Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration

CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News
April 30, 2004, Vol. 04-51

SAMHSA Unveils Strategic Prevention Framework

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration announced yesterday the availability of funding to implement a new Strategic Prevention Framework to advance community-based programs for substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion, and align them with the HHS HealthierUS initiative. SAMHSA will provide $45 million in cooperative agreements with states to launch this effort.

The idea is to use public health research findings and apply this knowledge, along with evidence-based prevention programs that promote mental health and prevent substance abuse, to create healthier communities. The Framework uses a five-step process known to promote youth development, reduce risk-taking behaviors, build on assets, and prevent problem behaviors across the lifespan. The five-steps are: (1) profile needs and response capacity; (2) mobilize and build needed capacity; (3) develop a comprehensive strategic plan; (4) implement evidence-based prevention programs, policies and strategies; and (5) evaluate program effectiveness, sustaining what has worked well.

"HealthierUS is an aggressive plan to improve overall public health by capitalizing on the power of prevention. The Strategic Prevention Framework is aligned with President Bush's and Secretary Tommy G. Thompson 's HealthierUS initiative," SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie explained. "Our goal is to aid Americans in living healthier, longer lives. The Strategic Prevention Framework has the potential to bring together multiple funding streams from multiple sources to create the true cross-program and cross-system approach that health promotion and disease prevention demand."

The Strategic Prevention Framework will provide grants to states through the office of the governor for programs that will: prevent onset and reduce progression of substance abuse, including childhood and underage drinking programs; reduce substance abuse-related problems in communities; and build prevention capacity and infrastructure in states and communities. Applications for Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grants are due by July 2, 2004.

States will be funded up to five years to create a Strategic Prevention Framework in partnership with community-level organizations. SAMHSA anticipates funding up to 20 awards of up to million per year in fiscal year 2004 under grant announcement, SP-04-002. Fifteen percent of the total grant award is expected to be used to provide leadership and coordination of projects within the state; hire specific staff; conduct a statewide needs assessment; establish and maintain a State Epidemiological Workgroup; develop a statewide strategic plan; conduct on-going monitoring and oversight of the grant project; conduct a state-level evaluation of the project; and provide training and technical assistance to support the project.

The Strategic Prevention Framework is grounded in six key principles:

• Prevention is an ordered set of steps along a continuum to promote individual, family, and community health, prevent mental and behavioral disorders, support resilience and recovery, and prevent relapse. Prevention activities range from deterring diseases and behaviors that contribute to them, to delaying the onset of disease and mitigating the severity of symptoms, to reducing the related problems in communities. This concept is based on the Institute of Medicine model that recognizes the importance of a whole spectrum of interventions.
  
  
• Prevention is prevention is prevention -- The common components of effective prevention for the individual, family or community within a public health model are the same--whether the focus is on preventing or reducing the effects of cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, substance abuse or mental illness.
  
  
• Common risk and protective factors exist for many mental health and substance use problems. Good prevention focuses on these common risk factors that can be altered. For example, family conflict, low school readiness, and poor social skills increase the risk for conduct disorders and depression, which in turn increase the risk for adolescent substance abuse, delinquency, and violence. Protective factors such as strong family bonds, social skills, opportunities for school success, and involvement in community activities can foster resilience and mitigate the influence of risk factors.
  
  
• Resilience is built by developing assets in individuals, families, and communities through evidenced-based health promotion and prevention strategies. For example, youth who have relationships with caring adults, good schools, and safe communities develop optimism, good problem-solving skills, and other assets that enable them to rebound from adversity and go on with life with a sense of mastery, competence, and hope.
  
  
• Systems of prevention services work better than service silos. Working together, researchers and communities have produced a number of highly effective prevention strategies and programs. Implementing these strategies within a broader system of services increases the likelihood of successful, sustained prevention activities.
  
  
• Baseline data, common assessment tools, and outcomes shared across service systems can promote accountability and effective prevention efforts. A Strategic Prevention Framework can make it easier for federal agencies, states, and communities to identify common needs and risk factors, adopt assessment tools to measure and track results, and target outcomes to be achieved.

Application kits for these Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grants (SP 04-002) are available on the web at www.samhsa.gov and go to "grant opportunities" or from SAMHSA's clearinghouse by calling 1-800-729-6686. Applications are due by July 2, 2004.

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The Center for Mental Health Services is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, United States Department of Health and Human Services.