by Drug and Alcohol Testing Association of Canada – Mar 25, 2025

“If a young person is reporting very high levels of these traits, they’re more likely to use substances as a way to manage those traits,” said Dr. Patricia Conrod, founder of the PreVenture program, a psychiatry professor at the Université de Montréal and scientist at Sainte-Justine hospital in Montreal, in her interview with CBC News.

Specifically, the study showed that the program helped reduce the increase in the odds of substance use disorder by 35% year over year when compared to a control group. PreVenture helps teenagers manage traits that are linked to substance abuse, which include impulsivity, sensation seeking, anxiety sensitivity, and hopelessness. It includes two 90-minute workshops provided to Grade 7 students, helping them understand their personalities and teaching them tools to manage them. Moreover, PreVenture uses cognitive behavioural therapy, interactive exercises, and group discussions to find personality-specific coping strategies.

The program is currently offered in schools in five Canadian provinces, including Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia, as well as in several U.S. states. “Some substance use disorders are preventable, and we should be making sure that young people have access to the programs and the resources they need,” said Dr. Conrod. However, she noted that despite the evidence of its effectiveness, Canadian schools need sustained funding from federal and provincial sources in order to be able to make the program more accessible.

According to Christine Schwartz, professor at the Children’s Health Policy Centre at Vancouver’s Simon Fraser University, policy-makers often prioritize treatment over prevention when it comes to substance use. “It’s a little bit harder for policy-makers to put the money towards prevention knowing they may not see the benefits — and there will be benefits in many of these cases, but they’re not going to see them for several years,” she said in her interview with CBC News. “There’s been a long history of using programs that haven’t necessarily been effective… What’s happening now is that policy-makers are increasingly turning to the research evidence.”

Source: https://datac.ca/prevention-program-has-reduced-odds-of-teen-drug-use-study/