Use of brief interventions for drug abusing teenagers within a middle and high school setting

Promising and encouraging results have been recently reported on the use of briefer interventions for adolescent drug abusers. Because middle- and high-school-based drug abuse intervention programs have grown in popularity over the past several decades, the use of brief interventions (BIs) in school settings merits consideration.

We review several clinical and school contextual issues pertaining to the scientific efficacy, feasibility, and application of BIs for students who are abusing drugs.

Several advantages for employing BIs in a school setting are identified, including the relatively high base rate of students with mild-to-moderate drug involvement and the likelihood that school counselors can readily learn BI techniques. Caveats of implementing BIs include practical, systemic, and clinical barriers.

Despite concerns, schools are a viable setting in which to screen youth for drug abuse problems and to conduct a BI.