Invited National Prevention Network (NPN) Roundtable: How can Prevention Scientists Help States, Communities, and Prevention Practitioners Reduce Substance Abuse?

Researchers, practitioners, decision-makers, and funders often work in parallel universes while addressing the same public health challenge. Substance Use Disorders (SUD) in general and opioid use disorder (OUD) continue to exact a tremendous toll on individuals, communities, and the larger society. The importance of prevention has never been more important as more individuals die from overdoses than car crashes.

The development and dissemination of evidence-based prevention strategies (programs, policies, and practices) have steadily increased during the last two decades. Currently there are approximately XXX number of strategies that report some level of evidence toward the prevention or reduction of substance misuse and abuse among youth and young adults. Determining how to select and implement the most appropriate and effective prevention strategy can be a challenge for local communities and the large systems that support/fund these efforts.

This roundtable was developed to facilitate a discussion between prevention practitioners and prevention scientist and how best to meet each other needs. Using an interactive dialogue approach, prevention stakeholders will engage prevention scientists to develop strategies that improve or enhance the relationship between prevention stakeholders (practitioners, decision-makers, and funders) and prevention scientists.

The interactive dialogue approach will select a series of audience generated topics to be discussed in 15-minute intervals to maximize participation and cover more topics during the session. The overarching subtheme will focus on knowledge and research gaps from the practitioner perspective. Potential topics include: identifying EBPPPs – in the absence of NREPP; developing an up-to-date evidence-base for environmental strategies; what prevention looks like in the opioid crisis; prevention in the changing marijuana policy landscape; programs, policies, and practices for special populations; updates or new programs to interest technology savvy youth; prevention in new settings (e.g. after school programs); Increasing program feasibility - streamlining (fewer sessions, less time) and costs/resources; training practitioners to be savvy consumers of prevention science; need for cross-program, practice, and policy measures and tracking to assess effectiveness (e.g. SOR grants); and finding the funding and resources to address the knowledge and research gaps.