Manoa Awarded $433,225 to Combat Substance Abuse

U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Director Charles Curie, left, delivered a grant to Manoa’s Nancy Stockert for University Health Services programs to combat underage drinking and drug abuse. Lt. Gov. James Aiona, a member of the SAMSHA advisory board, was on campus for the presentation.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) awarded Manoa’s University Health Services $433,225 over three years to combat underage drinking and drug abuse. The Hawai‘i grant is one of 12 Targeted Capacity Expansion Campus Screening and Brief Intervention grants designed to expand existing campus-based medical services by integrating into student health programs both screening for substance abuse and brief interventions to motivate students to take actions needed to end alcohol or drug abuse.

Substance abuse is a well-documented problem on university campuses. The new grants will assist universities with their efforts to reduce the health and social consequences of substance abuse. The universities are expected to screen and refer students in need to appropriate treatment, utilizing either university or community-based providers.

This project will use evidence-based practices to provide on-campus health service identification and brief intervention for students with or at high risk of substance use disorders. The clinic will identify and refer students to the alcohol and other drug education program at the campus. Follow-up referral to more intensive treatment will be provided as appropriate. Other campus student services will be trained in identification and referral, including groups who currently refer students for violations for residence hall or student conduct code policies.

“A person’s life is shaped in late adolescence and early adulthood. Drug and alcohol abuse can seriously derail an individual’s emotional and social growth,” says SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie. “College and university health service centers provide an ideal setting to identify and intervene early with students who are abusing drugs or alcohol. Brief and early intervention can help keep students on track towards healthy and productive lives.”

Read the press release.

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