Community Description
Miami-Dade is one of the most highly populated counties in Florida. According to Data USA (2023), the county has a population of about 2.7 million people. The county has invested considerably in the education sector, with the majority of the people showing high literacy levels. The county has a significant median household income of about $53,975 (Data USA, 2023).
Alcohol usage among teenagers in Miami-Dade is extremely worrying. The Florida Department of Children & Families (DCF) (2022) report shows that about 32.1 percent of teenagers engage in alcohol abuse, with a further 40.7 percent of cases occurring in high school and 20.7 percent in middle school. Establishing support networks that also incorporate the participation of learning institutions remains key to curbing the growing alcohol use among teens.
Problem Description
Considerable numbers of Miami-Dade teenagers abuse alcohol, with the majority involved in binge drinking. The Florida DCF (2022) report shows that boys lead in alcohol consumption at 36.2 percent against girls at 28 percent. Alcohol abuse is high during the teens’ high school education, and this occurs between the ages of 15 and 17 (Florida Department of Children & Families, 2022).
Part of the contributing factors to increased alcohol usage are increased access to alcoholic beverages, social influences, and peer pressure. However, most of the drinking teens are not cognizant of these potential consequences. Concerted efforts that include local law enforcers, sensitization on the dangers of alcohol, and community and parent involvement remain key to mitigating the situation.
SBIRT Model
Description
SBIRT refers to Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment. Screening involves using standardized, authenticated tools to evaluate patients for harmful behaviors linked to substance use. Brief intervention allows healthcare providers to interact with patients to understand the challenge, provide advice, and respond to questions. Referral to treatment entails directing patients to available therapy as necessary. SBIRT is used to avert or lower the use of substances to foil-related health effects (Keen et al., 2021). The tool does not necessitate wide training before implementation by healthcare providers.
Application
SBIRT provides an evidence-based method to recognize persons using alcohol and other substances. It is incorporated into assessments to offer a reliable and valid approach to identifying and enhancing substance user outcomes. The SBIRT program can last between nine and eighteen months. Screening to Brief Intervention (S2BI) has been deployed to assess youth using alcohol (Peachey et al., 2022). Interventions such as training and sensitization are appropriate for teens.
Example
Nurses can adopt the SBIRT approach to identify alcohol abuse among teenagers and adults. In this case, role play and a script will be used to demonstrate the application of this tool. The tool is valid and consistent in identifying substance abuse in individuals (Keen et al., 2021). The challenge includes ineffectiveness in collecting data from electronic health records to allow initiation of implementation (Keen et al., 2021). Comprehensive training and education should be arranged to enhance SBIRT’s effectiveness.
Outcomes
SBIRT implementation improves awareness and inspires change, establishes health improvement, and allows cost reduction. Assessing the deployed intervention will help document the success and improve the efficiency in inefficient areas (Peachey et al., 2022). Thereafter, the deployed changes should be monitored, and improvements should be implemented accordingly.
Community Resource
Lotus Behavioral Health is a facility that provides behavioral health services to teenagers in Miami. It is situated in Spring Villas Point and can be reached via (407) 305-7006. It meets all the 4A’s requirements and offers services that include family and teen substance use and mental well-being assessment, relapse prevention, and addiction treatment. The facility strives to close the communication gap between the child and the parent to enhance the free exchange of thoughts and emotions.
Implications for Practice
Alcohol can result in poor academic performance, reduced involvement in youth activities, increased risks of suicide, violence, and liver disease. The available data represent the magnitude of the problem with teenage alcohol use and inform interventions to help reduce the challenge. SBIRT interventions provide an adequate and consistent approach to identifying substance abuse. The methods remain appropriate in handling alcohol and other substance abuse.
Summary
In conclusion, Miami-Dade is the most populous county in Florida. Alcohol usage among teenagers is a serious challenge owing to disturbing epidemiological reports showing that 36.2% of boys and 28% of girls aged 15 and 17 indulge in alcohol. The SBIRT method offers a research-backed way to detect individuals who consume alcohol or other substances. S2BI resources can be deployed to screen the population and provide reliable data to inform the interventions for healthcare providers. This will go a long way in lowering the effects of alcohol among teens.
References
Data USA. (2023). Miami-Dade County, FL. Data USA. Web.
Florida Department of Children & Families. 2022 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey. Myflfamily. Web.
Keen, A., Thoele, K., Oruche, U., & Newhouse, R. (2021). Perceptions of the barriers, facilitators, outcomes, and helpfulness of strategies to implement screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment in acute care. Implementation Science, 16(1), 1–7. Web.
Peachey, B., Bransby, K., & Kitko, L. (2022). Addressing adolescent substance use through the integration of SBIRT into a primary care clinic: A quality improvement project. Journal of Substance Use, 1–6. Web.