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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 9, 2012)
vernonia prevention coalition october9 2012 15 The content on this page is provided by the Vernonia Prevention Coalition Be a Piece of the Puzzle Working Together Towards a Safe and Healthy Community By DeAnna Pearl It is not uncommon for preven- tion professionals to hear: “What are you doing to prevent [insert topic here]?” A better question would be is “How do we know if prevention is working?” The measurement of preven- tion activities is possible, but they are measured differently to the “how” they are measured. Further, it needs to be un- derstood what is being measured. It is often not sufficient to measure outcome: number of kids participated. A more effective measurement would be how often did they participate, what was there level of engagement, what was the environment like when they participated and who did they par- ticipate with. Even greater, how did they demonstrate their understanding after participating. Measuring effectiveness is not always done at the level of final outcomes. Often, the processes and sys- tems (or outputs) that lead to preferred outcomes are measured when ultimate outcome measurement is impossible. In the last 10 years, prevention professionals have been focusing on en- vironmental factors rather than individ- ual factors. Factors such as laws, ordi- nances, information resources, training opportunities, events supporting a safe and healthy community, access to health care, enforcement of laws and support of policy changes if needed. One way to categorize preven- tion strategies is to consider those that at- tempt to alter the environments in which individual children grow, learn, and ma- ture (individualized environments) and those that attempt to alter the environ- ment in which all children encounter threats to their health--including illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco (shared en- vironment). Individual Environment - Much of what we have traditionally done in prevention is in this category. As seen in figure 1, change agents in individual- ized environments may include families, schools, the faith community, and health care providers. Generally, strategies at this level seek to socialize, instruct, guide, and counsel children in ways that increase their resistance to health risks. Specific programs may teach parenting skills to parents or life skills to chil- dren, educate parents and children about health risks, communicate rules and ex- pectations, or provide specialized ser- vices to youth at high risk. All of these individualized strategies seek to prepare and assist individual children in coping with a world that presents myriad temp- tations and potential threats to their health and well-being. Community or Shared Envi- ronment – While we can offer a child or family many skills they can utilize to help make healthy choices, they also need an envi- ronment where making healthy choices are normal. Figure 2 rep- resents the world in which chil- dren face and cope with health threats in the shared environment. The shared environment can be a neighborhood, town, city, state, or the nation as a whole. Prop- erly designed and managed, the shared environment can support healthy behavior and thwart risky behavior for all children, regard- less of how well prepared they may be by their individualized environments. Successful environmen- tal prevention requires a clearly defined purpose that evolves from local assess- ment of problems. This unifying pur- pose carries participants past challenges posed by resistance from those benefit- ing from the current ATOD status quo. Participants must think ahead to assure that the changes attained are supported, enforced and sustained. For example, according to our state, county and local data, RX abuse, theft and related crime is on a sharp rise; Vernonia is no exception. However, youth report a lower abuse rate than two years ago but still report abuse. Accord- ing to the National Institute of Drug Addiction (NIDA), the number one way youth access prescription drugs is right in their bathroom cabinet. T h e Vernonia Prevention Coalition and the Vernonia Police Department assessed how we could best reduce access. On September 29 th , the VPD participated in the “National RX Take Back Day.” But an even greater long term solution is the placement of a permanent RX Deposi- tory, purchased by the Vernonia Preven- tion Coalition (VPC), so that individuals can clean out their bathroom cupboards of unused or unwanted prescriptions and OTC drugs that youth can have access too; thus reducing the access; thus re- ducing the potential harm of RX abuse. The bottom line: reducing the access to illegal and prescription drugs will over time, greatly reduce the potential harm to our kids while giving them a greater opportunity to reach their full potential and brain development. outcome measurements are actually the increased recognition of efforts made by groups and individuals whom service Vernonia. Even greater, the in- creased participation of youth involved in supporting healthier and safer com- munities is at its all-time high for the last five years. This in turn reflects the reduction of self-harm by youth. Still further, this invigorates the community to work together to support a safe and healthy community. Together we ARE working to- wards developing safe and healthy com- munity where working together is the celebrated and positive outcomes are the norm. If you would like to know more about the VPC or opportunities to work towards a safe and healthy community, please contact DeAnna Pearl, Director, @ (503) 369-7370 or DeAnna@verno- nia-or.gov. The VPC’s mission is to develop safe and healthy neighborhoods through collaborative planning, community ac- tion, policy advocacy and enforcement. It would be safe to say most of Vernonia and its surrounding communities want safe and healthy neighborhoods. The Coalition goes even one step further. With keeping our mission in mind, it is the 12 Sector representatives whom shape the delivery of the message and the development of the community ac- tion, policy advocacy and enforcement that make sense for them. All the while keeping in mind the collective outcome of community members whom feel they live in a safe and healthy neighborhood. Bottom line National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK (8255) suicidepreventionlifeline.org Are you feeling desperate, alone or hopeless? Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline a free, 24-hour hotline available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Your call will be routed to the nearest crisis center to you. Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline 1-800-273-TALK (8255) Press 1 In Vernonia: 97% of 6th graders say their parents would feel it is wrong or very wrong to smoke marijuana vs 76% of 11th graders. 100% of 6th graders say their parents would feel it is wrong or very wrong to smoke cigarettes vs 88% of 11th graders. In April of 2012 Vernonia Youth Reported: 6th graders had NO marijuana abuse in last 30 days 8th graders had 14.5% marijuana abuse in last 30 days 11th graders had 31% in last 30 days DON’T STOP TALKING!
