Reducing alcohol and other drug-related harm in young people: Evaluation of a youth engagement program

Deakin University's RuralLife alcohol and other drug (AOD) research initiative was commissioned by St John of God Hospital and Barwon Youth to evaluate their Youth Engagement Program (YEP), which is an AOD harm-reduction program intended to engage young people with AOD problems in a region that has a higher-than-state-average proportion of young residents. YEP harm-reduction strategies include assertive and flexible outreach and education programs including alcohol awareness days conducted at local high schools. The YEP evaluation was based on two major components: collection and analysis of routinely collected YEP monitoring data, and interviews with key stakeholders in the program. The paper describes the YEP program, the aims and methods of the evaluation, the quantitative and qualitative findings, and recommendations as to how this and similar programs could be improved.