Substance Use Disorders

Substance use disorders affect more than 23 million Americans and involve a broad range of concerns, from the nonmedical use of prescription drugs to underage drinking. Alcohol and other drug use can contribute to significant academic, family, and life challenges; mask or aggravate mental health conditions; increase the risk of injury and exposure to violence; and lead to involvement with the child welfare and justice systems. Families and communities face increasing challenges to health, safety, and well-being when substance use disorders remain unaddressed. Of particular relevance is the current epidemic of opioid misuse.

Individuals with substance use disorders may require integrated physical and behavioral health care services to achieve health, well-being, and recovery. Schools, college campuses, and communities need comprehensive approaches to prevention that incorporate individual and environmental strategies. 

Related Topics

Juvenile Justice
Mental Health

Latest Work

Image of doctor consulting with patient
11 Sep 2019
Brief

What I Want My Doctor to Know About How Arthritis and Chronic Pain Affect My Everyday Life

The rapid growth in opioid overdoses has put a spotlight on prescribing patterns, with increased pressure on clinicians to reduce opioid prescribing, especially for long-term management of chronic, noncancer pain. This brief is the result of interviews conducted with people with a disability due to arthritis, who are on long-term opioids or have stopped taking opioids after developing an opioid use disorder.
Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar
1 Aug 2019
Q & A

Meet the Expert: Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar

As an expert on substance use disorders, Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, M.D., directs the Center for Addiction Research and Effective Solutions at AIR (AIR CARES). She is board certified in family medicine, preventive medicine/public heath, and addiction medicine and holds a Master of Public Health degree in health disparities and human rights.
Image of Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar
10 Jun 2019
Video

Tackling the Opioid Epidemic Through Research and Patient Care

Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, director of AIR’s Center for Addiction Research and Effective Solutions (AIR CARES) and a practicing physician at Heartland Alliance Health in Chicago, discusses her personal experience in treating patients with addiction and how research can help tackle the opioid epidemic.
Project

Supporting Restorative Reentry in Detroit

This randomized-controlled trial seeks to understand how family-based restorative justice can improve the lives of men and women suffering from addiction as they transition from the criminal justice system back to their communities.
8 Nov 2018
Q & A

A Quick Word With: Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, Director of AIR’s Center for Multi-System Solutions to the Opioid Epidemic

Cross-sector collaboration is crucial to address the opioid crisis, and AIR’s new center on opioids is poised to play a role. The Center’s director, Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, addresses this and more.
Project

Improving Assessment of Opioid Use Disorder in People with Disabilities Related to Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain

The rapid growth in opioid overdoses has put a spotlight on prescribing patterns, with increased pressure on clinicians to reduce opioid prescribing, especially for long-term management of chronic, noncancer pain. As part of a grant provided by National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), AIR is working to lay the groundwork for primary care providers and specialists to accurately assess opioid use disorder in people with disabilities who are taking opioids long term to manage musculoskeletal pain.
Image of addiction counselor and patients
11 Jul 2018
Video

Using Data to Drive Community-Based Approaches to the Opioid Crisis

What role can data play in developing community-based approaches to opioid misuse prevention, treatment, and recovery? How can data help health, law enforcement, and criminal justice professionals—and community members—better understand the opioid crisis in their localities and develop targeted interventions? AIR held a Capitol Hill briefing to address these questions on June 18, 2018.
18 Jun 2018 | 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Event

Using Data to Drive Community-Based Approaches to the Opioid Crisis

What role can data play in developing community-based approaches to opioid misuse prevention, treatment, and recovery? How can data help health, law enforcement, and criminal justice professionals—and community members—better understand the opioid crisis in their localities and develop targeted interventions? Please join AIR to explore these and other issues in a panel discussion at 11AM EDT on Monday, June 18, 2018 in the Dirksen Senate Office Building.
14 Jun 2018
In the Field

Facilitated Opioid Workshops in Tennessee

Like many other states, Tennessee is facing an opioid epidemic. As part of their Prevention for States activities, the Tennessee Department of Health chose to host three community summits and engaged AIR to serve as a facilitator for these workshops in Nashville, Knoxville, and Memphis in April 2018.
Image of Susan Heil discussing opioid treatment
14 Jun 2018
Video

Expanding Medication-Assisted Treatment to Curb the Opioid Epidemic

Expanding local access to medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is a critical step towards improving the lives of people with opioid use disorder and starting to curb the epidemic. Susan Heil talks about the barriers to adopting MAT and what can be done to assist its adoption, especially in rural areas with fewer primary care providers and prescribers.
Project

Community Solutions to End the Opioid Epidemic in Tennessee

Although progress is being made, each day in Tennessee, at least three people die from an opioid-related overdose. AIR is working with the Tennessee Department of Health to convene summits across the state, for which it will review current opioid-related data, discuss the relevance and analysis of data, and develop preliminary plans to shape the strategic direction for intervention activities.
Project

Opioid Misuse Prevention and Reduction Project - Middlesex County, MA

Last year alone, over 2,000 people in Massachusetts died from an opioid involved overdose. In partnership with the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, AIR developed a cross-system study to develop locally-relevant and research-informed strategies to reduce and prevent opioid misuse.
Image of troubled teen girl
25 Sep 2017
Blog Post

Helping Courts Guide Young Lives Back on Track

As communities across the country mark National Recovery Month, Roger Jarjoura explains why recovery can be particularly challenging for youth, and how the juvenile justice system must address their specific needs.
Image of Mona Kilany
20 Jul 2017
Video

Long Story Short: What Role Can Providers Play in Addressing the Prescription Opioid Epidemic?

Prescription drug misuse and abuse has reached epidemic proportions, with negative consequences for families and communities across the country. Mona Kilany explains how connecting prescribers with the proper tools and knowledge can help them address this significant public health issue in their practices.
14 Jul 2017
Brochure

Opioid Misuse, Overdose, and Death: A National Public Health Emergency

Increasing rates of opioid misuse, overdose, and death in America represent a complex public health emergency that merits widespread public and private resources and solutions. This brochure describes AIR's response to this public health crisis.
14 Jun 2017
Toolkit

Juvenile Drug Treatment Court Guidelines

Nationwide, more than 400 juvenile drug treatment courts (JDTCs) offer a way to respond to the complex needs of youth with substance use disorders, which often require specialized interventions.

Project

Expanding Medication-Assisted Treatment in Rural Primary Care

Oklahoma is among the states hardest hit by a combination of national trends in nonmedical uses of opioid prescription drugs, past-year heroin use, and opioid-related mortality. In response AIR is developing, implementing, and testing an intervention to support primary care providers in four regions of rural Oklahoma to adopt medication-assisted treatment (MAT) as an evidence-based strategy for treating persons with opioid use disorder.
Stressed woman
1 Dec 2015
Commentary

Rising Death Rates Bring New Meaning to Mid-Life Crisis for Americans—Especially White Women

A recent high-profile study of sharply rising mortality rates for some Americans brought to light the hazards of chronic stress. Principal researcher Kathryn Paez explores why the health of middle-aged white women in particular is suffering.
Project

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of a Prescriber Education Campaign

Prescription drug abuse—defined as the use of a medication in a way that is not prescribed, without a prescription, or for non-medical purposes—is a significant public health concern. AIR is evaluating the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids' Prescriber Education Campaign, focusing on its effectiveness in increasing physicians’ use of prescription drug monitoring programs and awareness of tools and resources to prevent prescription drug abuse.
6 May 2015
Journal Article

The Legal High: Factors Affecting Young Consumers’ Risk Perceptions and Abuse of Prescription Drugs

A recent National Survey on Drug Use and Health indicates that nearly one-third of people aged 12 years and older who used drugs illegally for the first time began by using a prescription drug for a nonmedical purpose.

23 Jan 2015
Guide

Treating Substance Use Problems in Youth Who Also Have Mental Health Conditions

Substance use and mental health conditions often co-occur among youth, but caregivers often do not know what to do when youth show signs of substance use problems. The Caregiver Guide: Substance Use Disorder Treatment Planning for Youth with Co-Occurring Disorders is designed to provide caregivers with a single source of information relevant to treating co-occurring substance use disorders and mental health conditions.
Project

Substance Abuse Youth Topic Page on Youth.gov

AIR's Substance Abuse Youth topic page on Youth.gov provides information and resources for youth-serving agencies. The new topic provides information and resources focused on substance abuse prevalence, risk and protective factors, warning signs, screening assessments, and prevention and treatment.
Project

Project Combine

Evidence-based treatment and mentoring services have each been shown to be effective in addressing substance use and delinquency in teenage youth involved with justice systems.

15 Apr 2011
Report

Key Strategies for Violence and Substance Abuse Prevention I: Working with Children and Families

Three National Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention publications highlight key prevention strategies: one for children and their families, another that targets the role of classroom and school environments, and a third that explores ways in which community-based strategies can contribute to the prevention of school violence and substance abuse.
11 Mar 2009
Report

Evaluation of the Minnesota Supportive Housing and Managed Care Pilot

The Minnesota Supportive Housing and Managed Care Pilot evaluation suggests that it is possible to end homelessness for the most marginalized single adults and families in America with housing and intensive supports. Although this population has experienced long spells of homelessness exacerbated by physical health problems, mental illness, chemical dependency and traumatic stress, this evaluation found that stable housing, recovery and reintegration into community life are possible. The intervention of supportive housing—housing and services focused on the unique needs of people exiting homelessness—broke the cycle of homelessness.