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The year 2000 was the
first full year of work under a new organizational structure. While
we continue to pursue our three goals of assuring access to care
for all Americans; reducing the harm caused by substance abuse;
and, improving care and support for people with chronic conditions,
we have organized into two programming groups. One group is devoted
to improving the health of all Americans and the other is devoted
to improving the health care we receive. Within these groups are
11 Program Management Teams, each addressing key aspects of our
mission. What follows are highlights of the work done in 2000 by
the 11 teams.
ALCOHOL AND ILLEGAL DRUGS
Reducing the negative health and social
consequences of alcohol and illegal drug abuse.
The Alcohol and Illegal Drugs (AID) Team built on its strong
portfolio of activities in 2000, focusing on continuing and expanding
a number of programs.
The Substance Abuse Policy Research
Program, which is designed to identify and assess policies to
reduce the harm from substance abuse, was reauthorized for $25 million
over five years.
Our long-standing support for Join
Together, a national resource center that helps communities reduce
the demand for alcohol and illegal drugs, was renewed with a new
focus on treatment. Under the five-year, $15-million grant, Join
Together will work to help communities enhance the availability
of substance abuse treatment; get more abusers to seek treatment;
and improve the policy environment for substance abuse treatment.
In July, the Foundation authorized
$9.6 million for an additional four years of support for sites in
our Reducing Underage Drinking through Coalitions program.
A related project which enlists and trains governors’ spouses
as state and national spokespersons on the issue of underage drinking
received $3 million to support its second phase of work.
We also provided $1.9 million to the
Harvard University School of Public Health in support of the fourth
phase of their College Alcohol Study. The study looks at rates of
binge drinking and other associated problems across 128 college
campuses.
There is growing evidence that risks
of subsequent substance abuse can be lowered during early childhood.
In 2000, the Foundation authorized an additional $8 million over
four years to Free to Grow: Head Start Partnerships to Promote
Substance-Free Communities. RWJF funds, matched by federal funds
from local Head Start programs, will help up to 20 sites implement
this prevention model.
The AID Team plans to continue its
work to prevent and reduce alcohol and illegal drug use by youth,
and increase its emphasis on expanding and improving substance abuse
treatment opportunities.
COMMUNITY
HEALTH
Understanding how social isolation contributes
to poor health and strengthening social support and connectedness.
Building on our long-standing work in school-based health the
Foundation authorized $6 million over four years to create the Center
for Health and Health Care in the Schools. The authorization was
a joint effort between the Community Health and Priority Populations
Teams. The Center will work to test and promote effective models
of school-based health services, including mental and dental health
services.
The Foundation also provided $2.7
million to the Developmental Studies Center to replicate a model
of prosocial schooling that has been shown to reduce substance abuse
and delinquent behavior. And the Foundation continued its support
of Best Friends®, a school-based health risk prevention
program that targets girls in grades four through nine.
Also targeting youth, we provided $250,000
to the KidsPeace Corporation in support of TeenCentral®,
an interactive Web site that helps isolated adolescents get advice
and help about health-related problems.
The Foundation also renewed its support
for Family Support Services Program, a national program that
works to help develop state networks of community-based family support
centers. The three-year, $9-million award will also expand the number
of participating states from eight to twelve.
The Team plans to focus on helping the nation
better understand the epidemiology and health consequences of social
isolation and pursue community-oriented efforts to address the problem.
© Copyright 2002 The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
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