Edited by: Dr Richard Saitz
In September 2011, the International Network on Brief Interventions for Alcohol (INEBRIA) (now the International Network on Brief Interventions for Alcohol and Other Drugs) held its 8th Annual Conference in Boston, MA, USA. The goal of the conference, which was attended by 236 people from 19 countries, was to foster international collaborations between screening and brief intervention (SBI) researchers and to facilitate the development and dissemination of SBI research with a particular focus on implementation and sustainability. Ultimately, new findings on lingering research questions were presented, new collaborations among alcohol SBI researchers were formed, and junior SBI researchers found mentoring opportunities as well as an outlet for their work. The conference was funded in part by grants from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).*
This thematic series features invited papers from selected conference presentations as well as abstracts presented at the meeting. It is our hope that sharing this information will improve the evidence-based identification and treatment of unhealthy alcohol and other drug use. Future papers may be added to the series from subsequent INEBRIA conferences and other sources, since research on SBI seems unlikely to solve all relevant questions for some time to come. In addition, SBI appears to be key to addressing unhealthy alcohol and other drug use in many settings.
Founded in 2004 at the conclusion of a World Health Organization study, INEBRIA aims to provide global leadership to researchers and practitioners interested in the potential of SBI to reduce alcohol-related harm. That goal has since been expanded to include SBI for other psychoactive substances, although the main emphasis continues to be on reducing alcohol-related problems.
*The content of this thematic series is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of NIAAA, NIDA, or the National Institutes of Health.
Collection published in Addiction Science & Clinical Practice: 28 August 2012
Last updated: 16 January 2013