Can a program for Grade 7 students help end the opioid crisis? The answer is yes, according to on school-based primary prevention interventions. As noted by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, the is "a complex public health issue devastating the lives of many Canadians and their families who are experiencing accidental overdose or death from opioids." To address this crisis, many of , after problems have started or become entrenched.
In contrast, primary operates upstream in childhood—before most start engaging in substance use, misuse or experimentation. As researchers concerned with helping children avoid opioid misuse, prevention programs designed for this purpose. We found two programs that stood out for their success in preventing opioid misuse.
Both were delivered to children in and tested using rigorous evaluation methods, namely, randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Potentially life-saving interventions The program significantly reduced prescription opioid misuse among young people in Iowa and Pennsylvania, with benefits lasting up to 14 years after the program ended. The impact was also large, .
, the other successful program which was delivered in Hong Kong, significantly reduced heroin use with benefits lasting up to two years later. And each time these programs prevented a young person from misusing opioids, they potentially saved a life. Beyond intervening early, both of these successful programs shared other similarities.
Children learned endu.