ADAPT YOUTH.

Belgian, evidence-based guidelines on how to deal with alcohol abuse in adults have recently been produced for primary care settings and are currently in the process of validation (Dom et al, 2010). Clear guidance on how to detect, prevent and treat substance abuse in children and youngsters is currently absent. The development and dissemination of de novo best practice guidelines requires a substantial amount of time, expertise and resources, which is why the international ADAPTE collaboration (http://www.adapte.org/www/index.php ) has developed a methodology to adjust existing guidelines to a local context of use (Fervers, 2006). Originally formed by contributors of the AGREE project, selected for the European sixth framework research project (AGREE collaboration, 2001: http://www.agreecollaboration.org/ ), this group has considerable expertise in guideline development, appraisal and implementation. The ADAPTE process has known a considerable uptake in Canada, Australia and some smaller East-European countries. However, the use of this methodology has not yet properly been evaluated for West-European countries, neither has it been used to adapt guidelines on drug- and alcohol misuse or to be used in settings other than health care e.g. social welfare and schoolsettings (Fervers et al, 2010; Burgers J: personal communication). The overall aim of this project is the adaptation of existing, international best practice guidelines for the detection, prevention and treatment of substance abuse in children and youngsters below the age of 18. An epidemiological study will be conducted focussing on a) the prevalence of problematic alcohol and drug use in the Belgian population of children and youngsters and b) the prevalence of parental problematic alcohol and drug use. This study will apply for and consult several existing data sources (Health Interview Survey, Permanente Steekproef, Farmanet, ) and will include, where available, socio-demographic variables like gender, age or environmental issues such as family history - variables to be considered in the further guideline adaptation. In a second study, a web based survey will be conducted to identify and describe all Belgian organisations, target groups and stakeholders involved in drug- and alcohol detection, prevention or treatment. The results of this survey will be used to identify potentially important stakeholders that can be involved in the process of adaptation of existing, international guidelines to a local context. The phase of adaptation will be the main focus of the research project. A nominal group technique, developed from the methodology of participating action research, will be used to achieve the expected outcome. Guidelines to be used will be screened for relevance and methodological quality. A variety of different contexts will be considered, including health care, social welfareand/or school settings. An umbrella guideline covering different domains (diagnostics, prevention and treatment) for different settings (health care, social welfare and/or school settings) will be produced to serve policy makers and practitioners dealing with the complexity of drug- and alcohol abuse.

Keywords:Drugs, Youth

Disciplines:Psychological methods, Mathematical and quantitative methods, General pedagogical and educational sciences, Social theory and sociological methods, Political theory and methodology, Education, culture and society