Prevention
For every dollar spent in substance use prevention, up to twenty dollars is saved. (Southwest Prevention Center, 2004) Building a strong, cohesive and caring community not only saves money and prevents substance use disorder (addiction) but also creates a healthy, vibrant and appealing place to grow, work and live. Additional local resources related to prevention can be found at Substance Use Disorder- Prevention.
Drug Awareness Toolkit
The Fayette Prevention Coalition has a drug awareness toolkit. We want to make sure that everyone who would like access to this resource, has it. We also have printed copies if you would like to have one, please email Carri Strunk, Coalition Coordinator at carri.strunk@nrhawv.org.
West Virginia Prevention Guide
Preventing Substance Use Disorder: What Works & What Doesn’t – A Guide for Effective Prevention in West Virginia.
While most West Virginians do not misuse drugs or alcohol, substance use disorders are having an adverse effect on our people and communities. Each of us play a role in improving the health, safety, and well-being of our fellow West Virginians. Addressing the problem begins with prevention and promotion of healthy well-being.
The guiding values and premises for this guide include:
• Prevention is a process, not a one-time event.
• Effective strategies must be age and developmentally appropriate.
• “Silver bullet” or “one-size fits all” approaches usually do not work, as prevention requires a coordinated, comprehensive effort.
Many of the most common prevention strategies being used by well-meaning parents, schools, and communities have been shown by careful research to be ineffective. Some efforts have even caused harm by unintentionally reinforcing pro-use attitudes, behaviors, or norms. Good intentions are not enough for selecting and implementing effective prevention strategies. What we don’t know can hurt, so seeking assistance from prevention specialists and other reputable and resources is crucial to prevention efforts.
This summary is a quick guide on both effective and ineffective strategies. Review the full prevention guide for more information about effective strategies, resources, counter-productive activities, and tips for working with the media.
Related Resources
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CADCA (Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America)
The mission of CADCA is to strengthen the capacity of community coalitions to create and maintain safe, healthy and drug-free communities globally. This is accomplished by providing technical assistance and training, public policy advocacy, media strategies and marketing programs, training and special events.
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