None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Crime and substance use harms are not distributed equitably among young people but are concentrated in a relatively small proportion of high-risk young people. That these harms are disproportionately high among Indigenous Australians has been well documented: they are 3-5 times more likely than non-Indigenous Australians to be hospitalised for mental/ behavioural disorders from cannabis and multiple drug use; tobacco-related diseases are up to 24 times more prevalent ; and all-cause alcohol-related disease and injury is twice as prevalent for Indigenous males and seven times greater for Indigenous females. Young Indigenous Australians are particularly vulnerable: rates of alcohol-related suicide among 15-29 year old Indigenous Australians are four (males) and five (females) times higher than for non-Indigenous Australians; and more than 50% of 10-17 year old juvenile detainees are Indigenous, despite Aboriginal Australians comprising only an estimated 2% of the population. Recent data suggest that attempting to engage with Indigenous Australians in the first half of their teenage years may be most effective: harmful levels of alcohol consumption in the previous month was reported by 69% of 18-25 year olds and 20% of 12-15 year olds, indicating a rapid up-scaling of harmful drinking over a relatively short-time period. Survey participants identified multiple risk factors (primarily family issues, a lack of social activity and a preference for spirits), suggesting a multi-component intervention that simultaneously addresses multiple issues would be promising. Systematic reviews of the Indigenous literature have identified three critical limitations: there have been few evaluations of interventions to reduce substance use among young Indigenous Australians; those that do exist are one dimensional; and there have been no economic evaluations. The aim of this study is to quantify the benefits of a multi-component intervention for high risk young people, with a focus on Indigenous young people.
Interventions
The intervention comprises multiple components including strategies for engagement, education and skill development, personal development and empowerment, and case management support. These components incorporate elements from established interventions, such as the Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach (ACRA) and empowerment approaches such as Family Well Being (FWB), as well as elements devised by and tailored to individual communities. Consistent with a complex public health trial and th
The intervention comprises multiple components including strategies for engagement, education and skill development, personal development and empowerment, and case management support. These components incorporate elements from established interventions, such as the Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach (ACRA) and empowerment approaches such as Family Well Being (FWB), as well as elements devised by and tailored to individual communities. Consistent with a complex public health trial and the stepped wedge evaluation design, the intervention elements will be tailored and implemented in one community, then tailored and implemented in the next community on a sustained, on-going basis (ie: there is not pre-defined intervention period). Nevertheless, the intervention will be implemented in each community for a minimum of 3 months. Regular formal meetings between the implementation and the evaluation teams will be implemented to improve adherence to the agreed intervention protocols, and adherence will be assessed by identifying the perceptions and acceptability of the intervention to young people and the staff delivering the intervention.
Sponsors
University of NSW
Study design
Allocation
Non-randomised trial
Intervention model
Other
Primary purpose
Prevention
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
12 Years to 22 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Aged 12-22 years; * At high risk of dropping out of school or involvement in crime, as evidenced by the submission of an EOI referral from a school deputy principal or principal, a parent/legal guardian or a police officer/legal-related source.
Exclusion criteria
* Not living in a participating community
Outcome results
None listed