Reducing Underage Drinking

Reducing Underage Drinking
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 761
Release: 2004-03-26
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309089352

Alcohol use by young people is extremely dangerous - both to themselves and society at large. Underage alcohol use is associated with traffic fatalities, violence, unsafe sex, suicide, educational failure, and other problem behaviors that diminish the prospects of future success, as well as health risks â€" and the earlier teens start drinking, the greater the danger. Despite these serious concerns, the media continues to make drinking look attractive to youth, and it remains possible and even easy for teenagers to get access to alcohol. Why is this dangerous behavior so pervasive? What can be done to prevent it? What will work and who is responsible for making sure it happens? Reducing Underage Drinking addresses these questions and proposes a new way to combat underage alcohol use. It explores the ways in which may different individuals and groups contribute to the problem and how they can be enlisted to prevent it. Reducing Underage Drinking will serve as both a game plan and a call to arms for anyone with an investment in youth health and safety.

Homelessness, Health, and Human Needs

Homelessness, Health, and Human Needs
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 257
Release: 1988-02-01
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309038324

There have always been homeless people in the United States, but their plight has only recently stirred widespread public reaction and concern. Part of this new recognition stems from the problem's prevalence: the number of homeless individuals, while hard to pin down exactly, is rising. In light of this, Congress asked the Institute of Medicine to find out whether existing health care programs were ignoring the homeless or delivering care to them inefficiently. This book is the report prepared by a committee of experts who examined these problems through visits to city slums and impoverished rural areas, and through an analysis of papers written by leading scholars in the field.

Substance Use Disorders in the U.S. Armed Forces

Substance Use Disorders in the U.S. Armed Forces
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 350
Release: 2013-03-21
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309260558

Problems stemming from the misuse and abuse of alcohol and other drugs are by no means a new phenomenon, although the face of the issues has changed in recent years. National trends indicate substantial increases in the abuse of prescription medications. These increases are particularly prominent within the military, a population that also continues to experience long-standing issues with alcohol abuse. The problem of substance abuse within the military has come under new scrutiny in the context of the two concurrent wars in which the United States has been engaged during the past decade-in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) and Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn). Increasing rates of alcohol and other drug misuse adversely affect military readiness, family readiness, and safety, thereby posing a significant public health problem for the Department of Defense (DoD). To better understand this problem, DoD requested that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) assess the adequacy of current protocols in place across DoD and the different branches of the military pertaining to the prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs). Substance Use Disorders in the U.S. Armed Forces reviews the IOM's task of assessing access to SUD care for service members, members of the National Guard and Reserves, and military dependents, as well as the education and credentialing of SUD care providers, and offers specific recommendations to DoD on where and how improvements in these areas could be made.

Communities in Action

Communities in Action
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 583
Release: 2017-04-27
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309452961

In the United States, some populations suffer from far greater disparities in health than others. Those disparities are caused not only by fundamental differences in health status across segments of the population, but also because of inequities in factors that impact health status, so-called determinants of health. Only part of an individual's health status depends on his or her behavior and choice; community-wide problems like poverty, unemployment, poor education, inadequate housing, poor public transportation, interpersonal violence, and decaying neighborhoods also contribute to health inequities, as well as the historic and ongoing interplay of structures, policies, and norms that shape lives. When these factors are not optimal in a community, it does not mean they are intractable: such inequities can be mitigated by social policies that can shape health in powerful ways. Communities in Action: Pathways to Health Equity seeks to delineate the causes of and the solutions to health inequities in the United States. This report focuses on what communities can do to promote health equity, what actions are needed by the many and varied stakeholders that are part of communities or support them, as well as the root causes and structural barriers that need to be overcome.

The Government's alcohol strategy

The Government's alcohol strategy
Author: Great Britain: Home Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Total Pages: 36
Release: 2012-03-23
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9780101833622

This strategy signals a radical change in the approach to irresponsible drinking and resultant criminal and anti-social behaviour and the increasing health problems created by the current levels of alcohol consumption. In 2012-11 there were nearly 1 million alcohol-related violent crimes and 1.2 million alcohol-related hospital admissions. The problem has developed because cheap alcohol is too readily available; increasing numbers of people drink at home before going on a night out ("pre-loading"); the Licensing Act failed to deliver a cafâ culture; too many places cater for people who drink to get drunk regardless of the consequences for themselves or others; and individuals who cause the problems have not been challenged enough over their behaviour. The availability of cheap alcohol will be curtailed through the introduction of a minimum unit price for alcohol. The exact level is to be agreed, but if it was 40p, it is estimated there would be 50,000 fewer crimes each year and 900 fewer alcohol-related deaths by the end of the decade. Consultations will also aim to end multi-buy promotions. Local areas and agencies will be given powers to challenge people's behaviour and make it easier to take action against, and even close down, problem premises. Other measures include early morning restriction orders and a late night levy so that businesses open late contribute to the costs of policing. The drinks industry has a crucial role to play in changing the drinking culture towards positive socialising. And the risks of excessive consumption will be widely circulated.

Changing Numbers, Changing Needs

Changing Numbers, Changing Needs
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 327
Release: 1996-10-11
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0309055482

The reported population of American Indians and Alaska Natives has grown rapidly over the past 20 years. These changes raise questions for the Indian Health Service and other agencies responsible for serving the American Indian population. How big is the population? What are its health care and insurance needs? This volume presents an up-to-date summary of what is known about the demography of American Indian and Alaska Native populationâ€"their age and geographic distributions, household structure, employment, and disability and disease patterns. This information is critical for health care planners who must determine the eligible population for Indian health services and the costs of providing them. The volume will also be of interest to researchers and policymakers concerned about the future characteristics and needs of the American Indian population.

Social Policy and Its Administration

Social Policy and Its Administration
Author: Joanna Monie
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 611
Release: 2013-10-22
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1483188221

Social Policy and Its Administration contains an index of literature that defines the output created by social scientists for the welfare of human beings. This literary survey originates out of the need to present a comprehensive bibliographic work. The book covers areas that encompass the concept social policy. Topics such as the standards in social welfare services are also the focus of the book. The book traces the beginning of social science and the major proponents of the subject. The improvements made on the field are also enumerated and the countries that contributed to the progress of society are named in the book. Social revolutions such as the liberation of women and the abolishment of servitude as well as the transition from colonial status to political independence are discussed in the book. The text will be a useful tool for sociologists, historians, students, and researchers in the field of political science.