ASSESSING SUBSTANCE-ABUSE AMONG HEALTH-CARE STUDENTS AND THE EFFICACYOF EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTIONS

Approximately 10 per cent of nurses are chemically dependent, and, for many, substance abuse begins while attending nursing school. Faculty must be able to assess the extent of the problem, understand the contr ibuting factors, recognize signs and symptoms, and use educational int erventions in identifying and preventing chemical dependency in nurses . Beginning in 1989, the authors sampled all entering students in four colleges on a health science campus using the Standardized Substance Abuse Attitude Survey and obtained resurvey data from two of the colle ges' 1989 entering classes in fall 1991. Each college developed educat ional interventions. Some clear differences between nursing and pharma cy students emerged and indicated that a greater emphasis on drug and alcohol education can pay dividends. Establishing a data base over a p eriod of more than 2 years provides a foundation to evaluate further i nterventions. Copyright (C) 1997 by W.B. Saunders Company