Counting the stitches that count: preventive intervention promises and public health

Continued public support for the design, implementation, and dissemination of preventive interventions depends on achievement of four major criteria: (a) Reductions in the incidence or prevalence rates of diagnosable emotional and behavioral disorders, (b) reductions in the need for mental health services through effective primary and secondary interventions, (c) enhancement of the effectiveness of obtained services as screening and early detection efforts are implemented, and (d) reductions in the nation's health care costs associated with emotional and behavioral dysfunctions. Strategies including risk reduction, risk avoidance, health promotion, empowerment, and resource development are preventive insofar as they contribute to achievement of the aforementioned outcomes.