May 2017
Trans4ming News
An Ounce of Prevention: Celebrating National Prevention Week - May 14-20, 2017
We have much to celebrate concerning substance use prevention and mental health promotion and this week gives us an opportunity to highlight some of the many benefits of the important prevention work we are all committed to. The truth is for many of us prevention week is every week! Recently the National Council for Behavioral Health published a paper “Substance Use, Misuse and Addiction Prevention” and I encourage you to access this valuable resource.  

Here are 5 key points that can help us in our advocacy efforts and our work with communities, schools, families and youth.
  1. We must make it clear that prevention is possible. The science is indisputable. Mental illness in adults, behavioral health problems in youth and addictions in people of all ages are preventable, treatable medical conditions from which people can and do recover.

  2. We must move our prevention efforts upstream. We don’t wait for someone to have a heart attack to educate them about the importance of a healthy diet and regular exercise. Facts verify that the earlier in adolescence that someone begins to use substances, the more likely they are to develop a substance use disorder later in life. It is less costly and more humane to keep a person healthy than wait for them to become sick.

  3. We must stop doing what doesn’t work and start implementing evidence-based family, school and community-based programs that address risk and protective factors. There are a number of effective programs (including the CBSG® Program) that have been evaluated and shown to be effective in markedly reducing substance misuse and problem behaviors.

  4. We must focus on prevention across the lifespan. We don’t have the luxury of waiting for funding to catch up with the realities of peoples’ lives. By working with our partners in health care and social services, in housing and criminal justice, we can help people become resilient and stay healthy throughout their lives.

  5. Finally, we must make it clear that prevention is cost effective! It is estimated that prevention services save an average $14-$18 for every $1 spent.  
Hopefully these reminders will encourage you to continue to educate those in your spheres of influence. Preventing a problem before it begins just makes good sense - it is more cost effective, more humane and with evidence based programs and practices at our disposal it is something we can do successfully!  


Training Calendar
Check out our upcoming CBSG Facilitator Trainings. 

Amarillo on June 13th

Dallas on July 24th

Register NOW! These trainings fill up FAST!  If you try to register for either of these trainings and discover that they are full, please contact Sandi McFarland to be placed on the waiting list. 
We Want to Hear from YOU! 
If you have attended the CBSG Program Facilitator Training, you will be sent a survey 1 month, and again 6 months after being trained. This information helps us maintain and receive grant funding to help offset facilitator training costs. Our surveys are brief!

We appreciate you taking a moment to complete these surveys!
The Trans4m Center | 214.887.0726 | trans4mcenter.org