DENVER, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Patricia Russo, chairman of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America today provided keynote remarks and joined Steve Pasierb, Partnership CEO and Ken Winters, PhD., chairman of the organization's science advisory board and professor at the University of Minnesota, to review a number of new research-based programs from the Partnership at the National Prevention Network Prevention Research Conference.

According to the latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health, nine million people in America under the age of 26 need help for substance abuse and addiction. In response to the broad needs of families, the Partnership has developed science-based tools and interactive resources that guide parents from preventing drug and alcohol abuse in their families to intervening when they think their child is having a problem. They also give parents information about finding treatment for a child and helping a child who is in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. In today's session, titled "Translating Science Into Practice," Pasierb and Winters addressed the organization's formal development process for these resources by translating the latest behavioral and addiction research into helpful, timely tools that meet the needs of parents.

"We have developed Time to Talk, Time to Act and Time to Get Help, groundbreaking resources focused in the areas of prevention, intervention and treatment, respectively," said Pasierb. "Each of these and several additional resources were developed with guidance from our Science Advisory Board and Parent Advisory Board. They feature tools, guides and online communities and provide information, action steps and personal support for parents. We work to help parents gain a better understanding of teen and young adult alcohol and drug abuse, to get support from experts and other parents who have been there and to help them find the right help for their child and family."

Additionally, the Partnership's new Intervention and Treatment e-books, developed in collaboration with parents and leading science experts, are free, downloadable guides and are written for parents to reference or share with others.

As part of grassroots efforts in communities across the country, the Partnership also offers a series of multimedia community education programs. These provide drug and alcohol prevention and early intervention education for parents and youth.

"Building on our expertise in substance abuse education, we are working together with key community stakeholders in prevention and treatment to inform parents about today's drug and alcohol landscape," continued Pasierb. "We want to equip parents with comprehensive tools to be more effective in dealing with these issues, give them powerful and informative insights about specific drug threats and what they can do to stop the danger from taking root."

"After a decade of progress, witnessed by declining drug, alcohol and tobacco use among teens, we're now beginning to see some disturbing data, starting with weakening anti-drug attitudes among teens. Fewer than one third of teens now agree strongly that they don't want to hang around drug users and one third of teens say they believe prescription pain relievers are not addictive," said Patricia Russo. "It's a challenging time right now to be working in the field of substance abuse prevention and treatment. The result of all this is not fair, but it's undeniable: the burden is increasingly falling on parents and families. That is why the Partnership has developed these resources for parents to address any need they have and be the partner in helping them raise safe and healthy teens."

About The Partnership

The Partnership at Drugfree.org is a nonprofit organization that helps parents prevent, intervene in and find treatment for drug and alcohol use by their children. Bringing together renowned scientists, parent experts and communications professionals, the Partnership translates current research on teen behavior, addiction and treatment into easy to understand resources at drugfree.org. Through its nationwide community education programs, the Partnership educates and mobilizes local community efforts to address drug threats at the grassroots level, including methamphetamine and prescription drug abuse, and also provides parent training and teen programs that help prevent teen substance abuse. The Partnership depends on donations from individuals, corporations, foundations and government. The Partnership thanks SAG/AFTRA and the advertising and media industries for their ongoing generosity.

SOURCE Partnership for a Drug-Free America