University of California – Los Angeles

Program Description

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), is funding the University of California–Los Angeles (UCLA) $500,000 per year for 3 years to implement a screening and brief intervention program for students at the Student Psychological Services (SPS). The program is called UCLA Access to Care.

Campus Description

UCLA is a public university with one of the most diverse student bodies in the country. It has a student population of approximately 35,625 students, including 24,811 undergraduates. UCLA survey data from 2002 showed that approximately 49 percent of the 3,613 undergraduates surveyed were drinkers and nearly 22 percent were heavy drinkers. In 2003, the UCLA Police Department reported 459 alcohol-related citations for on-campus residential facilities.

Program Model

Screening

SPS clinicians use the Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) screening tool developed by the World Health Organization in 1997. ASSIST is a simple method of screening for hazardous, harmful, and dependent use of alcohol, tobacco, and other psychoactive substances. The ASSIST screen takes approximately 8 minutes to complete.

Students first complete a four-question pre-screen Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test– Consumption (AUDIT-C) and one illicit drug question. Students with a positive score on the pre-screen are eligible for ASSIST.

Brief Intervention

Clinicians use the ASSIST brief intervention, which consists of personalized feedback, advice, motivational interviewing, and educational handouts. The intervention takes an average of 10 to 15 minutes to complete.

Referral

Students with acute problems are referred to treatment at the Matrix Institute.

Service Features

Screening and brief intervention has been incorporated into routine care at SPS.

In Year 2, the primary care clinic at UCLA and other campus centers will begin referring high-risk students to SPS for ASSIST.

Mandated students receive the ASSIST screen and brief intervention in addition to a group motivational intervention at SPS.

UCLA Access to Care developed a self-administered, electronic version of the ASSIST. The program piloted the electronic version in summer 2007 with 100–200 students. The self-administered ASSIST will facilitate the expansion of the ASSIST on campus.

The program organizes ongoing training on substance abuse and the ASSIST at UCLA and at conferences throughout California and the United States.

Collaborators

  • UCLA Student Psychological Services (SPS)
  • PROTOTYPES
  • UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs (ISAP)
  • UCLA Undergraduate Student Association
  • UCLA Student Health Advisory Council
  • UCLA Latino and African American student groups
  • UCLA Office of Student and Campus Life
  • UCLA Arthur Ashe Health Center
  • UCLA Police Department
  • UCLA Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Resource Center
  • UCLA Office of Residential Life
  • UCLA Athletics Department
  • UCLA Substance Abuse Services Inpatient Unit
  • Matrix Institute on Addictions

Contact Information

Suzanne Spear, Project Director
UCLA
Integrated Substance Abuse Programs
1640 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Suite 200
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 267-5428
sspear@ucla.edu