SACRED Connections: A university-tribal clinical research partnership for school-based screening and brief intervention for substance use problems among Native American youth. Issue 1 (4th March 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Morris, Staci L.; Hospital, Michelle M.; Wagner, Eric F.; Lowe, John; Thompson, Michelle G.; Clarke, Rachel; Riggs, Cheryl
• Is Part Of: Journal of ethnic & cultural diversity in social work. Volume 30:Issue 1/2(2021)
• Page Start: 149
• Page End: 162
• Publication Date: 2021-03-04
• Subjects: Native-American -- tribal -- youth -- adolescents -- CBPR -- motivational interviewing -- dissemination and implementation -- RE-AIM -- university-community partnership; Social work with minorities -- Periodicals; Social work with minorities -- United States -- Periodicals; Social Work -- Periodicals; Minority Groups -- Periodicals; 362.84
• DOI: 10.1080/15313204.2020.1770654
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1531-3204

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Native American (NA) youth report higher rates of alcohol, marijuana, and drug use than U.S. adolescents from any other racial/ethnic group. Addressing this health disparity is a significant research priority across public health, minority health, and dissemination and implementation (D&I) sciences, underscoring the need for empirically-based interventions tailored for NA youth. Effective D&I with NA youth incorporates NA cultural values and involves tribal elders and stakeholders. SACRED Connections (NIDA R01DA02977) was a university-tribal research partnership that utilized a culturally derived Native-Reliance theoretical framework and a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach. A significant objective of this randomized controlled trial was to close D&I gaps utilizing the RE-AIM Model and National Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) in Health and Health Care Standards (HHS, 2019 ). Findings of this 5-year RCT revealed a statistically significant protective relationship between Native Reliance and baseline lifetime and past month alcohol and marijuana use; additionally, the likelihood of reporting marijuana use at 3 months post-intervention was significantly lower among the active condition than among the control condition. Implementation of a developmentally and NA culturally tailored brief protocol revealed: partnering with Native Americans and utilizing CBPR facilitated engagement with this hard-to-reach, underserved community; age and culture are associated with substance use severity among NA teens; a culturally adapted Motivational Interviewing (MI) brief intervention may be effective in reducing marijuana use among NA youth; the Native Reliance theory proved useful as a framework for working with this population; and RE-AIM proved helpful in conceptualizing health equity promoting D&I.