mental illness, suicide, problem gambling, etc.
Evidence shows that the initiation of substance use early in life contributes to higher levels of use and possible addiction later in life. Early onset is also associated with the likelihood of later negative health, social, and behavioral outcomes including physical and mental health problems, violent and aggressive behavior, and adjustment problems in the workplace and family.
The Surgeon General dedicates an entire chapter to prevention in his Facing Addiction in America: The Surgeon General’s Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health PDF, where he outlines the effectiveness and the continued need for evidence-based prevention programming:
“Preventing or reducing early substance use initiation, substance misuse, and the harms related to misuse requires the implementation of effective programs and policies that address substance misuse across the lifespan. The prevention science reviewed in this chapter demonstrates that effective prevention programs and policies exist, and if implemented well, they can markedly reduce substance misuse and related threats to the health of the population.”
The Summit County Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was completed in 2018 with middle and high school students responding to questions related to their health and risk behaviors. This survey is a baseline measurement and has helped to inform initiatives funded by both the ADM Board and Summit County Public Health targeting affected areas of the county.
Other Resources:
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine published the Ohio Study Committee on Drug Use Prevention Education in February 2017, which looks at the current state of drug use prevention in our state and issues related recommendations.
Ohio’s Prevention Action Alliance serves as a resource for programs related to the prevention of substance misuse and the promotion of mental health wellness.
ADAPAO is a membership-based, not-for-profit association that serves as the voice of prevention in Ohio, with a specific focus on preventing alcohol, tobacco, other drug abuse and other behavioral health problems.