BRATTLEBORO — The Brattleboro Area Prevention Coalition (BAPC) and Brattleboro Union High School partnered to hold a “Community Conversation on Preventing Teen Prescription Drug Misuse” on April 29. The event was co-hosted with members of the BUHS's ATI 802 Above the Influence Club.
The conversation was organized in response to the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which reported that 1 in 5 BUHS students have misused a stimulant and/or pain reliever/opiate in their lifetime, with 1 in 10 stating they have done so in the past 30 days.
Nearly 50 people attended from our community and joined in the conversation, including teens, parents, law enforcement, school staff, service providers, and medical providers.
The event provided a great opportunity for youth and adults to work on teen prescription drug misuse, including what messages teens are receiving, how teens are perceiving medication misuse, and the reasons teens are engaging in these behaviors. Groups generated interesting discussions and developed solid, creative action steps.
Special thanks to BCTV's Maria Dominguez for filming the event, available on their website for streaming. BAPC will also have the video and written summary of the conversations at brattleboroareapreventioncoalition.org.
The event would not have been possible without BUHS staff Maryanne Kinney and Linda Heimerdinger; and ATI 802 members Nancy Young, Olivia Wright, Alexa Wainwright, Rebecca Freeman, and Carie Davis.
A workgroup of teens and adults will be created late summer or early fall to develop and implement strategies based on the information gathered from the conversation.
Contact BAPC at 802-257-2175 if you are interested in taking an active role in helping to prevent teen prescription drug misuse in our community.