Steve Sussman1, Ping Sun, William J McCuller, Clyde W Dent. 1. Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research, Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Alhambra, CA 91803, USA. ssussma@hsc.usc.edu
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: This paper describes the 2-year follow-up of a 12-session version of an indicated drug abuse prevention program, Project Towards No Drug Abuse (TND). Self-instruction programming often is used to help youth that are at high risk for dropout and drug abuse to complete their high school education. However, a health educator-led program is much more interactive. METHODS: The effects of self-instruction versus health educator-led versions of this curriculum were examined. Eighteen schools were randomly assigned by block to one of three conditions--standard care (control), health educator-led classroom program, and self-instruction classroom program. Subjects were followed up 1 and 2 years later. Two-year results are reported here. RESULTS: The self-instruction program produced no behavioral effects relative to the standard care control condition. The 2-year follow-up results indicated maintenance of program effects on cigarette smoking and hard drug use in the health educator-led version. CONCLUSIONS: Project TND shows maintenance of effects on some drugs 2 years after program implementation, when most youth were young adults. More work is needed to learn how to maintain effects across substances. Continued exploration of modalities of implementation may be helpful.
RCT Entities:
OBJECTIVES: This paper describes the 2-year follow-up of a 12-session version of an indicated drug abuse prevention program, Project Towards No Drug Abuse (TND). Self-instruction programming often is used to help youth that are at high risk for dropout and drug abuse to complete their high school education. However, a health educator-led program is much more interactive. METHODS: The effects of self-instruction versus health educator-led versions of this curriculum were examined. Eighteen schools were randomly assigned by block to one of three conditions--standard care (control), health educator-led classroom program, and self-instruction classroom program. Subjects were followed up 1 and 2 years later. Two-year results are reported here. RESULTS: The self-instruction program produced no behavioral effects relative to the standard care control condition. The 2-year follow-up results indicated maintenance of program effects on cigarette smoking and hard drug use in the health educator-led version. CONCLUSIONS: Project TND shows maintenance of effects on some drugs 2 years after program implementation, when most youth were young adults. More work is needed to learn how to maintain effects across substances. Continued exploration of modalities of implementation may be helpful.