Substance Abuse: Widgets

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) works to advance the behavioral health of the nation. SAMHSA's mission is to reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illness on America's communities.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) supports and conducts research on the impact of alcohol use on human health and well-being. It is the largest funder of alcohol research in the world.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)’s mission is to advance science on the causes and consequences of drug use and addiction and to apply that knowledge to improve individual and public health.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) is the largest global youth-led network dedicated to ending the War on Drugs. SSDP mobilizes and empowers young people to participate in the political process, pushing for sensible policies to achieve a safer and more just future.

The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA)’s mission is to advance those policies and attitudes that best reduce the harms of both drug use and drug prohibition, and to promote the sovereignty of individuals over their minds and bodies.

The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) is a bipartisan non-governmental organization (NGO) that works to give state legislatures a strong voice in the federal system. Here you will find links to NCSL resources on drug policy issues of interest to lawmakers and their constituents.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) is a component of the Executive Office of the President which works to reduce drug use and its consequences by leading and coordinating the development, implementation, and assessment of U.S. drug policy.

The Global Commission was formed in 2011 and is based in Geneva, Switzerland. Its purpose is to bring to the international level an informed, science-based discussion about humane and effective ways to reduce the harm caused by drugs and drug control policies to people and societies.

Data.gov is home to the U.S. Government’s open datasets. This links to datasets specifically tagged as related to substance abuse.

ICPSR maintains a data archive of more than 250,000 files of research in the social and behavioral sciences.

The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) collects data on a broad range of health topics, including substance abuse.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is conducted every year in all 50 states and provides up-to-date information on tobacco, alcohol, and drug use, mental health and other health-related issues in the United States.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) provides limited statistics related to drug abuse and law enforcement.

The National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) is a federally funded resource offering justice and drug-related information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide.

The FastStats site provides at a glance statistics on topics of public health importance. Pages on drug use and alcohol use are available.

This partnership integrates resources and expertise to advance substance use, abuse, and addiction research and public health outcomes.

SAMHSA's Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (CBHSQ) is the lead Federal government agency for behavioral health data and research.

The Clinical Trials Network Dissemination Library is a digital repository of resources about NIDA's National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network.

American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) is a professional medical society representing physicians, clinicians and associated professionals in the field of addiction medicine. ASAM is dedicated to increasing access and improving the quality of addiction treatment, educating physicians and the public, supporting research and prevention, and promoting the appropriate role of physicians in the care of patients with addiction.

The American Board of Addiction Medicine (ABAM) is the nation’s first medical specialty board that certifies addiction medicine physicians across a range of medical specialties. ABAM provides assurance to the American public that Addiction Medicine physicians have the knowledge and skills to prevent, recognize and treat addiction.

The National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP) is a nonprofit professional society for addiction treatment providers throughout the continuum of care. The NAATP provides clinical and operational resources as well as law and policy advocacy.

Providers Clinical Support System (PCSS) program funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) created to train primary care providers in the evidence-based prevention and treatment of opioid use disorders (OUD) and treatment of chronic pain.

The Evidence-Based Practices Resource Center provides communities, clinicians, policy-makers and others with the information and tools to incorporate evidence-based practices into their communities or clinical settings.

The Recovery Research Institute is a team of innovative scientists working through research, education, and outreach to enhance recovery through science. The RRI conducts and disseminates the most up-to-date research findings for individuals, families, healthcare professionals, and policymakers alike.

Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) is the use of FDA-approved medications, in combination with counseling and behavioral therapies, to provide a "whole-patient" approach to the treatment of substance use disorders.

Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) is an evidence-based practice used to identify, reduce, and prevent problematic use, abuse, and dependence on alcohol and illicit drugs.

Naloxone is a medication designed to rapidly reverse opioid overdose. It can very quickly restore normal respiration to a person whose breathing has slowed or stopped as a result of overdosing with opiods.

The Rx Awareness campaign by the CDC tells the real stories of people whose lives were torn apart by prescription opioids.

Every September, SAMHSA sponsors Recovery Month to increase awareness and understanding of mental and substance use disorders and to celebrate the people who recover.

The Montana Meth Project is an example of a large-scale prevention program through public service messaging, public policy, and community outreach.

MedlinePlus is an online health information resource which presents health and wellness information that is trusted, easy to understand, and free of advertising, in both English and Spanish.

Person-first language is proven to reduce stigma and improve treatment. Shatterproof, an organization focusing on reducing stigma, provides useful vocabulary to talk about substance abuse.

SAMHSA has compiled resources relevant to educating the public about stigma and substance abuse.

This 2013 report from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health analyzes the impact of substance abuse prevention programs on adolescents.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) developed sixteen principles of preventing drug abuse, which are intended to help plan for and deliver research-based drug abuse prevention programs.

This tip sheet provides general guidance on the design and delivery of consistent and effective messaging for substance abuse prevention.

This guide provides resources and information to help you get started with data management, data preservation, and data sharing.

The Center on Drug and Alcohol Research (CDAR) at the University of Kentucky conducts research into the biological, psychological, sociopolitical, and clinical aspects of substance abuse and related behavior. The Center conducts federally funded and state-funded research on substance abuse and related problems areas such as intimate violence, criminal justice settings and characteristics of rural substance use.

The University of Kentucky’s Center for Health Equity Transformation (CHET) fosters innovative, transdisciplinary and impactful research and training to improve the health of the most vulnerable residents of Kentucky and beyond. CHET seeks to achieve health equity locally, nationally, and internationally.

Perinatal Assessment and Treatment (PATHways) is a program at the University of Kentucky which is specially designed to bring multispecialty services to pregnant women who are seeking assistance for opioid use and other substances. The program focuses on each patient’s unique needs and circumstances. It provides group counseling, individual therapy, case management, peer support and consultation with Neonatology, Maternal Fetal Medicine, Nursing, Social Work and Substance Abuse counseling.

Care2Hope is a study that seeks to improve the health of rural Kentuckians by developing comprehensive approaches to prevent and treat consequences of opioid injection. It is directed by the University of Kentucky and Emory University.

The University of Kentucky Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry has developed the Adolescent Health and Recovery Treatment and Training (AHARTT), a model clinic for adolescent substance use treatment.

SAMHSA's Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (CBHSQ) maintains several data collection systems and surveys on key topics in U.S. behavioral health, including substance abuse. Reports and data specific to Kentucky are available here.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) maintains statistics on opioid-involved overdose death rates and opioid prescribing levels by state. Statistics specific to Kentucky are available here.

The Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy (KY-ODCP) maintains data on and coordinates the state’s response to substance abuse.

Former University of Kentucky basketball star Rex Chapman shares his personal story and his work to influence policy makers in addressing the epidemic of opioid addiction.
Chapman, Rex. Sports Illustrated, June 19, 2017.

An apprentice program run by luthiers provides meaningful jobs and helps remove the stigma of opiod addiction.
Brown, Patricia Leigh. The New York Times, January 3, 2020.

One Kentucky community has seen a wave of violence and homelessness as methamphetamine use returns.
Williams, Timothy. The New York Times, March 28, 2020.

In the lead up to its recent documentary, Chasing Heroin, PBS crowdsourced personal stories from its viewers, many of whom shared their perspectives as Kentuckians.

Talking FACS is a podcast hosted by the University of Kentucky Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) Extension Program. Talking FACS shares research based content within local communities. The podcast often interviews experts to talk about the issues and concerns that many families are facing today. There are more than ten episodes available discussing many facets of substance abuse in Kentucky.

Behind the Blue is a podcast run by the University of Kentucky. Through interviews with university experts, the podcast shares in-depth stories about research and initiatives at the university. There are many episodes available on the topic of substance abuse at the University of Kentucky.

In this episode from the podcast The Edit, drug policy reporter Francie Diep discusses a program at the University of Kentucky called PATHways that helps opioid addicted mothers and mothers-to-be. In this conversation, Diep recounts how she discovered PATHways, her experience covering the opioid epidemic, and the relationship she cultivated with an opioid addicted mom named Christy.