© 2018 Padwa et al. This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms. php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/). By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms (https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php). Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation 2018:9 137–142 Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation Dovepress submit your manuscript | www.dovepress.com Dovepress 137 RApid CommuniCAtion open access to scientific and medical research open Access Full text Article http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/SAR.S177865 Adapting substance use brief interventions for adolescents: perspectives of adolescents living with adults in substance use disorder treatment Howard padwa 1 Erick G Guerrero 2,3 Veronica Serret 2 melvin Rico 4 Lillian Gelberg 4–6 1 university of California, Los Angeles, department of psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, integrated Substance Abuse programs, Los Angeles, CA, uSA; 2 university of Southern California, Suzanne dworak- peck School of Social Work, Los Angeles, CA, uSA; 3 university of Southern California, marshall School of Business, Los Angeles, CA, uSA; 4 university of California, Los Angeles, davi d Geffen School of medicine, department of Family medicine, Los Angeles, CA, uSA; 5 university of California, Los Angeles, Fielding School of public Health, department of Health policy and management, Los Angeles, CA, uSA; 6 department of Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, office of Healthcare transformation and innovat ion, Los Angeles, CA, uSA Background: Brief interventions (BIs) have shown potential to reduce both alcohol and drug use. Although BIs for adults have been studied extensively, little is known about how to adapt them to meet the needs and preferences of adolescents. This article examines adolescents’ preferences to consider when adapting BIs for use with adolescents. Methods: Eighteen adolescents (age 9–17 years) living in Los Angeles County with adults receiving substance use disorder treatment were interviewed and asked about their perspectives on how to adapt a BI originally developed for adults for use with adolescents. Questions focused on adolescents’ preferences for who should deliver BIs, how BIs should be delivered, and what content they would want to be included in BIs. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded using summative content analysis. Results: Adolescents did not express any discernable opinions concerning who delivers BIs or what content they would want to be included, but they did share perspectives on how BIs should be delivered. Most adolescents did not endorse incorporating text messaging or social media into BIs. Instead they preferred having BIs delivered face-to-face or over the telephone. They reported that they did not want BIs to incorporate text messaging or social media due to concerns about trust, the quality of information they would receive, and challenges communi- cating in writing instead of speaking. Conclusion: Although the study has limitations because of its small sample size, findings indicate that adolescents may not want text messaging or social media to be incorporated into BIs for substance use. These findings warrant further research and consideration, particularly as work to enhance BIs for adolescents continues. Keywords: adolescents, substance use, brief interventions, SBIRT, health communication preferences Introduction In the USA, adolescent substance use remains a significant public health problem. 1,2 Approximately 9.2% of US adolescents aged 12–17 years report having used alcohol in the previous month, and 7.9% report past month drug use. 3 These adolescents are at increased risk for injury, motor vehicle accidents, risky sexual behavior, victimiza- tion, substance use disorders, and neurodevelopmental issues that result from the use of psychoactive substances. 4,5 Brief interventions (BIs) – conversations that focus on encouraging healthy choices and reducing risk behaviors – hold promise as tools that can help motivate adolescents to reduce their substance use. 6–14 BIs focus on facilitating behavior change among Correspondence: Howard padwa university of California, integrated Substance Abuse programs, 11075 Santa monica Boulevard, Suite 200, Los Angeles, CA 90025, uSA tel +1 310 968 3914 Email hpadwa@ucla.edu Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation downloaded from https://www.dovepress.com/ by 18.206.13.133 on 26-May-2020 For personal use only. 1 / 1