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Adolescent substance abuse is often linked to physical and mental health problems. Since these problems are usually treated in medical offices, these settings are ideal places to implement screening and early intervention for substance abuse, according to John Knight M.D., director of the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research at Children's Hospital Boston. Despite this opportunity, primary care providers often fail to screen their adolescent patients for use of alcohol and other drugs. In an article published in the May-June 2001 issue of Ambulatory Pediatrics, Knight suggests future studies should be done to assess the reasons for this failure and identify the training, tools and other resources providers need to improve practice patterns. This is especially timely and important considering the scarcity of adolescent substance abuse treatment resources in Massachusetts and across the nation. "Use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs is the single greatest threat to the health of our young people today," says Knight. Despite substantial efforts to combat this problem during the past decade, adolescents continue to abuse psychoactive substances, including alcohol, at alarming rates, explains Knight. Alcohol use is directly linked to the three leading causes of death among 12 - to 18-year-olds, such as motor vehicle fatalities, homicides and suicides. Over the past several years prevention efforts and treatment services have failed to substantially lower rates of alcohol and drug use and their associated problems. Medical care providers must be equipped to offer an array of treatments, including guidance, brief advice, office based interventions, and referrals to specialists. To address these inequities in substance abuse treatment, Knight will speak on Tuesday, May 22, at the Massachusetts State House in support of bill S. 611, ''An Act Establishing a Health Protection Fund.'' This bill would establish a substance abuse health protection fund and direct revenue to this fund by repealing the exemption from sales tax on alcoholic beverages for off-premise consumption, such as alcohol purchased from package stores.
''A fund of this kind would not only play an integral role in our ongoing efforts to increase the level of awareness of adolescent substance abuse, but also significantly contribute to substance abuse treatment services for all ages in Massachusetts,'' says Knight. ''A major proportion of revenues raised by passage of this bill should be specifically earmarked for adolescent screening and early intervention programs, which show tremendous potential for improving health outcomes among our young people.''
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