Results of the Virgin Islands Prevention (VIP) State Incentive Grant (SIG) supported by findings from the Virgin Islands Epidemiological Profile

In 2003 the Virgin Islands Territory received a US Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) State Incentive Grant (SIG) a program grant to develop and implement a comprehensive initiative to prevent substance abuse among youths ages 12 to 17. The primary tasks of the VIP SIG are to assess the prevention needs and resources of the Virgin Islands; to develop a strategic plan for prevention based on data from the needs assessment; to enhance the capacity of prevention stakeholders (including government agencies and local service providers) to implement evidence-based prevention strategies; and to evaluate those strategies. One component of the SIG needs assessment was the Virgin Islands Youth Risk Behavior Survey (VI YRBS), a cross-sectional school-based survey designed to estimate the prevalence of risk behaviors as well as attitudes and assets associated with these behaviors among youths in grades 9-12 in the US Virgin Islands. This presentation summarizes findings from the 2007 VI YRBS. Risk behaviors can have adverse health effects and interfere with natural developmental and maturation processes during the critical period of adolescence, while protective personal, family, and social factors may lead to more positive decisions and/or buffer against these adverse effects. It is hoped that the information presented will help identify, track, and better understand important adolescent public health problems so that more effective programs and policies can be developed.