The Public Health Model of substance abuse prevention includes three elements: an agent (substance of abuse), a host (in our work, teens) and the environment (other influential factors in the lives of teens). This model is an environmental approach. We briefly discussed the environmental approach in the March issue of Coalition Connections. Effective community-based substance abuse prevention uses this model because it addresses both the cause and consequences that impact norms, systems, groups and individuals.

The first step in the environmental approach to prevention is assessment. To engage in effective prevention strategies, coalitions must have an accurate picture of the community. One of the most powerful measurement tools available to prevention coalitions is surveys. The Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati is currently fielding the following surveys:

• Student Drug Use Survey: Conducted biannually, this census survey measures youth substance use and youth perceptions and attitudes of substance use. Around 60,000 7th to 12th grade students take the survey from public and private schools across southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky. The 2010 survey results will be released in mid-April. Find out more about our past surveys.
  
• Community Readiness Surveys: One of the first steps in coalition building is to field a community readiness survey. Members of the target community or neighborhood are asked about their perceptions of youth drinking and drug use in the community and what issues they feel are significant in their community. These surveys traditionally use open-ended questions and take more of a short interview format so coalition volunteers get first-hand feedback facing the problems in the community. Thinking about one for your community? Contact Tommy Koopman.
  
• Community Festival Survey: As part of an initiative to reduce underage drinking and improve responsible service of alcohol at religious and community festivals, the CDFGC has been collecting surveys online from festival planners. Festival planners can take the survey online.
  
• Law Enforcement Survey: This survey is collecting information about the attitudes and practices of local law enforcement officials regarding enforcement of underage drinking laws. The responses from this survey help us improve our partnerships with police departments and better target our efforts to increase enforcement. Police officers and other enforcement officials can take the survey online.
  
• Parent Survey: As part of the Parents Who Host initiative, we are currently collecting responses on our parent survey. If you are the parent of a middle or high school youth, the Coalition is seeking your help. Please take the survey online now, or request hard copies of the survey to distribute to other parents in your community.
  

Please contact Tony Martinez at 513.751.8000 if you have questions about any of the surveys or how we use the data. Next month: The Prom!