September 25, 2024
The most commonly used tobacco product among middle and high school students in the U.S. in 2024 was e-cigarettes, also known as vapes, according to the CDC. In order to prevent substance abuse and vaping among teens, creating educational resources is crucial. Through a project funded by The Dogwood Health Trust, the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy partnered with several organizations across Western North Carolina to create a toolkit along with 11 educational videos to reach parents and teens. The content created is housed on the website, Information for the Evolving Teenager (iuveo.org).
“Because teens prefer to obtain their health information online, there was a real need to develop this website to address this need in Western North Carolina,” said Delesha Carpenter, PhD, executive vice chair of the Division of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy (DPOP).
This effort began in July and August 2022 as two advisory board meetings were conducted with youth ages 11 to 17. The participants provided input on themes and ideas related to substance use and vaping to include in the videos, ideas for scenes or characters, which substances to focus on, and other educational materials to develop for the website.
“What is nice about this process is that it evolves over time and allows us to make sure the materials are appropriate and acceptable to teens, since they decide on everything from the pictures and font to the topics that are covered,” Carpenter said.
After receiving feedback on the proposed themes and storyboards from a youth advisory board and community partners, 11 videos were produced in the summer and early fall of 2023. Some of the video topics were “What is Addiction?”, “Party Safety”, “Fentanyl”, “Opioid Overdose”, “Saying No to Vaping”, and “Preventing Teen Vaping (For Parents)”.
To spread awareness about the resources and educate community leaders on how to use them, the team designed a toolkit and trivia games on vaping and substance abuse to distribute via social media, in-person and virtual presentations and events, and emailing relevant organizations. Overall, the videos were watched over 500 times, the website was visited 1,125 times, and social media posts had 1,175 impressions on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram reached 581 accounts.
“The videos should be very relevant to teens in Western North Carolina and throughout the state since the two teen advisory boards led the development of the themes and content of the videos,” said Betsy Sleath, PhD, Associate Dean of Eastern North Carolina. “We hope our materials help teens navigate the difficult pressures they face to vape and use illicit substances. Our website is also a resource that teens can go to get help and resources for friends.”
Partners across the region included Henderson County Hope Coalition, BLiNK Innovations, Rez HOPE Recovery, Boys & Girls Club of Transylvania, Isaac Homes Youth Shelter, and two teen advisory boards. Additionally, the team partnered with Alexor LLC, which has experience developing simple, interactive educational materials and videos that address the needs of low health literacy populations.
The research team also included Casey Tak, PhD, assistant professor at the University of Utah College of Pharmacy; Abena Adjei, research assistant in DPOP; Jeremy Lowery, research assistant in DPOP; McKenna Knock ‘24, PharmD; and Nacire Garcia, research specialist in DPOP.
To request the toolkit, please contact Abena Adjei.
Dogwood Health Trust is a private foundation based in Asheville, North Carolina with the sole purpose of dramatically improving the health and wellbeing of all people and communities of 18 counties and the Qualla Boundary in Western North Carolina. Dogwood Health Trust focuses on innovative and equitable ways to address the many factors that contribute to overall health and wellbeing. With a focus on housing, education, economic opportunity and health and wellness, Dogwood Health Trust works to create a Western North Carolina where every generation can live, learn, earn and thrive, with dignity and opportunity for all, no exceptions. To learn more, please visit www.dht.org.
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