Brief Intervention (BI) for Marijuana

Description: Marijuana presents unique challenges when offering screening and brief intervention (SBI) for alcohol and other drugs – especially in states that have legalized medical and recreational marijuana. This presentation will explore these challenges from the perspective of SBIRT implementation Colorado and discuss ideas for offering effective brief interventions for prevention (especially in youth) and harm reduction.

Learning Objectives:
Describe what we know about marijuana use from SBIRT implementation in Colorado;
Explore common beliefs about marijuana benefits and risks; and
Present ways to tailor brief interventions for marijuana use in youth and adults.

Presenter: Carolyn Swenson, MSPH, MSN, FNP, is a family nurse practitioner with additional training in public health. She works at HealthTeamWorks – a nonprofit organization focused on healthcare quality improvement where she coordinates clinical guideline development, and provides training on motivational interviewing, prevention, depression, childhood and adult obesity, tobacco and SBIRT (substance use screening and brief intervention). She is also a certified QPR suicide prevention trainer. Over the course of her career she has worked as a public health nurse on the Navajo Reservation, with migrant farm workers, in refugee healthcare in Africa, with immigrant survivors of torture, and coordinating population-based research in rural Colorado.

More information: http://hospitalsbirt.webs.com/biformarijuana.htm