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Prevention Program Perceptions and Attitudes:A Community Outreach Campaign in Lane County, Oregon

December 21, 2011Amanda Cobb & Jessica Matthiesenwww.hprnw.org

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Background

• Overall goal:– Gauge community perceptions,

assess attitudes towards the prevention topics and current resources

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Background

• Two areas of focus (two sets of focus groups):– Childhood gambling (parents)

• Current prevention resources• Identify opportunities to expand services• Identify ways to provide education to

families– Community coalitions (public)

• Perceptions of department/needs• Identify opportunities to

expand/collaborate• Assess community readiness to create or

expand

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Methods

• Six focus groups, intercept surveys on both topics

• Eugene/Springfield, Cottage Grove, Florence

• Questions adapted from similar research, approved by Lane County

• Recruited at community centers, direct calls to community agencies

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MethodsGeneral public, agency leaders and parents who responded to

an intercept survey or participated in a focus group in Lane County (N=109), 2011Site Date Type Participants Forum

Cottage Grove 6/29/2011 Community 3 Focus GrpCottage Grove 6/29/2011 Community 14 Intercept SvyEug/Spgfld 6/27/2011 Community 9 Intercept SvyEug/Spgfld 6/28/2011 Community 22 Intercept SvyEug/Spgfld 7/1/2011 Community 4 Focus GrpFlorence 7/1/2011 Community 3 Focus GrpFlorence 7/1/2011 Community 7 Intercept SvyCottage Grove 6/29/2011 Parent 10 Intercept SvyCottage Grove 7/7/2011 Parent 3 Intercept SvyEug/Spgfld 6/25/2011 Parent 3 Focus GrpEug/Spgfld 6/29/2011 Parent 11 Intercept SvyEug/Spgfld 7/1/2011 Parent 5 Focus GrpEug/Spgfld 7/1/2011 Parent 8 Intercept SvyFlorence 7/7/2011 Parent 7 Intercept Svy

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Focus Groups

• Small (10 participants or less)• 90 minutes allotted• Demographics survey required

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Intercept Surveys

• Surveys for both coalition interest and childhood gambling

• Conducted in busy public areas• Given to one to two individuals at a

time• Discussion facilitated similar to

focus groups• Included demographics survey

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Focus Groups & Intercept Surveys

• Both sparked discussion between participants

• Non-verbal cues noted• Surveys aggregated and searched

for themes• Focus groups transcribed• Both incentivized

Community Perceptions of Prevention Department and

Prevention Needs

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Demographic Representation

• 62 participants• (57%) Eugene and Springfield, 27%

Cottage Grove, 16% Florence

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Demographic Representation

General public and agency leaders who responded to an intercept survey or participated in a focus group in Lane

County (N=62), 2011.

Demographic Characteristic

Number of Participants

(N=62)Percent of Sample

County Percentages in

2010

Location* (n=62) Eugene/Springfield 35 56.5% 89.7% Cottage Grove 17 27.4% 6.2% Florence 10 16.1% 3.8% Age*€ (n=60) 18-39 years 19 31.7% 33.3% 40-64 years 35 58.3% 48.8% 65 or older 6 10.0% 17.9% Gender* (n=57) Male 21 36.8% 49.0% Female 36 63.2% 51.0%

* US Census Bureau, 2010. € County percentages in 2010 adjusted for comparability to project population.

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Demographic RepresentationGeneral public and agency leaders who responded to an intercept survey or

participated in a focus group in Lane County (N=62), 2011.

Demographic Characteristic

Number of Participants (N=62)

Percent of Sample

County Percentages in 2010

Employment Status∞ (n=59) Employed Full-time 22 37.3% -- Employed Part-time 15 25.4% -- Unemployed 18 30.5% 11.4% Full-time Parent 4 6.8% --Educational Attainment£ (n=60) Less than high school 1 1.7% 10.0% High school 9 15.0% 25.8%

Some college or technical school

20 33.3% 36.9%

College graduate 17 28.3% 16.3% Post-college 13 21.7% 11.0%

∞ U.S. Department of Employment, 2011£ US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2010

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Interest in Coalition InvolvementLane County general public and agency leaders’ interest in prevention

activities (N=62), 2011.

Eugene/ Springfield Cottage Grove Florence0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

1724

10

29 6 20

9

6

17

18

20

18 50

46 5920

9 10Missing

Not interested

All of the topics

Suicide Prevention only

Problem Gambling only

Mental Health Promo-tion only

Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention only

n=35 n=17 n=10

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Coalition Involvement PreferencesLane County general public and agency leaders’ interest in prevention activities

(N=62), 2011.

Eugene/ Spring-field

Cottage Grove Florence0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

23 18 40

20 12

5014

4037

35

402935

4020 18

2029 18

6 6 10

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Missing

Prefer not to be involved

Other method

Social networking site

Receive a newsletter

Stay updated via email

Attend a virtual meeting on-line

Attend a public forum

Attend a quarterly meeting

n=35n=17 n=10

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Focus Groups and Intercept Surveys - Community

• Knowledge of the Prevention Program

• Thoughts on the severity of specific health problems in Lane County

• Ideas on how to involve the general public and agency leaders in community coalitions

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Public Perceptions

• Majority of participants not familiar with Lane County Prevention Program

• Those that were familiar knew of efforts to:– Help low income families– Teach people to live healthy lives– Provide online services– Provide pamphlets on suicide prevention

and Healthy Babies, Healthy Communities

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Community Needs

• Eugene/Springfield:– Alcohol and drug abuse– Mental health– Suicide

• Cottage Grove– Alcohol and drug abuse– Mental Health

• Florence:– Alcohol and drug abuse

• 60% of all respondents felt gambling was not a problem

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Community Needs

• Eugene/Springfield– Increase services available– More outreach/build awareness– More counseling services– Centralized phone number for crises

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Community Needs

• Cottage Grove:– Local community services for youth– Counseling and mentoring– Increased presence of

Eugene/Springfield-based social services

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Community Needs

• Florence:– Low-cost activities for youth– Increase awareness of issues like drug

and alcohol abuse, suicide, gambling

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Prevention Needs

• Drug and alcohol abuse:– Increased counseling– Community classes/groups

• Mental health– Place mental health specialists in

schools– Lower costs for patients

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Prevention Needs

• Gambling– Services for money management– Low/no cost treatment programs– Increased counseling or mentoring

• Suicide– Lower mental health treatment costs– More counseling for parents and youth– Increase and support youth activities

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Coalition Activity

• How the Prevention Program can assist/partner with existing coalitions:– Low-cost services (money or grant-

writing assistance)– Services, facility space, administrative

support– Training and curriculum assistance

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Coalition Activity

• To organize/lead a coalition:– Hold face-to-face meetings– Provide consistent leadership– Create a clear mission– Partner on projects with existing

agencies or organizations

Childhood Gambling

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Parent Demographics

• 47 parents participated or were surveyed– 57% Eugene/Springfield, – 28% Cottage Grove, – 15% Florence

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Demographic Representation

Parents who responded to an intercept survey or participated in a focus group in Lane County (N=47), 2011.

Demographic Characteristic

Number of Participants

(N=47)Percent of Sample

County Percentages in

2010€

Location* (n=47) Eugene/Springfield 27 57.4% 89.7% Cottage Grove 13 27.7% 6.2% Florence 7 14.9% 3.8% Gender* (n=46) Male 15 32.6% 49.0% Female 31 67.4% 51.0% Race/Ethnicity* (n=45) White/Caucasian 39 86.7% 84.7% Hispanic 4 8.9% 7.4%

Other 2 4.4% --

* US Census Bureau, 2010. € County percentages in 2010 adjusted for comparability to project population (18 and older)

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Demographic RepresentationParents who responded to an intercept survey or participated in a focus group in

Lane County (N=47), 2011.

Demographic Characteristic

Number of Participants (N=47)

Percent of Sample

County Percentages in 2010

Employment Status∞ (n=37) Employed Full-time 19 51.4% -- Employed Part-time 8 21.6% -- Unemployed 6 16.2% 11.4% Full-time Parent 4 10.8% --Educational Attainment£ (n=46) Less than high school 1 2.2% 10.0% High school 7 15.2% 25.8%

Some college or technical school

16 34.8% 36.9%

College graduate 12 26.1% 16.3% Post-college 10 21.7% 11.0%

∞ U.S. Department of Employment, 2011£ US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2010

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Childhood Gambling

• Kinds of activities parents would consider gambling• How common do parents think childhood gambling is • Do parents have concerns about childhood gambling• Do parents believe there could be a link between

gambling and other behaviors such as substance abuse or school absenteeism

• What would parents do/who they would contact if they thought their child had a problem with gambling

• How would parents discuss gambling with a child

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Childhood Gambling

• What activities are gambling?– Games where money or goods are

exchanged (cards, fantasy football)– Bets for no money/goods– Online games played with virtual

money– Lottery

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Childhood Gambling

• How common is gambling in children 9 and older?– Majority of parents thought it at least

somewhat common– Many who had never considered the

possibility did not believe their children gambled or would be interested in gambling

– Internet makes it easy to gamble

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Childhood Gambling

• How much of a concern is it?– One in four parents had concerns;

others felt it was a concern, but not for their own children

– Half of Cottage Grove parents thought it was of concern

– Less than 20% of Eugene/Springfield and Florence parents thought it was of concern

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Childhood Gambling

• The link between gambling and:– Substance use– Mental health issues – Peer pressure and bullying

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Childhood Gambling

• Most parents were unsure:– How to tell if their child had a

problem– Where to go for help– How to talk to their child about

gambling

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Childhood Gambling

• Outreach and education:– Start talking to children early– Educate in school assemblies– Conversations at home, one-on-one– Parent groups/panels– Internet/television/radio advertising– Pre-movie advertising

Key Findings

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County-Wide Recommendations

• Promote and educate on the Prevention Program’s focus and services

• Facilitate access to mental health services in schools

• Consider using intercept surveys in lieu of focus groups when assessing public opinion

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Area-Specific Recommendations

• Dedicate staff to Cottage Grove for consistent meetings

• Coordinate or partner with Florence agencies to provide teen programs

• Provide and/or promote telephone referral assistance in the Eugene/Springfield metro area

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Youth Gambling Recommendations

• Create and distribute information on:– How to talk with kids about gambling – How to monitor online access

• Organize a youth gambling panel to educate children and raise awareness

• Look for creative ways to provide PSAs