The Authors’ Own Words: We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Exploring social work student education: The effect of a harm reduction curriculum on student knowledge and attitudes regarding opioid use disorders

Anthony Estreet, PhD, MSW; Paul Archibald, DrPH, MSW; M. Taqi Tirmazi, PhD, MSW; Sapphire Goodman, MSW; & Tracy Cudjoe, MSW

Substance Abuse Vol. 38, Iss. 4, 2017

“This study highlights the benefits of including a harm reduction module into a social work education curriculum. Addressing harm reduction resulted in positive shifts in MSW student’s knowledge and attitudes towards addressing opioid use disorders. As schools of social work continue to respond to the growing needs of the behavioral health workforce, utilizing a similar harm reduction module approach could serve as a means to enhance the existing social work curriculum.”

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The Authors’ Own Words: We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

High-Intensity and Simultaneous Alcohol and Marijuana Use among High School Seniors in the U.S.

Megan E. Patrick, PhD; Philip T. Veliz, PhD; & Yvonne M. Terry-McElrath, MSA

Substance Abuse Vol. 38, Iss. 4, 2017

“Results based on 10 years of data from nationally-representative samples of US high school seniors indicate that the risk of simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use is highest for adolescents who engage in high-intensity drinking (10+ drinks in a row) and marijuana use (at least 1 marijuana joint/day). Health professionals, educators, parents, and researchers can use these results to help identify youth at highest risk for the acute and long-term deleterious effects of combined alcohol and marijuana use on neuropsychological development and cognitive functioning.”

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The Authors’ Own Words: We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Similarity in Romantic Couples’ Drinking Motivations and Drinking Behaviors

Ivy-Lee L. Kehayes, BSc; Sean P. Mackinnon, PhD; Simon B. Sherry, PhD; Kenneth E. Leonard, PhD; & Sherry H. Stewart, PhD

Substance Abuse Vol. 38, Iss. 4, 2017

“The present study contributes to the literature by focusing on the social determinants of drinking motives and alcohol use within romantic couples. Much of the research concerning drinking motivation focuses on individual factors that influence motives, such as personality traits. The present study is one of the few that has examined drinking motives in romantic couples from a social learning theory perspective, and is the first to show that couples are similar in not only their drinking behaviors, but in their drinking motives as well. Further, our study is the first to utilize a similarity profile in the measurement of drinking behavior and drinking motives, and advances the literature by using a more accurate estimation of similarity within romantic couples. Our results have clear clinical implications and further highlight the importance of addressing an individual’s social network when attempting to lower risky drinking behavior.”

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The Authors’ Own Words: We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Post-discharge smoking cessation in subgroups of hospitalized smokers: a latent class analysis

Thomas Ylioja, MSW; Gerald Cochran, PhD; Yuchiao Chang, PhD; Hilary A. Tindle, MD; & Nancy A. Rigotti, MD

Substance Abuse Vol. 38, Iss. 4, 2017

“Latent class analysis can facilitate understanding which subgroups of smokers benefit from a hospital-initiated cessation intervention while others return to smoking. Multiple smoking behaviors and health conditions used as predictors to generate latent subgroups of patients provides insight into how patient complexity predicts the probability of cessation after hospital discharge. Patient subgroups with high probability of nicotine dependence combined with depressive symptoms and alcohol problems have additional barriers to cessation that may require intervention focus.”

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The Authors’ Own Words: We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

Core addiction medicine competencies for doctors, an international consultation on training

Astri Parawita Ayu, MD; Nady el-Guebaly, MD; Arnt Schellekens, MD, PhD; Cor De Jong, MD, PhD; Gabrielle Welle-Strand, MD; William Small, PhD, MA; Evan Wood, MD, PhD; Walter Cullen, MD; & Jan Klimas, PhD, MSc

Substance Abuse Vol. 38, Iss. 4, 2017

“Our findings provide a consensus opinion that was derived from interviews with a panel of international scholars on a core set of principles for progression of knowledge, attitude, and skills in addiction medicine to be developed throughout medical education. This is particularly important for the development of new addiction medicine curricula and enhancement of available courses. If applied, our findings would have profound effects on the quality of medical education and subsequent clinical care provided to patients with substance use disorders worldwide.”

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