Canadian Universities: New Partnership Curbing Alcohol Harm
Postsecondary Education Partnership – Alcohol Harms
Thirty-six universities and colleges have teamed up with the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction and Universities Canada in an effort to curb alcohol harm. The Postsecondary Partnership – Alcohol Harms (PEP-AH) is connecting students and administrators with health experts to create campus programs to reduce alcohol harm.
While Canadian universities have individually been grappling with the issue for decades, this partnership represents a more collaborative approach, said Scott Duguay, co-chair of PEP-AH and associate vice-president, enrolment management, at St. Thomas University.
We’re offering resources and ideas and best practices but allowing a lot of space for individual members to build their own plans,” Mr. Duguay said, according to University Affairs.
We strongly encourage institutions that are partners to have a campus team that oversees alcohol harm reduction programming.”
A 2016 survey of 43,780 students from 41 Canadian campuses affirmed the challenges institutions face with the prevalence of binge alcohol use. More than a third of students surveyed reported having five or more alcohol drinks the last time they partied or socialized, and many reported physically injuring themselves (18%), having unprotected sex (24%), forgetting where they were or what they did (29%) and doing something they later regretted (38%) due to alcohol consumption.
PEP-AH is not concerned with the [alcohol use] per se, but the harms associated with it,” said Catherine Paradis (per University Affairs), co-chair of PEP-AH and senior research and policy analyst with the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, which has received funding from Health Canada for this initiative.
The Postsecondary Education Partnership at work
The partnership works with a framework for campus programs to reduce alcohol harms, including key recommendations in five strategic areas. In partnership with CCSA, PEP-AH has developed a socio-ecological, evidence-based framework that includes five strategic areas with specific recommended initiatives and measurement indicators. This framework assists postsecondary educational institutions in making decisions on alcohol policies and in evaluating their initiatives.
Members also work together on research projects that will inform community responses to the harms associated with excessive drinking at postsecondary institutions. The group will produce:
- A report identifying common issues among students who drink in excess, and including policy options and recommendations;
- Case studies and templates that inform a comprehensive campus and community approach to the development of a municipal alcohol policy; and
- A forum for fostering the exchange of knowledge and experience among its member institutions and partners.
University Affairs reports that PEP-AH grew out of discussions since 2013, when former Acadia University president Ray Ivany rallied the support of university presidents to look at campus alcohol culture and norms. Mr. Ivany became passionate about the issue after having to deliver news of 19-year-old Acadia student Jonathan Andrews’ death following a night of binge alcohol intake in residence.
This past June, student affairs staff, administrators and students met for a one-day conference during CACUSS, the national conference of student affairs professionals across Canada, to share best practices and challenges. The dialogue will continue into 2018 and includes four student symposia in Western Canada, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada in advance of the national meeting.
Source Website: Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction