ABSTRACT. There is no unified understanding about substance use prevention in Estonia. Some knowledge is present, but most prevention strategies used by practitioners are based on intuition. There is also a lack of trainings and courses available about prevention in Estonia. Thus many professionals working in the field have not acquired needed knowledge and skills. A study conducted in 2011 in Estonia among people who are engaged in the provision of drug education at schools found that some teachers underline the need for scaremongering as a part of prevention. Moreover, school personnel often invite ex-drug addicts or police representatives with drug-sniffing dogs to schools with the aim to prevent substance use. Estonian child protection officers highlighted that they lack general understanding about prevention in a study conducted in 2015. Ineffective activities are often carried out with the assumption that they work. The aim of this paper is to present results from three focus groups conducted with decision-, opinion- and policy-makers at national and regional level in Estonia during June 2017. Focus groups were conducted as a part of EU-funded project UPC-Adapt: Implementing a prevention training curriculum in Europe: adaptation and Piloting. During the focus groups three main topics were discussed with participants: substance use prevention and it's importance in Estonia, training needs in the field of prevention, and how to design the training for decision- and policy-makers in Estonia based on Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC). Focus groups participants considered UPC training to be highly needed in Estonia. Experts believed that it would boost up communities’ prevention efforts, give people proper knowledge about prevention and develop skills necessary for coordinating preventive strategies. It would assist in forming unified approach about prevention and promote the use of evidence-based practices. Similar understanding about substance use prevention would improve cooperation between different parties, which in turn would lead to better outcomes for for individuals, families and communities.

ABSTRACT. Objective: To present the characteristics and process evaluation of the first web based computer tailored intervention program aimed at the prevention of binge drinking in Spanish adolescents. Method: The “Alerta Alcohol” program is based on the I-Change Model, and consists of four sessions at school (baseline questionnaire, two sessions in three scenarios: at home, celebrations, and public places, and a final evaluation). The adolescents are provided with answers related to their views of each scenario which are used to provide highly specific counseling. In addition, two booster sessions are given at home to reinforce the contents of the three scenarios. A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial was conducted to evaluate the “Alerta Alcohol” in 15 high schools from Andalusia (southern Spain), which were randomized either to the experimental or the waiting list control condition (EC and CC), with 1294 students aged 16 to 18 years participating in the pretest and 580 in the posttest after four month. In this work we present the results regarding the process evaluation, which consists of a questionnaire with was completed by student from EC in the posttest (n= 321). By using a five-point Likert scale, we ask respondents to assess the general satisfaction and whether the intervention is useful, trustworthy, interesting, and personally relevant, and the opportunity of learning. A descriptive analysis was carried out and further analysis to determine differences by gender or alcohol drinking will been shown. Results: Two-hundred and fifteen students (68.9%) were satisfied or very satisfied with “Alerta Alcohol” program but 149 (47.8%) thought that sessions were too much long. One-hundred and ninety-one (61.2%) found the counseling interesting, 202 (65%) useful, 226 (72.7%) understandable, 178 (57.2%) personally relevant, and 238 (76.6%) that the program is trustworthy. One-hundred and eighty-three (58.8%), 150 (48.2%), and 166 (53.4%) students thought that their knowledge, attitude and skills regarding binge-drinking prevention were improved, respectively. Finally, 185 students (62.7%) would recommend the “Alerta Alcohol” program. Conclusion: The process evaluation of “Alerta Alcohol” program shows an adequate response from the participants. So that, if the program proves to be effective, regional and eventual national implementation should be considered.

ABSTRACT. Musicians are a population often stereotypically linked to a wide range of substance use behaviours (Miller & Quigley, 2011). This stereotype can be seen even among musician population. For example, Chesky & Hipple (1999), in their research of musicians' perceptions of the extent of widespread drug use among musicians found out that approximately one-third of research sample (N=3,278) perceived that drug use among musicians is widespread. Still, there are no unambiguous and reliable data on the prevalence of substance use by musician compered to general population. There are some fragmented data (substance use in some genres of music or substance use by artist in general). For example, Butkovic & Rancic Dopudj (2016) find out that frequency of alcohol consumption was statistically higher for heavy metal musicians than in the general population and Wills (2003) stated, based on retrospective analysis of the biographies of 40 mid-century famous US jazz musicians, that more than half of his subjects experienced heroin addiction at some point in their lives. Regarding the type of art, Descoteaux, (2014) found out that performing artist (including musicians) use licit and illicit substances more that general population (with an exception of tobacco use). In the same time, evidence can be found that youth involvement in music education can enhance positive youth development (Peretz & Zatorre, 2003, Resnicow, Salovey & Repp, 2004, Mitchell & MacDonald, 2006, Pitts, 2007, Scripp, 2007, Hallam, 2010, Miranda & Gaudreau, 2011, Miranda, 2012, Scripp et al 2013, Elpus, 2013) and even be a protective factor in the field of substance use (Elpus, 2013). Results from the last mention study suggest that, in many respects, adolescent arts students achieve significantly more positive developmental outcomes than their peers who do not pursue arts coursework in schools and, specifically, music students were less likely to use illicit substances both as adolescents and into adulthood. In this poster, result of the research review will be presented with the goal to answer the question: is performing music risk or protective factor for substance use?

ABSTRACT. According to the Self-Determination Theory, the needs for competence, relatedness, and autonomy are basic and universal. Regular satisfaction of all three needs is essential for optimal functioning, while their thwarting could lead to the various negative outcomes. Some satisfaction of the competence and relatedness needs, but a thwarting of the need for autonomy, results with development of a strong control causality orientation (Deci & Ryan, 2008). This orientation is characterised by initiating and regulating behaviours by pressure from internal or external forces (Deci & Ryan, 1985). This research tested a model that incorporated control causality orientation, basic psychological needs and cannabis consumption. The sample consisted of 438 (37.9% males and 62.1% females; mean age M=19.62, SD=0.826) participants comprising first and second-year students at the University of Zagreb that lived in student dormitories. An adapted version of control subscale of the General Causality Orientations Scale (Deci & Ryan, 1985), and General Need Satisfaction Scale (Gagné, 2003) were applied. Cannabis consumption was operationalized as the number of days a person has consumed cannabis in their lifetime. The results of moderation analysis conducted using PROCESS macro for SPSS (Hayes, 2014) showed that interaction effect of control causality orientation and competence on cannabis consumption was not significant. On the other hand, interaction effect of this motivational orientation and autonomy on cannabis consumption were significant, as well as the interaction effect of this orientation and relatedness on cannabis consumption. Among average and high controlled participants, increase in satisfaction of autonomy need was followed by a decrease in cannabis consumption. Also, among mentioned participants, increase in satisfaction of relatedness need was followed by a decrease in cannabis consumption. Implications of these findings on prevention will be discussed.

ABSTRACT. Aim of this paper is to show content prevention analysis in online media. As a source of research, google research was used and the first 20 research results were included. The time interval for conducting the research was a six months period (1.3.2017 - 1.9.2017). The terms used in the research of internet content include: prevention, intervention, behavioral problems, youth activities, youth violence, youth violence in relationships, eating disorders, anxiety and depression of young people, school success of young people, youth in the community, youth drug abuse, family intervention, family activities in the community. Other factors that were taken in consideration in the content analisys were the source of given information, media that published the content, interlocutors (experts, non-professionals, young people, decision-makers, etc.), parallel events that took place in the time of content analisys (marking the International Day of Addiction). The methodological technique of content analysis was used. Mass media can produce positive changes or prevent negative changes in health-related behaviors across large populations. What also contributes to these outcomes are factors such as concurrent availability of required services and products, availability of community-based programs, and policies that support behavioral change. Analysis of the availability of such information on online media was conducted. Finally, we propose areas for improvement, such as investing in longer better-funded campaigns to achieve adequate population exposure to media messages (Wakefield, Loken & Hornik, 2010).

ABSTRACT. Research demonstrates that involvement in evidence based early childhood and parenting prevention interventions can alleviate some of the negative impacts of disadvantage on young children and families (Gross et al., 2009) and create high effect and population impact. However, service providers can find it challenging to reach and engage families at risk to participate in offered interventions, so reach has a valid function in determining public impact. There are various intervention strategies to engage families and children at risk. The selection of an appropriate reach strategy depends upon the identified setback/problem. The solution of this problem can be to 1. increase demand and use (marketing and access problem), 2. extend capacity and efficiency (capacity and efficiency problem), 3. focus on organization development (organization and coordination problem), 4. change goals and analysis (target spectrum and analysis problem) or 5. change the intervention strategy (strategy problem). To provide additional guidance to service providers at reaching their targeted population this paper contains an extended review of strategies for engaging families at risk in prevention interventions. A single strategy will likely not provide long lasting effects. The assumption is that long-term optimized reach can be achieved by knowing evidence-based effect principles and elements, context and target group characteristics, having in-depth needs assessments, multidimensional elaborated reach strategies and an ongoing evaluation.

ABSTRACT. Roughly 300,000 children in Afghanistan are opioid-exposed, primarily due either to parents directly providing or passively exposing them to opium. Effective prevention and treatment programs for children and their families are needed. The present study examined the impact of a novel intervention for children at risk for substance use or actively using substances that was provided to children between 4-18 years of age in Afghanistan. They received the psychosocial protocol while they were in the program. Psychosocial protocol included age-appropriate literacy and numeracy, drug education, basic living, communication and trauma coping skills. A battery of measures examined multiple child health domains at various stages and psychosocial protocol had a positive impact on children assessed. Individual interviews with project staff and participants showed high rates of participation and high levels of satisfaction (both over 90%) from participants and staff. Although each of the education, life skills, and one-to-one sessions were scheduled for a 60-minute time slot, some sessions consistently ran over the allotted time because children were particularly engaged. Comments about the intervention were positive (e.g., I liked the art and games, I always learn something). Overall, staff members also reported a high level of satisfaction with the intervention, and expressed the need for continued implementation. The presenters will describe the indicated prevention intervention development and implementation in five provinces of Afghanistan. And, will share the evaluation results recently published in the International Journal of Pediatrics, 2017, entitled “Implementation and Evaluation of an Intervention for Children in Afghanistan at Risk for Substance Use or Actively Using Psychoactive Substances”.

For a number of years, the international community has been asking for prevention interventions that have a basis in evidence and can be adopted for implementation in different settings, culture and socio-economic communities.

The presentation will be co-led by UNODC staff involved in the initial development of the work in Afghanistan. Elizabeth Mattfeld, UNODC Global Coordinator will present the process of development of psychosocial protocol and, Dr. Abdul Subor Momand UNODC Training Coordinator in Afghanistan and author of the research article will present the conclusions from the evaluation of the program.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: After the successful results of the culturally adapted SFP 12-16 in Ireland with replication in every county, the ASCERT in Belfast wanted to implement SFP in their centers in Northern Ireland with their own cultural adaptations.

Method: The experimental group included families from different cohorts over several yeas. Of the families who began SFP 12-16 (72%) graduated from all 14 sessions. Using a pre- and 4-month posttest quasi-experimental design, the measurements included the Ireland -validated version of standardized SFP survey that includes the Moos FES and Kellam POCA. The results were analyzed using SPSS with Cohen’s d effect sizes calculated in addition to p-values.

Results: The outcome results are encouraging suggesting significant improvements in 100% or all five parenting outcomes, 100% or five of five family outcomes and 100% or all five of the youth outcomes with medium to large effect sizes. The results suggest large improvements in the parents and in the family environment and family resilience. Even by the 4 month posttest the data suggest that the children’s behaviors are already showing statistically significant improvements in Overt Aggression, Covert Aggression, Depression, Concentration, and Social Skills, which is typical of SFP youth groups. Even though the level of reported behavior problems at intake was higher than the Irish norms in the Belfast teens. Still with such high risk youth, they got wonderful results of 100% statistically significantly improved outcomes. Final effect sizes and outcomes will be reported for the presentation in September. . Conclusion: The Northern Ireland sites implemented SFP 12-16 with quality as measured by site visits by program developer even with local cultural adaptation. They were successful with high family engagement and retention (72%) with large positive change scores for family relations, parenting skills and youth internalizing and externalizing risk factors. Future plans are to determine maintenance of these positive effects long-term. On the whole, results are coherent with the developed intervention model and are consistent with results of other international SFP 12-16 cultural adaptations.

ABSTRACT. Type 2 diabetes is a severe chronic metabolic disorder, and Saudi Arabia currently suffers from high rates of undiagnosed diabetes. The Saudi Arabians are also high-intensity users of social media, especially Twitter. There are limited barriers to healthcare access to government clinics in Saudi Arabia, but the population is unaware of the necessity to prevent or diagnose diabetes. The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health has implemented the National Diabetes Prevention and Control Program (NDPCP) and the Wake Up! public education campaign as a way to promote diagnosis and early intervention in diabetes, but has not used Twitter as part of the campaign. This project aims to assess the feasibility of using Twitter to successfully promote diabetic screening among patients at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes in Saudi Arabia. The objectives of this research are to: 1) develop a targeted social media model for the Wake Up! Campaign using Twitter, 2) compare the screening rates for diabetes in Saudi Arabia before and after the Twitter campaign intervention, 3) measure users’ engagement and satisfaction with the Wake Up! Twitter Campaign, and 4) explore stakeholders’ engagement, experience and satisfaction with the Wake Up! Twitter Campaign. Three substudies will be conducted to assess how effective Twitter is at motivating Saudi Arabians to undergo screening for diabetes. Substudy 1 will compare rates of positive diabetes screening at two clinics in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province; Substudy 2 will be an anonymous survey of Twitter users who engaged with the Wake Up! Twitter Campaign; and Substudy 3 will consist of interviews conducted with stakeholders to solicit feedback on the Wake Up! Twitter Campaign. The campaign will be launched in the summer of 2017, and is anticipated to run for 18 months.

ABSTRACT. Research has shown that risk factors differ between men and women (teenagers). Family intervention programs are an effective strategy to prevent adolescent risk behaviors. This paper reviews the effectiveness of the Strengthening Families Program (SFP) intervention in Spain in terms of gender. Gender analysis of two versions of the Spanish SFP were performed (Spanish SFP 7-12 and Spanish SFP12-16). SFP 7-12 includes pretest-posttest results and after 2 years of follow-up and SFP 12-16 includes only pretest-posttest results (follow-up available next year). Sample of first study 78 adolescents aged 12-14 at the follow-up moment (43.6% women). The sample of the second study (aged 12-16) is 69 adolescents (50.7% women). The instrument is the questionnaire of the Spanish National Drug Plan (CAD, Cuestionario de Actitudes hacia las Drogas), that asks for readiness towards consumption, wrong beliefs related to risk and protective beliefs. Overall results indicate some gender differences. In the follow-up analysis of the Spanish SFP 7-12, gender differences in a long term were not found. Readiness to consumption is higher in boys (mean boys=4.35, SD=1.06; mean girls: 4.11, SD=1.61). Risk beliefs are higher in girls (mean boys=4.00, SD=1.20; mean girls: 4.23, SD=1.37). Protective beliefs are also higher in girls (mean boys=6.13, SD=0.95; mean girls: 6.38, SD=0.58). In the Spanish SFP 12-16, readiness towards consumption (mean boys=0.70, SD=0.19; mean girls: 0.74, SD=0.52); t=-0.112; p=0.911) and wrong beliefs related to risk (mean boys=0.82, SD=0.96; mean girls=0.54, SD=0.70; t= 1.382; p=0.171) obtain similar values at post-test between girls and boys. Protective beliefs obtain lower values in girls (mean boys= 4.26. SD=1.24; mean girls= 3.68, SD= 1.16; t= 1.090; p=0.260). In conclusion, both at SFP 7-12 and 12-16, excellent results in boys and girls are obtained in the short term. In the case of the 7-12 long-term, drug curiosity is recuperated. In both age SFP versions, boys and girls obtain a good level of protective beliefs regarding drug use.

ABSTRACT. Background. Increasing evidences highlight the importance of offering counseling sessions and support to patients before and after the discharge in order to promote healthy behaviours. Empowering Hospital (emp-h-project.eu) is a project funded by the European Commission aimed at engaging chronic patients, their relatives and hospital staff in health promoting activities inside and outside the hospital. Aim. It will be illustrated baseline data from the two hospitals involved in the experimentation: Ospedale degli Infermi (Biella) and Hospital La Fe (Valencia). Methods. Randomized controlled trial studying two parallel conditions (counseling and health promoting opportunities vs usual care) offered to three target groups: 1) outpatients contacted during a medical examination for type II diabetes, overweight, stroke, breast, prostate and colon cancer, 2) outpatient’s relatives during the same examination, 3) hospital staff during routine visits or voluntary based. Results. During the 9 months recruitment period, practitioners have enrolled 996 subjects (370 patients, 275 relatives and 351 workers). More than half of the sample is overweight or obese. Comparing the three groups, among hospital staff a lower consumption of fruit and vegetable (64,1% consumed less than 4 portions a day, p < ,05), a higher prevalence of smoking (24,8%), and a lower prevalence of physical active people (30,3%) was detected. Discussion. Preliminary results suggest to 1) concentrate efforts to invite hospital staff to be a model for patients and their relatives, and 2) produce targeted interventions for patients, relatives and hospital staff to put in force a coherent multilevel strategy to promote healthy behaviours in hospital setting.

ABSTRACT. Evidence-based programs are getting increasingly important because they are subject to rigorous evaluations and produce benefits to individuals on a socially significant scale (Fixsen, Blase, Metz, & Van Dyke, 2013). The Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC), a comprehensive training package in the field of drug use prevention, is based on evidence-based principles. The UPC was developed through the APSI. In Europe, this curriculum is going to be adapted and implemented by 11 institutions from nine countries: Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Italy, Poland, Prague, Spain, Slovenia, and Croatia.

This contribution contains the initial Spanish contribution to this project concerning the review of the existing prevention curricula in Spain and the mapping of the training needs in the target audiences and the identification of contextual elements for training design. Our contribution draws on qualitative data from three focus groups in a sample of 31 participants and on document analysis.

According to 31 participants (13 practitioners and policy makers, six university professors, and 12 university students), there was a general consensus among all groups regarding the need to establish a profile for workers in prevention and to delineate the requirements for the field; the urgent need for more fieldwork immersion and less emphasis on theory; and the review of the existing courses in degrees (rather than the replacement or the implementation of the UPC) in order to reach the standards of prevention in the given community.

Document analysis shows that not all degrees in Spain have courses on prevention. Nevertheless, almost all Psychology degrees offer one course on intervention for addictions and one on types of intervention. Regarding postgraduate degrees, there are ten specific postgraduate degrees (i.e. prevention of drug dependency, addictions, or addictive behaviours) and three manners in which to receive instruction: in-class, blended or online. The formal recognition differs between master’s degree, expert diploma, or normal diploma.

According to the abovementioned points, our conclusions are that there exists: a lack of a homogeneous curriculum; a lack of evaluation of current prevention initiatives; a need of an academic and institutional recognition; and a lack of professors with practical experiences and adequate motivation.

ABSTRACT. Background of the project Young offenders are considered one of the most vulnerable or at risk groups of developing drug addiction and they are likely to be affected by serious problems, including health and social inequalities. In spite of that, very little attention has been paid to young people in contact with the Criminal Justice System (CJS) in in terms of research and drug prevention policy and practice.

Aims of the project: - to gather knowledge, exchange best practice and identify transferable innovations and principles of good practice on interventions to prevent illicit drug use, the development of polydrug use and use of new psychoactive substances (NPS) among young people in touch with CJS - to assess identified initiatives against minimum quality standards in drug demand reduction; - to examine the appropriateness of the existing standards within the criminal justice context and to develop a set of guidelines adapted to initiatives aimed at the target group - to initiate a European knowledge exchange network for practitioners and stakeholders working with young people in the CJS.

Target group: Project focuses on young people aged between 15 and 24 who have been in contact with the CJS in six European countries. Moreover, professionals dealing with prevention and drug treatment, policy makers and other stakeholders will be involved.

Project partners: Coordinator: Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, Middlesex University (UK) Change Grow Live (UK) Aarhus University (Denmark) Eclectica (Italy) European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research (Austria) Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences (Germany) Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology (Poland)

ABSTRACT. Background: Within the research consortium AERIAL (Addiction: Early Recognition and Intervention Across the Lifespan; Grant No. FKZ01EE1406F) we developed a fully automatized intervention system that simultaneously targets hazardous alcohol consumption in addition to depressive symptoms. The aim was to test the acceptability of the intervention within a pilot-study, and to refine the intervention based on the results of semi-structured in-depth interviews, for a subsequent multi-center randomized controlled trial.

Method: Consecutive patients of general hospitals and general medical practices were systematically screened for hazardous alcohol use and depressive symptoms on three sites across Germany. In addition, volunteers were recruited via media solicitation. The intervention consisted of six individualized counselling letters accompanied by weekly short messages delivered via SMS or e-mail. All participants were invited to a semi-structured in-depth interview (n=34; participation rate 94%; 56% female; Age: M=34.38) to evaluate intervention content and identify potential refinements.

Results: The intervention was rated as good or very good by 88% of the participants, 84% would recommend the intervention to others. On a 5-point-Likert-scale, both intervention modules were rated as being highly intelligible (Depression: M=4.84, SD=.09; Alcohol: M=4.91, SD=.05; p=.488). The graphical elements used in the feedback letters were pointed out as a strength of the intervention. The weekly short messages were rated as rather or absolutely encouraging by 50% of the participants but an opportunity to choose the contact modality was repeatedly wished for. Feedback suggests that short messages should preferably be delivered in the after-work hours, as it seems to heighten the chances of them being read.

Conclusion: The participatory approach involving the intended target population was useful to refine the intervention content and format. In terms of acceptability, the intervention system proofed to be adequate. The data justify a larger trial to test the effectiveness of the intervention.

ABSTRACT. The RE-AIM-framework was originally developed by Glasgow and colleagues (1999) as a way to improve quality, impact and speed of health promoting projects. The framework includes five dimensions (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance) which academics, policy and decision makers as well as practitioners should keep in mind when evaluating their project. Taking into account these five dimensions, a complete range of the evaluating questions is guaranteed, hence improving the quality of the evaluation. The Flemish Institute of Healthy Living commits itself to ensure the quality of health promotion in Flanders (Dutch-speaking region of Belgium) throughout the adoption of evaluation and assessment procedures. Therefore the Institute has introduced the RE-AIM-framework successfully in its own working processes, however by integrating RE-AIM into an already existing framework, called ‘The Evaluation Matrix’. This matrix combines the ‘what’, ‘how’ and ‘feasibility’-aspects of an entire evaluation. In other words, the project and evaluation questions (the latter in RE-AIM framework) are combined with a description of the methodology and respondents, and an assessment of restrictive or enabling factors such as time and resources. The main benefit of The Evaluation Matrix is that it makes the planning of a successful evaluation less complicated while giving a one page overview of all relevant planning components. Today, the whole matrix, including the RE-AIM-framework, has proven useful in the evaluation of (health promoting) projects and is therefore improving the quality of health promotion in Flanders. Currently the Institute is disseminating the framework in the whole sector of health promotion in Flanders.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: Body Mass Index (BMI) is often used as outcome measure for epidemiological and prevention studies, due to measurement convenience, ubiquity and comparability across studies. While age, income and dietary patterns have been investigated in relation to health status, not much is known about migration. Our objective was to investigate the relationship of health status, indexed with BMI, with age, income, dietary patterns and migration. Method: All data was self-reported and was gathered online using LimeSurvey with informed consent. We used an adapted questionnaire of the Institut für Public Health und Pflegeforschung (IPP), Bremen, Germany which included using a reduced food-frequency questionnaire to elicit dietary patterns. Participants’ migration status was coded 0/1. Pearson’s and Spearman’s correlation and regression analysis (p≤0.05) was conducted using SPSS 22. Results: The 40 study participants (25 female/ 15 male, mean age 29.95±11.74, range17-58 years) had a BMI of 22.96 (±3.78). Generalized linear modelling explained BMI with 84% with age and dietary patterns, latter comprising of more frequent consumption of fruit, fish, salad and whole bread (p≤0.05); fruit and fish yielded robust results. Inclusion of migration variable improved the model r² (0.84 from an initial run with 0.80), even so it was not significant. Inclusion of migration variable also rendered income non-significant. Conclusion: Our pilot study indicates that the BMI in our sample, characterized by a relatively younger group of Germans largely from Ruhrgebiet, is within the normal range. This was mainly explained by age and balanced diet, i.e. our study-specific consumption of fruit, fish, salad and whole bread. Our pilot study suggests that migration could be relevant in explaining health outcomes, since it improved model explanation and replaced income in the model. Our future studies require testing, if our presently obtained trend results on migration achieve clear significance with larger sample-sizes. A diet comprising of fruits and vegetables, good proteins and whole cereals along with age remain relevant in explaining BMI.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: Sexual risk behaviors are common among adolescents and young adults and often occur under the influence of alcohol and sometimes drugs. Swedish youth health clinics are important units for the prevention of unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, but also the prevention of psychological problems in younger ages. Alcohol- and drug consumption have shown to be higher among youths visiting youth health clinics compared to peers of the same age. Since alcohol and drugs affect both sexual risk behavior and mental health, the youth health clinics are well suited for alcohol- and drug prevention work.

Aim: To investigate the organizational readiness for development of a systematic alcohol- and drug prevention work at youth health clinics in Stockholm county. 

Method: Face-to -face interviews were conducted with midwifes and social workers (n=22) at 11 clinics in Stockholm county, using a semi-structured guide with open-ended questions. The interview guide reflected issues connected to organizational readiness. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the data.

Results: Motivation and General capacity were identified as two main categories in the interview material along with five subcategories. The interviewed were to a large extent aware of the connection between alcohol and sexual risk behavior and the subject was often brought up in the conversations with the youths at the clinics. However, the staff sometimes felt that they did not have sufficient knowledge to give proper guidance and support to youths with a high risk drinking behavior. The interviewed expressed interest in developing their knowledge and activities regarding alcohol- and drug prevention work, but meant that shortage of time and resources could be an obstacle for this.

Conclusion: There are several factors contributing to the organizational readiness to implement a more systematic alcohol- and drug prevention work at youth health clinics in Stockholm. Less time- and resource consuming support and tools for this purpose are recommended for a successful implementation.

ABSTRACT. In prevention implementer’s characteristics are rarely studied related to outcomes, but to maximize the impact of prevention programs, we need to understand what moderating factors could be influencing intervention outcomes. Many factors can influence the implementation process of programs, and one important moderating variable affecting outcomes are the characteristics of the facilitators. We stress some aspects that are important, such as facilitator’s specific traits, program characteristics in order to understand the facilitators’ role and facilitator training in order to improve program effectiveness.

The research aim was to determine the impact of the client’s ratings of satisfaction with the implementer’s characteristics related to outcomes of an evidence-based family intervention - the Strengthening Families Program 6-11 Years (SFP).

The data analysed in this study include data from 66 parents who completed the Strengthening Families Program (SFP) at 10 national agencies. The 3-page SFP Parent Retrospective Pre- and Post-test contains 18 standardized scales and three mean cluster scales of the five Parenting Scales, five Family Scales, and seven Child Scales for a total of 21 measured outcomes and the 2-page Client Satisfaction survey included open-ended and scaled questions about their satisfaction with course and structured ratings on a 5-point Likert scale on 16 personal characteristics of the four facilitators used to implement each SFP session. The Post-hoc Statistical Design created creates post-hoc comparison groups after pre- and post-tests are collected by comparing the change scores for the higher satisfaction group to the lower satisfaction group.

Correlational analyses found a significant relationship of program satisfaction with higher facilitator ratings. While no significant ANOVA interaction effect was found for higher facilitator ratings and outcomes, there were twice as many significant outcomes for the high satisfaction group and larger effect sizes on eight of the 18 outcomes.

there is a significant relationship between the client’s satisfaction with the facilitator and their satisfaction with the program. It means the facilitator who has those characteristics described in the 16 factors (e.g., warmth, empathy, friendliness, etc.) tends to make the clients more satisfied with the program. This is not a “cause and effect” relationship.

ABSTRACT. The cliché that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure is often cited as a reason that prevention should be prioritized; however, in practice the actual value of prevention is hard to quantify. In Wyoming, a state in the United States of America, researchers provide an estimate of the cost savings associated with substance abuse prevention. Specifically, from 1991 to 2001, Wyoming had few evidence-based substance abuse prevention efforts in place, and youth alcohol use remained relatively unchanged. In 2001, Wyoming received funding to implement evidence-based prevention strategies in most of the state’s communities; subsequently youth alcohol use declined by about 2 percentage points per year. In an economic study, researchers at the University of Wyoming conservatively estimated that alcohol abuse and misuse costs the state $122,015,701 in 2014. The current study combines the decreases in the prevalence of youth alcohol use with previously estimated costs from alcohol use and dependence in Wyoming to estimate the cost savings associated with the implementation of evidence-based prevention. In the end, using well established economic models, this study will provide a reasonable answer about how much effective alcohol prevention can save a cohort of individuals in the State of Wyoming, and give clues as to what kinds of cost savings are possible for the larger population.

ABSTRACT. There is evidence of the relationship between being exposure to the negative consequences of parents’ divorce and a large number of problematic behaviors in adolescents, including risky sexual behaviors, such as unprotected sex and multiple partners. Competencies for adolescents with a healthy sexuality (COMPAS, for its acronym in Spanish) is a school-based sexual risk reduction intervention for sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancies prevention that has proven effective in promoting sexual health in adolescents at schools in Spain. However, more evidence is needed on this intervention’s effect in specific populations with high-sexual risk, including adolescents with divorced parents. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the efficacy of COMPAS in a sample of adolescents with divorced parents in Spain. This pretest-posttest study involved 76 adolescents recruited from 15 high schools located at four Autonomous regions in Spain. Mean age was 15.81 (SD = .69; range: 14-18 years). Of them, 53 received the intervention and the rest were part of a wait-list control group. In the posttest, adolescents who received the intervention had a higher level of knowledge about sexual health (p = .0001, r = .46) and showed more favorable attitudes toward HIV-related aspects (including condom use when obstacles exist) (p = .03, r = .23), compared to the control group. Despite of the small sample size, COMPAS seems to be a promising intervention to promote sexual health in adolescents with high-risk sexual behaviors. This is the first controlled study conducted in Spain that provides evidence of the COMPAS’ effects to promote a healthy sexuality in a specific group of adolescents with high sexual risk. Future studies must analyze long-term effects of COMPAS in this population.

ABSTRACT. Numerous studies have evaluated the efficacy of interventions to reduce risk for sexually transmitted infections in adolescents in the last years; however, their global effects remain unknown since 2008, which is the last year included in meta-analyses with similar purposes (Johnson et al. 2011). This study aims at evaluating the efficacy of interventions to promote sexual health, reduce STIs and unplanned pregnancies targeted to adolescents available after 2008; and analyzing the moderators of their global efficacy. We searched electronic databases and prestigious journals related to prevention of STIs up to May 2016. The studies evaluated the efficacy of interventions to reduce sexual risk in adolescents (age range: 11-19) anywhere in the world. Standardized mean differences of the relevant outcomes for sexual risk and effect size were calculated for every study. Analyses incorporated random-effect assumptions for each outcome, using restricted maximum-likelihood estimators. The homogeneity in the results was examined with I2 statistic and its associated 95% confident interval. Data from 63 studies (59,795 participants) was analyzed by differentiating their impact on short- and long-term behavioral and non-behavioral outcomes. In the short term, interventions had a positive impact in sexual health-related knowledge (d=1.08), attitudes (d= .71), self-efficacy toward condom use (d=.40), communication about sex with the sexual partner (d=.67), behavioral intention (d=.49), and condom use (d=.57). No impact was found for subjective norms. In the long-term, interventions significantly improved attitudes (d =.71), behavioral intention (d=.26), and condom use (d=.61). The moderators of the efficacy are discussed. Interventions to reduce risk for sexually transmitted infections are effective to promote sexual health through increasing condom use. Meta-analytic findings indicate that interventions are successful to improve non-behavioral outcomes and condom use in the short- and long-term. Interventions should focus on the long-term efficacy, especially in behavioral and biological measures.

ABSTRACT. Due to low dissemination of effective Brazilian practices in prevention of harmful use of alcohol and other drugs, since 2013 the General Coordination of Mental Health, Alcohol and Other Drugs, Ministry of Health, develops and offers Elos Program, based on Good Behavior Game, from a partnership with the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Scale it up as a public policy requires strategies that ensure adherence to core elements, which subsidies the effectiveness of GBG in reducing 2.7 times or risk of harmful use of substances. A dissemination of the Elos Program to 6.236 students from 1st to 5th grades in 2016 in eight cities was carried out by (a) theoretical and practical enhancement of teacher’s training and support including: organization of Implementation Guide in 18 steps, additional experiences and texts about the four core elements and social determinants of health; and (b) provision of training of 107 coaches from local health and education services based on concepts of Permanent Education. It was offered a Coaches Guide, continuous training consisting of seven modules with monthly intervals, totalizing 32 hours, and biweekly distance guidance. To promote fidelity it was offered an instruments guide composed by fidelity and observation checklists inspired on AIR original versions. After this implementation model, 90% of pedagogical coordinators and 61% of health professionals of the territories considered Elos Program relevant; 84% of pedagogical coordinators and 73.5% of health professionals perceived the high commitment of educators; 74% of pedagogical coordinators reported an increase in the motivation of educators in relation to their pedagogical practice; in addition, indicated feasibility. The monitoring data indicates high acceptance and adequacy of the diffusion model in local work routines throughout the territory and improvements in pedagogical practices of educators, which can be considered protection factors that favor the development of an nurturing environment in school institutions. It is necessary to improve, however, the use of fidelity tools by local professionals and the recording information on monitoring systems, essential strategies to guarantee the quality of actions implemented on a large scale.

ABSTRACT. Despite significant advances in knowledge about adult intimate partner violence in Brazil, there has been less attention paid to dating violence in youth. There remain notable gaps in the research literature about dynamics of the violent dating relationships, the beliefs that sustain the practice or tolerance of such violence, the management conflicts skills and its consequences. This study examined the psychosocial determinants of dating violent in order to support the further development of a preventive intervention for Brazilian adolescents. Using a qualitative design and grounded in the Integrated Change Model, we interviewed young people with experience of dating violence (N=10) and conducted seven focus groups with young people without such experience (N= 28). Deductive thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Findings were organized into the following thematic areas: knowledge, social norms, social support, models, attitudes, self-efficacy, action planning, violent conflict characteristics and suggestions for preventive initiatives. Results showed a lack on knowledge regarding manifestations of dating violence and positive dimensions of intimate relationships. Dating violence was reported as acceptable in specific situations related to the female behavior and gender stereotypes. Although predominated the reports of expectancy of social support against the violence in intimate relationships, the participants also mentioned economic dependency and pregnancy as situations in which family members or friends could be passive bystanders and accept the violence relationship. They described several ineffective strategies to cope with violent dating conflict: resignation, threatening, blaming, emotions dysregulation, withdrawal and repair attempt. They consider preventive initiatives should address gender stereotypes and promote respect toward the partner individuality. Implications for the development of culturally appropriate dating violence prevention interventions for young people in Brazil are discussed.

ABSTRACT. We present a critical analysis, from the perspective of “Intervention Bioethics” in Latin America, using bibliographic and documentary studies about the profile of crack users in Brazil from the National Survey on the use of Crack, carried out by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz). This profile is characterized by a predominance of men (78.68%), blacks (non-white - 79.15%), singles (60.64%), low level of schooling (only 16.49% completed secondary school) and precarious income (65% work sporadically or are self-employed). The average age is 30 years, with average time of crack use (or of similar drugs) of 91.32 months. 47% of crack users (or of similar) in the Brazilian capitals are homeless. Intervention Bioethics, the epistemological focus of this analysis, proposes a theory framework that recognises the political and ideological singularities of the region, and proposes to seek positions in favour of the most socially more vulnerable population groups, in order to better understand the phenomena and develop appropriate responses. Issues related to drug addiction are surrounded by morality and anti-ethical actions. Compulsory hospitalization and lack of objective criteria for prison (Increasing the incarceration of users and not of drug dealer), Which affects the same population group as the Fiocruz (2014), are examples of such actions that increase vulnerabilities. If society, health system professionals and government understood bioethically that social markers increases the vulnerability of drug users and the need to intervene in a non-hygienic manner, there would be responsiveness of the health system, reduction of inequities and possibility of promoting social justice. These social markers that characterise the profile of a population group that is socially vulnerable demand that the government seeks ethical ways to deal with the problem. In Brazil, there is few studies between Bioethics and the issue of drugs.

ABSTRACT. The UK has long been admired for the housing rights it gives people. By international standards our response to homelessness - whether in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales - is very progressive. Scotland in particular is unique in that virtually every homeless person has a legal right to permanent housing. And over recent years in all UK nations there’s been a growing awareness that the ideal solution would be to prevent people from losing their homes in the first place. Also, thanks to the extraordinary work of so many third sector organisations, researchers, commissioners and others, we now have a better understanding of the root causes of homelessness than ever before.

But despite all this great work and significant investment in solving homelessness over the years, too many people remain without a home. They are not just sleeping rough on our streets, but also living in overcrowded housing, hostels and other temporary accommodation. This is happening despite a one billion pound a year infrastructure designed to deal with this problem. It’s no surprise that there is public scepticism about our ability to end or even significantly reduce homelessness.

So what’s to be done?

In this talk I would speak about 5 little talked about issues that are contributing to this that need addressing to end homelessness faster, and to build on our international reputation for preventing and tackling homelessness

My overriding point is that traditional approaches - as vital as they are - are likely to fail on their own.

Making policy and funding decisions based on the best possible evidence would help restore confidence and save precious resources. It would also help ensure our values aren’t only articulated in our efforts and intentions but in our outcomes.

In fields like international development, early years, or education we’ve improved our understanding of what works by applying scientific methods and a culture shift towards evidence-based practices. In order to accelerate progress towards a future without homelessness we must do the same.

ABSTRACT. Over the past twenty years, as the Republic of Lithuania was transforming itself economically and politically and integrating into the EU after the restoration of independence in 1990’s, a lot of attention has been paid to the organization of preventative activities in general education schools of Lithuania. The beginning of systematic preventive activities in the schools of Lithuania can be traced back to 1999 when the Government of the Republic of Lithuania approved the National Program on Drug Control and Drug Addiction for the yrs. 1999-2003. On the basis of this programme, various state policy measures for organizing preventive activities in general education schools have been initiated at the national level: various committees and commissions for the organization of preventive activities have been set up in municipalities and schools, first methodological publications have been published as well as the first Lithuanian methodological instrument for the implementation of such activities has been prepared, the qualifications of teachers were improved in the training events. However, since these first steps the practice of planning and implementing preventive activities has changed more than once. Prior to 2000’s, the first decade of implementation of prevention activities focused on supporting preventive projects of schools which were aimed at the positive engagement of pupils in various activities, the development of social skills in order to increase their knowledge and to form some appropriate provisions on the potential harm of risky behaviour. Since 2008, the number of different preventive programs in general education schools of Lithuania has even widened. In 2011 the assessment and accreditation of preventive programs began to ensure that schools are implementing high-quality and effective preventive programs which are in line with the goals set for the general education. In this regard, based on discursive analysis, the author aims to present Lithuania's experience in identifying the criteria for the effectiveness of preventive programs in general education schools, which could also be considered as important to other EU Member States and international audience.

ABSTRACT. In 2013, UNODC launched the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention. These Standards summarize the globally available scientific evidence, describing interventions and policies found to be effective in preventing substance abuse, outlining their rationale and characteristics. Concurrently, they offer guidance on the features of effective national drug prevention systems.

The Standards aim foremost to assist decision makers worldwide to develop effective prevention programmes, policies and systems. They are also the key reference document guiding the UNODC prevention programming globally. To disseminate the standards, UNODC has entered into a dialogue with policy makers in over 75 countries on how to use the Standards to improve drug prevention at the national level via training seminars. Positive impact of this work on participants’ perceptions and attitudes has been documented. The value of the Standards has been appreciated also by other stakeholders, most importantly by UNODC Member States who have endorsed them in numerous official documents guiding the international action to address substance use.

The Standards were created based on a review, on literature published prior to 2013. At that time, the identified good quality literature originated almost entirely from western high income countries. Furthermore, the evidence was scarce with regard many areas of prevention that have evolved since, such as online programs or programs targeting older adolescent or vulnerable populations.

UNODC is now in process to update the Standards to take stock on the advances made in the prevention research, to offer guidance that reflects the most up to date understanding of what constitutes effective prevention. To inform this update, a systematic review of reviews is being undertaken. To complement it, a review of primary studies will be used for capturing the research on the emerging areas of prevention, not yet accumulated enough to register at the level of reviews.

The methodology of the review will be presented, providing some preliminary findings and observations on the lessons learned so far. Furthermore, the plans for disseminating the Standards, and the potential ways of using them as a vehicle for supporting better quality and coverage of prevention worldwide, are discussed.

ABSTRACT. Background: According to the standards of evidence for efficacy, effectiveness, and scale-up research in prevention science (Gottfredson et al., 2015) a clear theory of causal mechanism should be stated and core components of the intervention and the theory relating these components to the outcomes must be identified and described. However, the specific methodological processes for elucidating programme theory are rarely explicitly reported (van Urk, Grant, & Bonell, 2016). Objective: The current study aimed to apply a user-focused, participative and systematic approach to explicate a program theory for a workplace health promotion program for medium-sized enterprises. Methods: We integrated interdisciplinary focus groups to grasp the experience of non-academic practitioners and the needs and values of the funder and used the Swiss Model for Outcome Classification in Health Promotion and Prevention (SMOC) (Spencer et al., 2008) to provide a graphic depiction of the relationship between the main strategies of the program and associated goals, objectives, population(s) of interest, indicators and resources. Results: We successfully developed a program theory based on the participative user-focused and systematic approach. The graphic depiction of the SMOC enabled the practitioners and funder to fully understand the program theory and to identify four core components of the program. This led to an expansion of the program prior to implementation and formative evaluation. The program was implemented between 2014 and 2017 in five medium-sized enterprises companies in lower Austria. The program theory especially the core components guided the implementaion, the design of the formative evaluation and the reporting of the formative evaluation. Conclusion: Interdisciplinary focus groups with non-academic practitioners are an appropriate method to integrate available experience of non-academic practitioner in developing an explicit program theory. The SMOC is a useful instrument for structuring the process and identifying core components. Integrating non-academic practitioners in this process strengthens the implementation fidelity as a requirement for effectiveness.

ABSTRACT. In 2015, ‘Dark logic: theorising the harmful consequences of public health interventions’ (Bonell et al., 2014) won the EUSPR ‘best paper’ award. It argued that intervention design should seek to anticipate the unintended adverse effects of interventions, understand the mechanisms through which they might occur and aim to avert them. It suggested that one method for doing this is to consult relevant stakeholders.

This paper describes how dark logic was incorporated into a service design process involving Family Nurse Partnership, an evidence-based programme for young mothers. A major RCT in the UK published in 2015 found no impact of FNP on primary outcomes but some encouraging findings for a subset of secondary outcomes. The FNP National Unit and Dartington Social Research Unit have sought to respond constructively to these findings by adapting the programme and testing the emerging adaptations.

Eight FNP sites are aiming to improve clinical outcomes by changing programme material and delivery approaches in the areas (respectively) of attachment, breastfeeding, intimate partner violence, maternal mental health, neglect and smoking cessation. Adaptations have been co-produced by nurses, commissioners, subject experts and, to a lesser extent, clients. As such, the method seeks to incorporates user experience, practice knowledge and insights from child development science and evidence on ‘what works’.

In addition to developing logic models for clinical adaptations, co-production teams in each site have been encouraged to articulate the dark logic of their respective adaptation, rate the likelihood of each unintended harmful consequence and identify suitable mitigating actions. This paper outlines the method used for developing dark logic models and identifies the overarching categories that together capture the theorised unintended harmful consequences from all eight sites. It also describes the most common mitigating actions and reflects on the relative success of the method and how it could be improved.

ABSTRACT. Prevention interventions aimed at behavior change include messages that call for individuals to enact some form of behavior or practice. The extent to and ways in which individuals enact these forms of practice depend on a complex interplay among aspects of the intervention message, the individual, the specific setting of the intervention, and the broader set of contexts with which the individual interacts. Extant theory and research have offered useful models for intervention development and implementation, so an emerging area for inquiry is to examine what happens to intervention messages after they are delivered. There is a need to theorize what happens as participants bring intervention ideas and behaviors into other life-contexts, and theory has not yet specified how social interactions about interventions may influence outcomes.

To address this gap, we have used an ecological perspective to develop a new model: the Social Interface Model. This paper presents the key components of the model and its potential to aid the design and implementation of prevention interventions. The model is predicated on the idea that intervention message effectiveness depends not only on message aspects but also on the participants’ adoption and adaptation of the message vis-à-vis their social ecology. Accordingly, the model depicts processes that take place as participants traverse into microsystems and mesosystems beyond the context of the original health intervention.

Intervention effects based on the social interface model come about as intervention messages are received and enacted by participants through social processes occurring within and between relevant microsystems. Mesosystem interfaces (negligible interface, transference, co-dependence, and interdependence) can facilitate or detract from intervention effects. To the extent that intervention developers consider the potential social interfaces through which intervention messages will traverse, the quality of interventions being developed should also increase. This model stimulates thinking about how interventions messages might make explicit the previously invisible logic models that connect across existing microsystems. The social interface model advances prevention science by theorizing that practitioners can create better quality interventions by planning for the mesosystem-level interactions between microsystems, which in turn can increase intervention effectiveness.

ABSTRACT. Background: Identification and reporting of adverse events in trials involving pharmacologic treatments or vaccines have a self-clear place in study protocols. This is not the case in trials evaluating complex preventive interventions, the core of which is often techniques of behavioral modification. In fact, it is commonplace to consider these interventions as typically safe, inasmuch they do not rely on physically invasive procedures. Yet, iatrogenic effects have been presented in some studies evaluating preventive interventions. Unlike pharmacologic treatments preventive intervention may cause harm by either: a. achieving effects on the target behaviors that are opposite to the desired one(s); b. achieving undesirable effects outside the target behaviors. Methods: Using the case of a newly designed cluster randomized trial for the evaluation of a complex school based interventions for smoking prevention in adolescence we discuss the development of a common frame for: a. Terminology in use when defining adverse events (AE) b. Classification of the most common AE c. Systematic projecting the occurrence of AE d. Systematic assessment of AE e. Systematic reporting of AE Significance: The use of clear frames to detect and report adverse effects of preventive interventions during experimental studies is needed in order to achieve a complete understanding of the potential total impact of the intervention on the target population. Also, quantification of occurrence and severity of adverse effects should be incorporated in cost-effectiveness analyses as well as in decision-making in the dissemination stage.

ABSTRACT. The new paradigm of rehabilitation of the person with mental illness requires that it innovates in the treatment, abandoning the traditional clinical interventions. The focus is now the person with mental illness in their life contexts (school, work, community) and involves working with families and the community in general. The vision of community psychiatry and community mental health requires more holistic practices and the intervention of different professionals who will work in teams with health professionals. The deinstitutionalisation policies of the mentally ill person come to the fore in these interventions in the community that aim to encourage and optimize the inclusion of the person with mental illness as well as intervention in the local structures themselves to develop more inclusive practices. In this communication we will present an participatory research-action project developed in the community, with two people with chronic mental illness. This project "Rehabilitate in Mental Health: An integrated, integral and participated approach "was born in a mental health department in a general hospital, but quickly crossed institutional boundaries to reach people in their environments. Together with them, based on a relationship of empathy and trust between professionals and people with mental illness, was developed a regular, systematic and proximal psychosocial intervention. This project shows that an intervention model of this type prevents social exclusion and discrimination, promotes the reduction of stigma and, above all, avoids hospital hegemonization, the medical model and the disease over people as full citizens (quaternary prevention).

ABSTRACT. Ethical issues in family studies are always a challenge for researchers, no matter what methods are planned to be used in the research design. Plenty of ethical questions and possible answers will be presented in this presentation on the example of a pilot study of the research project „Specific Characteristics of Families at Risk: Contribution to Complex Interventions Planning“(FamResPlan). The aim of the project is to gain insight and new knowledge about families at-risk, specifically within the frame of the following concepts: resilience, readiness for change and quality of life. Ahead of the pilot-study, in the study planning phase, the research team considered and discussed the ethical challenges in the study and defined an ethical standard which will be followed by researchers through the pilot-study with a special emphasis on the ethical challenges for which no clear answers exist (e.g. compensation for participation in the study, providing adequate information about research to participants, gaining the informed consent in an adequate way, etc.). In order to assure a high ethical standard, all members of the research team agreed on the decided ethical principles and established an Ethical Committee comprised of internal and external experts who will provide guidance and support in the case of unexpected or expected but sensitive ethical issues, as they occur. Experiences gained through the pilot study were useful in the modification of the previously established Code of Ethics and provided helpful insights in a variety of ethical challenges. These insights were used to find new solutions that ensure a high ethical standard in the main study that is currently being carried out. The basic belief about ethics as a process and not a simple “question and answer” phenomenon is widely implemented and accepted in the FamResPlan study by the research team and as such will be discussed in the presentation with a variety of examples on how the ethical issues in the field were addressed.

ABSTRACT. Research suggests that peer groups can be an important source of escalating or de-escalating high risk behaviors, such as drinking and aggression, within the group. Our prior work indicates that most club patrons arrive at nightclubs nested within a social group. Consistent with social cognitive theory, our research indicates that there is a “group effect” above and beyond the individual’s characteristics and the individual’s history of risky decision-making. Among groups leaving clubs, approximately half have one or members who are intoxicated (59.5%), using drugs (44.7%) and/or experiencing aggression (49.1%) at the club during the evening. To address these health risk outcomes, a group-based, interactive, brief intervention was designed to be delivered to the group as they entered the club. This intervention emphasizes recognition of early indicators of problems and employs strategies to encourage peer responsibility and action. The intervention was displayed on a tablet and group members were given skills to take actions based upon the 3 O’s (i.e., Outreach, Options, Out). Using a random control design, the experimental groups were asked to commit to these actions if they identified high risk situations for their friends. This presentation describes the intervention and the research methods for assessing the efficacy of the intervention. Based upon the data from the first 159 social drinking groups (411 patrons), results indicate that the experimental groups were more likely to intercede with friends. Results suggest that the intervention could raise awareness and decrease these outcomes at nightclubs. Further, the intervention encourages peer-to-peer actions for maintaining safety in nightlife settings that attract young working adults.

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ABSTRACT. This presentation will provide an overview of the implementation of psychosocial protocols for children and adolescents in Afghanistan who were identified as at risk for substance use or actively using psychoactive substances. For a number of years, the international community has been asking for prevention interventions that have a basis in evidence and can be adapted for implementation in different settings, cultures and socio-economic communities. The presenters will describe the indicated prevention intervention development and implementation in five provinces of Afghanistan. And, will share the evaluation results recently published in the International Journal of Pediatrics, 2017, entitled Implementation and Evaluation of an Intervention for Children in Afghanistan at Risk for Substance Use or Actively Using Psychoactive Substances. With more than thirty years of conflict and approximately one million persons reportedly dependent on psychoactive substances, Afghanistan is anxious to break the cycle of drug use and strengthen the opportunities for children and adolescents to learn and grow through participation in the education system and engagement with families, thus creating a brighter future for the country. The presentation will be co-led by UNODC staff involved in the initial development and implementation of the work in Afghanistan. Elizabeth Mattfeld, UNODC Global Coordinator will present the process of development and the theoretical underpinnings of the designed psychosocial protocols. And, Dr. Abdul Subor Momand, UNODC National Training Coordinator in Afghanistan, and author of the research article will present some of the challenges of implementing the program in Afghanistan and share the conclusions from the evaluation of the program. Discussion following the presentations will be welcomed and encouraged.

ABSTRACT. The impact of parental substance use on children and how to prevent or minimise this impact has been a developing theme in policy and practice since the publication of Hidden Harm (Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, 2003). It has been reported, (NTA, 2009), that 120,000 children live with a parent currently engaged in drug treatment. It is also know that 60,596 adults in treatment in England in 2011/12 had parental responsibility, an opiate problem and were receiving a prescribing intervention. Establishing the true scale of the problem is difficult due to a lack of reliable data and an absence of awareness among practitioners of the dangers of OST to children. Adfam's review (2014) assessed how dangers to children could be prevented during the provision of Opioid Substitution Treatment (OST) to their parents/care givers. The research included: a literature review, an analysis of media coverage of cases where children ingested OST drugs, an examination of Serious Case Reviews (SCRs) involving the injection of OST drugs by children during the period 2003-13 and interviews with practitioners and experts on the key issues for practice. The research concluded that: OST medicines appear to present risks to children that other drugs do not; learning from SCRs at local level were not being shared, and practitioners and service users were not sufficiently aware of the dangers OST can present to children when not managed correctly. Recommendations for prevention policy and practice include: the need to share learning from SCRs on a national basis; the need to collect data centrally on the number of parents prescribed different OST drugs and on which supervision regimes; that local authorities should ensure representation from drug treatment agencies on Local Safeguarding Boards; that guidance on the implementation of NICE Technology Appraisal 114 must re-emphasise safeguarding children as a primary factor in making and reviewing decisions about OST, including which drug to prescribe and whether to permit take home doses, and that safe storage boxes should be provided to all clients in receipt of OST.

A follow up review (2015) identified examples of good practice by treatment providers.

ABSTRACT. Purpose: Gender gaps in alcohol, tobacco and other drug use are narrowing rapidly in Mexico, largely due to sharp increases by younger women. A common explanation is that traditional gender roles (TGRs) regulating substance use are changing. TGRs in Mexico are associated with the cultural ideal of machismo for males and marianismo for females, which encourage male substance use but discourage it among females. This study investigated how TGRs explained gender differences in substance use among early adolescents in Mexico.

Methods: Survey data come from 7th grade students (n=4,937) in Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara, Mexico’s largest economic hubs. Outcomes included alcohol, binge drinking, cigarette, marijuana, and polysubstance use; substance use intentions, norms, and attitudes; substance use exposure (peer use, offers) and resistance (refusal skills). A 5-item TGRs scale assessed endorsement of a polarized gender division of family labor and power. Analyses utilized OLS regression models with gender interactions to test if TGRs predicted substance use outcomes in different ways for males and females.

Results: As expected, TGRs predicted poorer outcomes among males consistently. Contrary to expectations, TGRs did not predict any desirable outcome among females. TGRs predicted poorer outcomes for both females and males—and to equivalent degrees—for binge drinking, cigarette use, and substance use expectancies, and they predicted poorer drug resistance skills among females but not among males.

Discussion and Implications: Traditional gender roles continue to increase vulnerability for males, while no longer protecting women. Interpretations highlight persisting TGRs in the family realm and conflicting gender role messages for females in Mexico. Implications for substance abuse prevention include the need to design interventions that recognize culturally-based differences between men and women in substance use attitudes and exposure, provide decision-making alternatives to those emphasized in some traditional roles, and help youth navigate conflicting gendered behavioral expectations.

ABSTRACT. Background and aim: In 2012–2015 National Institute for Health Development piloted parent-oriented alcohol prevention programme “Effekt” (formerly known as Örebro Prevention Programme) in Estonia. The main objective of the programme was to delay and reduce adolescents’ alcohol consumption by maintaining parents’ restrictive attitudes towards children’s alcohol use over time.

Methods: To evaluate the effectiveness of the programme, a cluster randomised controlled trial was conducted in 66 schools (34 intervention schools, 32 control schools – 985 adolescents and 790 parents in baseline). Adolescents and their parents filled self-administered questionnaires three times during the programme – baseline (5th grade), 18 months (6th grade) and 30 months follow-up (7th grade). Multilevel modelling was used to account for school-level clustering when estimating how intervention condition predicted adolescents’ alcohol use (initiation, use in the past year, lifetime drunkenness) and parents’ attitudes at follow-ups. Alcohol use initiation and lifetime drunkenness models included only children who had not initiated alcohol use or had not been drunk at baseline.

Results: There were no significant differences in adolescents’ alcohol use between intervention and control school participants at the first and second follow-up. There were significant differences in parents’ attitudes in intervention and control schools – the odds of having restrictive attitude was 2.05 times higher (95% CI 1.32–3.17) in the intervention group at the first follow up and 1.92 times higher (95% CI 1.31–2.83) at the second follow-up than in the control group. Adjusting models for background characteristics did not change the results.

Conclusions: Preliminary results of the trial imply that while the adjusted Estonian version of the programme had positive effect on parents’ attitudes, it did not succeed in delaying or reducing adolescents’ alcohol consumption. To gain a better understanding of possible reasons for this, qualitative data obtained from parents and teachers will be analysed.

ABSTRACT. This research is carried out in order to examine the Effect of Solution Focused Approach to the Level of Self-Efficacy and Self Respect of Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

A composite pattern consisting of quantitative and qualitative research methods is used in this research. Quantitative aspect is performed as single blinded, randomised controlled, experimental study; pretest, posttest and follow up scheme is used. Phenomenologic pattern is used in qualitative aspect. Adolescents aged 12-18 being followed up and treated with the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in the child and adolescent psychiatry policlinic of an university hospital , composed the sampling of the research. This research was carried out with 42 adolescents in total , 22 in application group and 20 adolescent in control group. While the available follow up and treatment was applied to the control group, interviews based on solution focused approach were carried out in application group additionally. Quantitative data was collected using Personal Information Form, General Self-Efficacy Scale and Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale, while Qualitative data was collected via documents written by adolescents after interviews. Repeated Measures Analysis of Variance and Independent Samples t-test were used in the analysis of quantitative data. Descriptive analysis was used in the evaluation of qualitative data.

It was found that self-efficacy and self esteem score averages of adolescents are different in time and between the groups and interaction between time and group is statistically significant (p<0.05). While there is no statistically significant difference between the pretest scores with regard to self-efficacy and self esteem scores of the application and control group adolescents (p >0.05), there is an advanced significant diffecerence between the posttest and follow up scores on behalf of application group (p<0.05). Effect size of the research was calculated as 1.02 and power was calculated as 0.92. In the Qualitative findings of the research, adolescents expressed positively affecting in the self-efficacy and self esteem.

It was determined that interviews based on solution focused approach increased the self-efficacy and self-esteem level of adolescents being followed up with the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

ABSTRACT. Research has highlighted rising rates of gender-based violence, sexual assaults and alcohol-related harm on University campuses. Despite this, limited research focuses specifically on understanding student perceptions of these issues and their knowledge of support services. As a campus of Changemakers, the University of Northampton (UoN) wanted to start its own on-campus conversations about these issues. A cross-disciplinary ‘I-Heart-Consent’ initiative, led by researchers from Psychology and Law recently took place, in order to locally challenge consent myths and reduce related harms. Using the National Union of Students’ initiative as a baseline, this week of action included a range of interactive workshops and events, as well as representation from local organisations, such as Rape Crisis. For example, events focused on the legal implications of consent, complications when alcohol is involved and confidential drop-in sessions were provided. Feedback was collected from attendees and participants were also surveyed about their understanding of issues surrounding sexual consent, alcohol behaviour, gender-based violence and support services. This presentation will provide an overview of the challenges in developing a cross-discipline University-wide initiative such as this, while providing an overview of events, feedback and preliminary results from this research. Following the successful awarding of HEFCE funding, this initiative has since been expanded to evaluate HE policies and procedures regarding these issues and to look at providing safe on-campus spaces for staff and students. An overview of this project will be provided, as well as the implications that this work has implications for local and national policies, procedures and wider HE practice.

ABSTRACT. In adolescence, when the individual is faced with the first existential questions, the sense of meaninglessness of life may potentiate negative outcomes in mental health. Thus, interventions promoting meaning of life for teenagers become relevant. This study craved replicate an intervention based on logotherapy for prevention of existential emptiness among adolescents and evaluate their implementation process and results. Was used a quasi-experimental design with quantitative and qualitative measures, with 47 adolescents living in the Distrito Federal, of both sexes, aged between 15 and 17 years, distributed in two groups: experimental - GE (N = 22) and control - GC (N = 25). Both groups were subjected to pre-test and post-test when we used the Sociodemographic Form, the Meaning in Life Questionnaire and the Scale of Positive and Negative Affect. Other instruments used during the intervention were: Emotions Diary, Tree of My Life, Letter to a Friend and Field Diary. The GE was offered a group intervention, focused on reading poems, fables and parables and reflections based on a dialogic relationship. The CG did not receive any intervention. The intervention consisted of six weekly meetings of 150 minutes each. Thematic analysis and T test were used for data analysis. The process of evaluation results showed that adolescents engaged in the intervention and perceived as relevant and satisfactory. There was a significant increase in the perception of meaning of life and decreased negative affects to GE when compared to GC. It concludes that the intervention was beneficial for participants. It is suggested that future studies make use of experimental designs with follow-up evaluations and consider the quality of implementation in new replications.

ABSTRACT. It is estimated that more than 30,000 children have been separated from their families and live in shelters in Spain. Due to multiple factors (e.g. instability, trauma, early emancipation), adolescents in shelters are especially vulnerable to STIs and/or unplanned pregnancies. Compared to the general population, adolescents in shelters are more likely to have early sexual debut (before 13 years old), multiple sexual partners, less consistent condom use, and have a history of STI and/or unplanned pregnancy. However, there are not sexual risk reduction interventions tailored for the specific needs of this high-risk population in Spain. Competency for adolescents with a healthy sexuality (COMPAS, for its acronym in Spanish) is the only school-based manualized intervention that has proven to promote sexual health in adolescents after 24-month implementation in Spain. Because of the unique needs of adolescents in shelters, a recently initiated study aims to adapt and test the feasibility and efficacy of COMPAS for these adolescents in the province of Alicante, Spain. The adaptation process is guided by ADAPT-ITT model, a well-known method of adapting evidence-based HIV interventions. Attending to the characteristics of this group, new components of COMPAS for shelters are HIV testing, engagement in care, and emotional education. Mobile-phone texting using one of the most used APPs for adolescents (WhatsApp) and photovoice technique are proposed to be incorporated in the program. Initial work is focusing on collecting data through informant interviews and focus groups on the sexual health needs of adolescents in shelters. This data will be used to adapt COMPAS for these youth. Final version will be tested in a pilot study that will involve 130 adolescents aged 12-17 years who live in shelters. Participating centers will be randomized to both experimental conditions: (1) COMPAS for shelters (n = 65), and (2) control group (n = 65). The adaptation process and preliminary results will be presented. Findings of the current project will provide valuable information about the adaptation of an evidence-based sexual health promotion intervention to a population at high risk for negative sexual health outcomes and in critical need for interventions.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: Parents can face many new challenges in bringing up children and many parents now access the internet for parenting support and advice. However, whilst much is known about patterns of parenting that support children’s positive development and a lot of research has demonstrated the effectiveness of parenting programmes to support parents of high challenge children, there is relatively little evidence-based generally available information on parenting on the web. The COPING parent (COnfident Parent INternet Guide) programme is a 10-week web based programme that presents evidence-informed parenting principles and activities based on core social learning theory principles to support parents of children aged 3-8 years in establishing positive relationships with children, primarily through encouraging parents to be positive role models and to praise and reward desirable child behaviour. The programme provides information on, and video examples of, parenting skills, uses quizzes to test knowledge and suggests home activities to practice the behavioural skills. Methods: This was a pilot randomised controlled trial with intervention and wait-list control conditions. Parents were randomised on a 2:1 ratio (stratified according to child gender and age). The primary outcome measure was positive parenting as measured by a behavioural observation of parent-child interactions using the Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System. Exploratory outcomes included parent report child behaviour and self-report parenting practices and mental health. Data were collected at baseline and three months later (post-intervention) for all participants and six months post-baseline for the intervention group only. Results: For the primary outcome, there was a significant difference between intervention and wait list control conditions with parents in the intervention condition demonstrating a significant reduction in observed indirect commands and a significant increase in observed praise. There were no significant differences for any of the secondary outcomes, however the ECBI problem sub-scale showed medium intervention effect size changes.

ABSTRACT. Objectives. We examined whether students’ risk of cannabis, mephedrone and “legal high” use was associated with whether a school has a substance misuse policy, and the content of policy and practice. Methods. A population-level cross sectional survey of 19,748 students from 69 schools in Wales. Student self-reported data was linked to teacher reported data on school practices regarding drug use, and the content of policies independently extracted. Multi-level, logistic regression analyses examined the association between school policy and teacher practices with student cannabis use across the lifetime, in the last 30 days and daily in the last 30 days and mephedrone and “legal highs” across the lifetime. Results. 65 (94.2%) of teachers reported they had a substance misuse policy, three had a policy in development (4.4%), and one had no policy (1.4%). Of the schools that reported having a policy, 31 (47.7%) provided a policy for verification and coding of content. One school reported not using community police. 31 schools provided their policy, none had content which recommended abstaining from drug use, one (3.2%) contained methods on harm minimisation, 18 (58.1%) condemned drug use (“Drugs have no place in this school”, Drugs are not permitted on school premises”), and 27 (87.10%) described having a referral pathway for supporting drug using students.

Conclusions. To our knowledge this is the first study to examine the association between student cannabis use across the lifetime, in the last 30 days and daily use in the last 30 days and mephedrone and “legal highs” across the lifetime with whether a school has a substance misuse policy. It is also the first study to examine the content of school substance misuse polices and compare teacher reports on practices relating to drug use and discipline to those described in school polices. Because of almost universal adoption school policy and community police we were insufficiently powered to analyse the association with illicit drug use. Despite almost universal adherence to Welsh Government guidance to have a substance misuse policy, there is limited evidence around the presence and content of policies that future research may look to address.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: Earlier studies concerning attachment and drug addiction showed a strong relation between insecure attachment and drug abuse and difficulties of the drug addicted caregivers in responding to the children’s emotional signals. Secure attachment and the ability of mentalization depends on the caregivers’ attachment style. Research indicates that early therapeutic interventions for caregivers and their children can decrease the risk of mental health problems such as drug addiction or other mental health disorder.

Aims: The study aims to investigate mentalization capacities of foster children from drug abusing families and the mentalization capacities of their foster parents before and 12 months after participating in a newly developed mentalization-focused group intervention. Research questions include the impact of early placement into foster families on the development of mentalization processes as well as the foster families’ attitudes and behaviour towards drug addiction and drug addicts.

Methods: A special intervention for two target groups is developed and implemented in cooperation with two institutions working in drug addiction prevention (Verein Dialog – individual care for drug users) and in child mental health care (child guidance clinic): 1. 16-week group intervention program for foster children to increase knowledge about drug addiction, enhancing social and affective skills. 2. Group counselling for foster parents is offered three times during the children intervention period. It includes information on parental licit/illicit drug abuse background focusing on the caregiver-child-interaction.

50 primary school children, living in foster care (due to parental licit or illicit drug abuse), who attend the mentalization-focused group program, their foster parents and a control group will be assessed by a repeated measures design. Instruments include: Adult Attachment Interview (AAI); Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL 6-18R); Child Attachment Interview (CAI); Raven’s Coloured Progressive Matrices (CPM); Patte Noire Test for Children; Children’s Diary Studies.

The draft of the intervention program in accordance with the research methods will be presented in order to discuss methodology, difficulties and opportunities.

The project is supported by „PHARMIG” for a three years period.

The results of this intervention study will be integrated in a doctoral thesis at the Faculty of Psychology of the University of Vienna (A).

ABSTRACT. Unplugged is a school based drug intervention of twelve sessions, designed by the EU-Dap Drug Abuse Prevention Trial group. Cultural adaptation has occurred in more than 20 countries including France, UK, Russia, Lithuania, Romania, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Brazil, the Middle East and North Africa . The team of University College Ghent (Belgium) focuses in the presented study on reported adaptation of the training modules. Line Up Live Up! is an evidence informed intervention designed under the UNODC Global Program for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration: Towards a Culture of Lawfulness. It contains ten sport sessions with group activities increasing and training life skills in order to prevent crime, violence and drug use. Evidence informed: it is constructed on the basis of UN International Standards on Drug Use Prevention as well as Standards on Crime Prevention, inspired by the evidence of the Unplugged school intervention. Core components from the Unplugged mediator analysis are reflected in the innovative set of sports activities and important aspects of the instruction of deliverers are changed from school teacher to sport coach context: group debate in the classroom transformed into tactical discussion on the grass. The Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC) was developed under the USA Colombo Plan and INL with top prevention researchers. The UPC-Adapt project uses the robust research base to adapt to European prevention work force needs. The project encompasses eleven partners in nine countries to try out training in a five-day module, an academic and an online module. The trainings yet to be tested are using one standard curriculum that has been extracted and adapted from the original US based version. APSI (Zili Sloboda), ISSUP and EMCDDA are core contributors to the adaptation process. We will present the categorization phase we went through and shed a light on the online correspondence and digital meeting topics relevant for the US-EU adaptation process. We will open discussion on a rigorous approach of terminology related to adaptation and on the use of findings of mentioned studies for other adaptation processes.

ABSTRACT. Since 2003, The Flemish Institute of Healthy Living administers a three-yearly survey, in which primary and secondary schools, workplaces and municipalities in Flanders (Dutch-speaking region of Belgium) are questioned about the health policy they institute. The survey provides an up to date and clear view of the implementation and maintenance of health promotion in these three main settings, and visualizes evolutions throughout the years. This survey is unique in the fact that it focuses on the organisational level thereby recognising the importance of organisational policies for a quality implementation of health promotion. The assessed indicators are derived from reference models including Healthy School, Healthy Workplace and Healthy Municipality. These reference models, and thus the survey, focus on the necessary conditions for implementing a health policy, such as providing budget, education about health, or collecting evidence and evaluating health promoting projects. Second, the survey addresses specific health topics, like healthy eating, sedentary behaviour or alcohol abuse prevention and this throughout the domains education, policy and regulations, environmental actions and care. The results of the survey provide the respondents with particular feedback on their overall health policy and on specific health topics. This can be used as a starting point in establishing or improving the approach for health promotion within the organisation. In addition to the valuable information for the respondents themselves, the survey serves also as a direct monitoring instrument for the renewed health goals of the Flemish government. Moreover, the results of the survey give direct feedback to policy makers and concrete recommendations to work on for the next years. For example, based on the last survey from 2015, there was a call for more budget and capacity for small municipalities because of its immense effect on the implemented health policy.

ABSTRACT. Due to the growing dissemination of evidence-based practices and programs, the interest in implementation science and practice – the study and use of approaches to promote the integration of research findings into real world human service settings – has grown in the field of prevention in the past two decades. Government and non-government organisations that operate within human services in general and prevention in particular wish to enhance the uptake of evidence in practice and seek knowledge and guidance on how to do this best.

While the scientific literature has historically been the sole source of this knowledge, recently there has been a marked increase in opportunities for professional development in the science and practice of implementation. This has led some to describe the role of ‘implementation specialist’ as a distinct position focused on enhancing the uptake of evidence in organisational and system settings and therefore requiring a particular set of knowledge and skills.

This raises questions about how to best define this role, its content and function.

In suggesting a framework of knowledge and skills for prevention implementation specialists, this presentation will combine experience derived from two projects aiming to develop and support implementation specialists in human services:

1. The development of the ‘Specialist Certificate of Implementation Science’ (https://online.unimelb.edu.au/medicine-and-public-health/social-work/specialist-certificate-in-implementation-science) for different professionals working in human services in Australasia. It focuses on applied methods of implementation and on tailoring content to the developmental needs and specific work contexts of adult students, who engage in professional development with a foundation of life experience, and professional knowledge. Developed in 2016, it has since been taught to two cohorts of students.

2. A 1-year training and consultation process provided to a team of implementation specialists from the Singapore Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF). This team supports others in the uptake and sustainment of evidence in child and family services and has worked extensively with the development of the MSF Implementation Specialist role.

Findings and insights from both projects have informed the development of the framework for implementation specialist knowledge and skills. It will be presented and discussed with conference attendees.

ABSTRACT. This session overviews the UPC-Adapt training design process and temporary outcomes. The motivation for this UPC-Adapt project is that while prevention science has advanced over the past 30 years, its application in real-life practice lags behind: prevention providers often use unproven and ineffective prevention strategies. Implementers do not have a qualitative level of training. The objectives of the UPC-Adapt project are to train prevention professionals with a standardized curriculum, based on findings from a mapping and analysis study. The target group of the project are policy-, decision- and opinion makers.

The UPC was developed by APSI and is based on UNODC’s ‘International Standards on Drug Use Prevention’ and the EDPQS. It has been adapted to European realities and language use by a European consortium of research centers within the EUSPR. The UPC will be pilot-implemented by 11 centers in 9 EU states, establishing bridges between practitioners, researchers, academics and policymakers.

This session goes in depth on the training design process. The UPC is designed in 3 modules: a short, an extended academic and an online version. Each module has a work package leader. The Karlova institute in Prague is responsible on the e-learning module (WP2), ASL 2 in Savona on the short model (WP 3) and the University of Zagreb on the academic model. Each WP-leader works together with other project partners to organize at least three focus groups (with the UPC target group) per country with the purpose to obtain, among other things, the design of the UPC-training. Based on the outcomes of the focus groups and the expertise of the institutes, the WP-leaders design the three training modules.

This workshop gives the attendees an inside look on the process and design of the three training modules d.d. September 2017. It will give an overview on the design which contents the conditions of the design, didactical and education principles. This training design process is a major step towards the overall objective of the UPC-Adapt project; to make sure that prevention professionals receive the latest and most evidence based training about effective prevention principles.

ABSTRACT. The presentation focuses on macro-level environments and how interventions can be effectively introduced there to reduce substance use and associated harms. Current evidence-based behavioural interventions should be complemented by such interventions that take into account that human behaviour is often strongly contingent on environmental cues with limited self-regulation. Environment-based prevention interventions (herein termed environmental interventions) seek to alter the regulatory, economic and/or physical environment to limit the potential for risk-taking or unhealthy behaviours. Environmental prevention influences individuals’ automatic, natural and non-conscious behaviour for preventive purposes across a wide spectrum of domains including alcohol and drug use. Whilst environmental prevention is a novel approach with individual merits, it is also highly complementary to, and can be effectively utilised alongside, other prevention approaches. We provide first an operational definition of environmental prevention and report on a mapping exercise which aimed to create an overview of environmental prevention interventions implemented in EU countries. We looked at physical (e.g. transportation), economic (e.g. taxes), and regulatory (e.g. smoking bans) measures that either incentivise protective behaviour or create barriers for risky behaviour and examined their degree of enforcement as pertaining to the regulatory and economic measures or existence/provision of physical measures barriers. Regulatory and economic environmental prevention measures were reported as being more widely implemented across Europe than physical environmental prevention measures. As to be expected under the current legal framework for illicit drugs, regulatory and economic measures are more often fully or almost fully available in the illicit drug domain, compared with moderately or sporadically available in the alcohol and tobacco domain. This is in line with findings from other large studies observing suboptimal societal control and regulation of alcohol and tobacco in a number of European countries, notwithstanding progress made in recent years. Generally, strong enforcement of regulatory and economic measures was lacking.

ABSTRACT. Scope. This research examines the outcomes experienced by children who participate in family services in Nottinghamshire, England. These are services below the threshold for statutory social care, also referred to as children in need threshold. Over 50 children aged 13 to 17 filled in outcome surveys before and after participating in family services. The surveys included Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scales, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and questions from the Communities that Care survey.

Methods. We applied descriptive statistics to understand baseline outcomes (this is, before participating in family services) and follow-up outcomes (this is, once the case is closed, typically three to six months after commencement). We assessed progress depending on the types of family services received, ranging from basic, single-practitioner support, to intensive support and specialist interventions, such as parenting skills, crisis management, and cognitive behavioural therapy.

Results. We presented the results in a way that is accessible for practitioners and decision makers. We standardised all the outcome instruments so that positive progress is expressed in terms of increasing percentages. We put outcome progress in relation to the costs associated with different types of family services in order to aid discussions on value for money.

ABSTRACT. Resilience is a process of negotiating, managing and adapting to significant sources of stress, trauma or risk. Assets and resources within the individual, family and environment facilitate this capacity for adaptation and 'bouncing back', achieving good outcome in the face of adversity (Windle, 2011). Research of family resilience is growing field while its conceptualization and operationalization still remains challenging. Literature is inconclusive since family resilience is defined as a process while in practical research family members are asked upon their individual perception of family protective factors. Objective of this paper is to determine the level of family resilience in high-risk adolescent sample and general population youth sample and, secondly, to compare the perception of family resilience in aforementioned two subsamples. Family resilience was measured with the Family resilience scale, adapted from FACES IV (Olson, Gorall, Tiesel, 2004) and Sixbey (2005) constructed to measure three separate family resilience dimensions according to Walsh: family communication and problem solving, family belief system and family organization. First part of the study was conducted in a subsample of 120 high-risk adolescents that were included in the treatment interventions of social welfare system, usually because of their behavioral disorders, problems with violence, substance abuse or violation of the law. Second part of the study included 220 high-school students that were attending regular high-school (gymnasium and vocational schools). Exploratory factor analysis was conducted and results have shown satisfactory factor structure and three separate dimensions of family resilience scale in both subsamples. General population youth perceives family resilience quite high, with special accent on family organization while youth in risk reports upon high family belief system and lower family organization than general population. Results are indicating that family component can serve as important ingredient of prevention and treatment interventions for youth on different levels of risk.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: Alcohol and drug use is increasing in girls worldwide. In some countries, young girls’ use of tobacco and alcohol exceeds that of boys. Risk factors for girls are somewhat different than that of boys.

Methods: To test the hypothesis that preventive EBIs work for girls as well as boys, a literature review and program developer’s survey was conducted by the presenters for the UNODC of all EBIs listed on US and EU websites for substance abuse prevention.

Results. The data revealed that only 5% or 21 of the generic EBIs had ever conducted a gender subgroup analyses to determine if they are effective for girls. Of those that did a gender analysis, all of the parenting and family interventions reported positive outcomes for girls, but most of the youth-only interventions did not. The few gender-specific interventions for girls did report positive results.

Conclusions: Hence, it appears that family EBIs are more effective than the much more popular school and community based youth-only interventions. However, family EBIs are more expensive to implement with higher staffing requirements reducing their cost/benefit ratios despite much better outcomes over time. One possible solution is to get the more effective family interventions to develop web and digital delivery modes such as DVDs, lap top, smart phone, etc. The presenter was able to decrease the average cost of her family EBI, the Strengthening Families Program from $1,400 to $5 using a DVD version. Results for this new SFP 7-17 DVD version (being adapted for interactive online delivery) will be briefly presented.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: The first paper in a linked abstract proposal on “Cultural Adaptation of Family EBIs for Diverse Families” will present the health disparity issues and recommended solutions to engage more culturally diverse families including a cultural adaptation framework. This presentation will follow the presenter’s summer 2017 Prevention Science publication on this topic. Abstracts from France, Spain, Ireland and Northern Ireland will include their cultural adaptations and SFP outcome results.

Method: This review included online searches of PubMed, Prevention Science articles, and contact with collaborators publishing on cultural adaptation. The framework for cultural adaptation was derived from an expert panel convened by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime in Vienna. It is also the recommended steps to cultural adaptation used for adapting the presenter’s Strengthening Families Program, a family EBI for diverse families now in 36 countries. Countries like Thailand and France have RCTs by independent researchers. Family behavioral health results will be briefly presented for high risk adolescents and families using this cultural adaptation framework.

Results: Using a quasi-experimental post-hoc statistical design the results on parenting, family relations and child behavioral outcomes improved with statistical significance and medium to large Cohen’s d effect sizes at 4–month posttest. The cultural adaptations resulted in much higher family engagement (recruitment and retention) than usually found in hard-to-reach ethnic families.

Conclusion: The cultural adaptation framework was successful with high family engagement and retention (85%) with large positive change scores and effect sizes for family relations, parenting skills and youth internalizing and externalizing risk factors. On the whole, results are coherent with the developed family intervention model and are consistent with results of other international FEBI cultural adaptations. Cultural adaptations are recommended to recruit more ethnic families into these highly effective FEBIs.

ABSTRACT. Introduction: Child behaviour problems are a global issue (Polanczyk et al., 2015). The long-term prognosis for child behaviour problems is poor (Colman et al., 2009) so early intervention before problems become embedded is crucial. Parenting is a key risk factor for the development of child behaviour problems (Farrington & Welsh, 2007) and parenting programmes are effective in reducing these problems (Furlong et al., 2012). Not all parenting programmes are effective for all families and some research suggests that individually delivered programmes are more effective for disadvantaged families (Lundahl et al., 2006). The Enhancing Parenting Skills (EPaS) programme is an individually delivered, behavioural parent support package consisting of three phases: standardised assessment, structured case analysis formulation, and intervention strategies. Previous studies have shown promising results, however the programme has not been evaluated using a randomised controlled trial design.

Methods: This study was a pragmatic pilot randomised controlled trial in four primary care settings. Health visitors (public health nurses) were recruited to undertake EPaS training and to identify two families who were reporting a young child (aged 2-4 years) with behaviour problems based on the Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory (ECBI; Eyberg, 1980). Twenty-nine health visitors and 58 families were recruited. Families were randomised to either an intervention or wait-list control condition. The main outcome was child behaviour, based on the ECBI, and secondary outcomes included child hyperactivity, parenting skills, and parental mental health. Data was collected pre- and post-intervention and included parent reports and a blind observation of parent-child interaction.

Results: Families in the intervention condition showed significant reductions in child behaviour problems (ECBI Intensity d=0.88, p=.029). This was replicated in a per-protocol analyses for families who completed the intervention (ECBI Intensity d=1.30, p=.014; ECBI Problem d=1.53, p=.031) compared to the control condition. Health visitors reported high levels of satisfaction with the EPaS training with all reporting they would continue to use the methods taught.

Conclusions: The results are promising and suggest that EPaS 2014 is a potentially effective intervention for families of children with behaviour problems. Further research with a larger sample needs to be conducted to confirm these results.

ABSTRACT. Evidence indicates that the consumption of alcohol damages human cognition. However, little is known on what, if any, dietary supplements might offset this effect. The currently study analyses data drawn from UK Biobank (www.ukbiobank.ac.uk), a cohort of 502,632 men and women (mean age 56.53 years, SD 8.10) undergoing repeated assessment. Data on age, gender, lifestyle, socio-economic status, physical activity, education, diet and alcohol consumption are accessed across two assessment waves. Non-linear longitudinal analyses are used to determine the effects of taking dietary fish oil supplements and average daily alcohol consumption on reasoning ability, controlling for potential confounding variables. Reasoning ability (number correct) is measured in a subset of respondents (N = 137,573) using the Fluid intelligence Test, a battery of 13 questions. Analyses indicate a non-linear effect of alcohol on reasoning with a significant reduction in reasoning ability from 50g/alcohol per day onwards. Compared to respondents who take no fish oil dietary supplement, those who do show a significantly reduced effect of alcohol on reasoning ability. Alcohol is known to disrupt the ability to absorb nutrients critical for normal brain function. The current study suggests nutritional supplements might offset alcohol-related cognitive decline in those who use alcohol to excess.

ABSTRACT. A decline in response rates in traditional household surveys, combined with increased internet coverage and decreased research budgets, has resulted in increased attractiveness of web survey research designs based on purposive and voluntary opt-in sampling strategies. In the study of hidden or stigmatised behaviours, such as cannabis use, web survey methods are increasingly common and help to inform prevention programmes. However, opt-in web surveys are often heavily criticised due to their lack of sampling frame and unknown representativeness. In this presentation, we outline the current state of the debate about the relevance of pursuing representativeness, the state of probability sampling methods, and the utility of non-probability, web survey methods especially for accessing hidden or minority populations. Our presentation has three aims: (1) to present a comprehensive description of the methodology we use at Global Drug Survey (GDS), an annual cross-sectional web survey (2) to discuss the implications for prevention of harmful substance use in Europe based on European data from GDS2017 and (3) to compare the age and sex distributions of cannabis users who voluntarily completed (a) a household survey or (b) a large web-based purposive survey (GDS), across three countries: Australia, the United States, and Switzerland. We find that within each set of country comparisons, the demographic distributions among recent cannabis users are broadly similar, demonstrating that the age and sex distributions of those who volunteer to be surveyed are not vastly different between these non-probability and probability methods. We conclude that opt-in web surveys of hard-to-reach populations are an efficient way of gaining in-depth understanding of stigmatised behaviours and are appropriate to inform prevention, as long as they are not used to estimate drug use prevalence of the general population.

ABSTRACT. Research suggests use of e-cigarettes can foster cessation of cigarette use for adults, but questions have arisen about their effects on adolescents, gauged in terms of tobacco and cannabis usage. We investigated this issue in a 2-year longitudinal panel study involving a unique sample of 788 alternative high school students. Such youth typically have had problems in normal schools (conduct, drugs, etc.), and so are assigned to schools designed to deal with problematic students. Year 1 measures included participants’ self-reported e-cigarette use, and that of their peers, close friends, and parents, along with their expectations and willingness to try cigarettes and cannabis. Analysis of Year 1 data indicated that e-cigarette use by either peers or parents was significantly associated with subjects’ positive expectations of cigarette use, and their willingness to try cigarettes (all p < .01). A path analysis on the longitudinal data examined the predictive relationship between e-cigarette use and eventual (Year 2) tobacco use. The model revealed that peer, parent, and self-use of e-cigarettes were all significantly linked to willingness to use cigarettes and positive expectations of usage. These intermediate factors significantly predicted tobacco use in Year 2. A final analysis explored the relation between e-cigarettes and cannabis use. Binary logistic regression indicated that subject’s best friend’s, mother’s (but not father’s), and own-use of e-cigarettes at Year 1 were all significantly associated with Year 2 cannabis use (OR = 1.34, 1.81, 5.44, respectively, all p < .001). These data suggest that e-cigarettes, while possibly facilitating adult smokers’ cigarette-cessation desires, may be dangerous for adolescents. The analyses revealed a strong association of e-cigarette use with subsequent tobacco and cannabis use. The strong association of subjects’ e-cigarette and subsequent cannabis use implies a potential danger that should be closely monitored and controlled, especially given e-cigarette producers’ practice of using flavored products that strongly appeal to youth.

ABSTRACT. Introduction:

There has been an increasing interest in using information technology such as phone apps to promote healthier lifestyles. There are a number of apps that provide guidance about sensible drinking and recommended calorie intake but to date none that combine the two. The Food Alcohol and Calorie Tracker (FACT) combines information about sensible alcohol and food intake, helps set up eating and drinking goals and provides advice designed to promote self-management.

Methods Undergraduate students from computing and health degrees were asked to use FACT for 4 weeks and provide feedback weekly within the app concerning, how useful the app was, how easy it was to use and whether it motivated the user to track their alcohol and food intake. Each of these was scored 1-5 (Higher scores equate to more positive feedback) There were also a series of open questions, one of which asked the user to suggest ways in which FACT could be improved.

Results The app was sent to forty students (Females n=22, males = 18) and 25 (%) provided feedback. Seven (%) provide feedback for four weeks, ten for two week and eight for one week. Thus there were 57 sets of feedback in total. Eighty percent of the responses reported they had no problems using. FACT, more than seventy present that it was useful and over fifty percent reported that FACT would motivate them to monitor their calorie and alcohol intake. There were a number of suggestions for improvement of FACT most of these focused upon functionality of FACT in particular the absence of a back button and some issues around design.

Conclusions FACT shows some promise as a health intervention. Further refinements and evaluations are required and it should be tested to establish whether it has promise as a clinical/public health intervention.

ABSTRACT. Background and Purpose: Substance use and violence perpetration often co-occur among adolescents, but the causal link and its direction remain unclear. Substance use can lead to violence through a disinhibiting effect, and violence may lead to substance use as a coping strategy for dealing with distress. Few studies have examined the reciprocal effects of substance use and violence longitudinally. This study examined bidirectional effects of alcohol use and violence perpetration among a sample of Mexican early adolescents. Because substance use and violence tend to be gender-specific, these relationships were examined separately by gender and exploring two gendered forms of violence: bullying/aggression versus criminally violent behavior.

Methods: Three waves of data (N=4,830) from a feasibility trial of a school-based prevention curriculum in Mexico were collected from middle school students ( Mage=12.0, Female=49%) at 13 schools in Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey. The bidirectional effects of 30-day alcohol frequency and two forms of violence perpetration— bullying/aggression and violent criminal behavior— were examined using cross-lagged path models in Mplus, separately by gender and controlling for age, site, and treatment condition.

Results: The model with bullying/aggression had good fit to the data (χ2(4)=1.91, p=.75; CFI=1.0; RMSEA=.000; SRMR=.004). For girls only, both T1 and T2 alcohol frequency predicted later bullying/aggression, at T2 and T3. T1 bullying/aggression predicted T2 alcohol for girls only, but T2 bullying/aggression predicted T3 alcohol for both genders. The violent criminal behavior model also had good fit (χ2(4)=6.29, p=.18; CFI=.99; RMSEA=.015; SRMR=.009). For boys only, T1 and T2 alcohol frequency predicted later violent criminal behavior at T2 and T3. But violent criminal behavior predicted alcohol use only from T1 to T2 and for boys alone (β = .12, p < .01). Conclusions and Implications: Findings suggest a reciprocal relationship exists between substance use and violence perpetration, but that the type of violence is important to consider. For girls, bullying and aggression both led to and resulted from alcohol use, whereas for boys, violent acts that were more criminal in nature were relevant to understanding the origins and risks of alcohol use. Implications for substance use and violence prevention will be discussed.

ABSTRACT. Background. Refugees displacement is attaining an unprecedented level internationally. The United Nations Refugees Agency estimates >65 million refugees have been displaced due to conflict to another country. Language differences create a major challenge for health care professionals to communicate with this vulnerable population. Therefore, different technology related interventions have been used to overcome language barriers. The aim of this study is to (1) map these interventions and (2) reflect on the findings through expert interviews with doctors working with video remote interpreting in refugee care. Methods. This will be conducted in two steps, by conducting a scoping review of the literature, followed by interviews with experts. The scoping review will be based on the enhanced Arksey and O'Malley’s framework by Levac and colleagues. The interviews will include: i) medical doctors practising in reception centres in Hamburg; ii) Hamburg Public Health Department, and iii) the University Medical Center of Hamburg. Search strategy: The search will be conducted in six databases: PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, OVID, PsychInfo, Cochrane and grey literature. Inclusion criteria: i) Year of publication is between January 2000 and June 2017; ii) Language of publication is English. Exclusion criteria: i) Studies not targeting refugees; ii) Interventions outside the framework of direct medical care; (“video interpret*” OR “remote interpret*” OR translat*   OR “overcoming language barriers” OR interpret*…) AND (immigr* OR emigr* OR refugee OR "asylum seeker*" OR migrant* ) AND (“access to health care” OR “barriers for health care access” OR “medical care” OR “primary care” OR “health care” OR hospital* OR clinic* OR “medical help” ….). The remaining articles will be analyzed using Content Analysis. Interviews with experts will be conducted to reflect on these results. Conclusion. The findings of this study will be used to feed into the policy making of telemedicine geared towards refugees in Germany.

ABSTRACT. Research indicates the importance of the home learning environment (HLE) on language development and later educational success. Socio-economically deprived children can benefit from good quality HLE which can act as partial protection against the effects of disadvantage. Consequently, there is a recognised need to support families from disadvantaged backgrounds in establishing a positive HLE and to understand how families sustain good quality HLEs. This is an area that is relatively under-explored and there is a dearth of studies that have looked at which positive home learning activities are easier to implement or which ones’ parents feel most confident enacting. As cuts reduce the reach and capacity of services, public health, local government and national government are increasingly looking to engage parents as active partners in tackling disadvantage and to reduce the demands on schools and services. In response, the National Literacy Trust, in collaboration with researchers at the University of York, are conducting a pilot randomised controlled trial of the Early Words Together Programme, a 6 session parental engagement and language development programme delivered to parents of 4 to 5 year olds via trained volunteers. Funded by the Nuffield Foundation, the pilot aims to recruit 12 child-care settings and 360 families across two geographical locations in England from September 2017. The overall aim is to establish the feasibility of the programme to generate change in child language outcomes and home learning activities for low socioeconomic households. In addition, we will investigate what barriers may exist to prevent change, and, if there are any sub-groups or factors that encourage a positive HLE within the target population. The focus of this presentation will be to introduce the RCT, and highlight the need to evidence the effectiveness of short preventive parenting programmes on the HLE given the current political and economic climate.

ABSTRACT. Physically aggressive behaviours during adolescence such as bullying or fighting are associated with negative immediate and long-term outcomes for both perpetrator and victim. Many interventions have been developed to prevent and reduce these behaviours. However, these interventions are usually extensive, especially when they target high risk adolescents, lasting in some cases more than 12 months. Despite the large cost of these interventions, the effect sizes are usually small to moderate. Implementation intentions is a technique that has shown moderate to high effectiveness in reducing other behaviours such as smoking, alcohol consumption and self-harm. It involves identifying critical situations that might trigger the unwanted behaviour and making a plan to engage in alternative course of actions when those triggers are present. This presentation will introduce a protocol for a test of the effectiveness of an intervention using implementation intentions on aggression reduction in high risk UK adolescents.

ABSTRACT. Purpose Safety trainings are vital means for organizations to prevent accidents among their staff, especially in high-risk industries. However, there is no conclusive evidence of the effect of safety trainings regarding objective accident numbers. This study investigates the moderating effect of safety trainings, in terms of regularity and quality, on the expected effect of psychological and physical risks on objective accident severity. Design/Methodology Safety engineers of 232 wood- and metal processing companies assessed psychological and physical job risks the employees of those organizations face within their jobs as well as the regularity and quality of safety trainings. Accident severity for the following four years was provided by the Austrian Social Insurance for Occupational Risks (AUVA). Results Hierarchical regression analyses showed no significant results for the effect of psychological and physical risks on accident severity. However, we found a significant interaction effect of regularity of safety training in terms of physical risks (ß = -.0235, p = .01). Limitations These findings may be somewhat limited to the wood- and metallprocessing industries. Research/Practical Implications Future research should focus on the design of safety trainings to reduce accident severity among different physical and psychological job risks. Originality/Value Both, utilization of safety engineers’ expert eye and investigation of the moderation effect of safety training on job risks on accident severity is a new approach to the topic.