European Drug Prevention Quality Standards

In Europe there is a growing need for prevention actions based on assessment and according to specific quality standards. Despite broad consensus on the necessity to implement evidence-based actions there are still not enough guidelines or recommendations for practitioners in relation to the most effective prevention methods. The European drug prevention quality standards project is aimed at providing decision-makers and specialists jointly agreed evidence-based drug prevention standards which will be helpful in choosing, disseminating and designing best practice in drug prevention. Consequently, drug   prevention professionals will gain access to evidence base, strategies and practical solutions. Moreover, they will be able to successfully reach goals of National Drugs Strategies and the EU Action Plan on Drugs. It is worth stressing that in designing European standards a number of research tools are utilized: Delphi method, focus groups, field testing. The project is grounded on the review of literature, which in this case includes existing standards, recommendations or guidelines. Six countries are involved in the project: Italy, Spain, Hungary, Romania, United Kingdom and Poland with Liverpool John Moores University acting as the project leader.

The project entitled “European standards in evidence for drug prevention” was financed by the European Commission under Programme of Community Action in the field of Public Health (2003-2008), Number: 2007304.

The European Drug Prevention Quality Standards (EDPQS) were developed by the Prevention Standards Partnership in 2008-2010 and subsequently published in the form of manual (in English) by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) in 2011. The official presentation of the EDPQS manual took place at the annual conference of the European Society for Prevention Research the same year.

The Polish edition of the manual was financed by the National Bureau for Drug Prevention.

The EDPQS were designed based around the eight-stage project cycle: 1) Needs assessment, 2) Resource assessment, 3) Programme formulation, 4) Intervention design, 5) Management and mobilisation of resources, 6) Delivery and monitoring, 7) Final evaluations and 8) Dissemination and improvement. All the Standards also share four cross-cutting considerations: A) Sustainability and funding, B) Communication and stakeholder involvement, C) Staff development, D) Ethical drug prevention. The EDPQS do not prescribe any strategies or interventions; however, they focus on the structural and procedural aspects of prevention work (e.g. ways of involving stakeholders). The Standards therefore do not constitute any model of conduct in terms of planning, implementing and evaluating drug prevention activities. The Standards help define at a European level what high-quality drug prevention is.

The European Drug Prevention Quality Standards - Phase II

At present, Phase II of the EDPQS project is being implemented. The Polish partners include the Mazovian Centre for Social Policy and the National Bureau for Drug Prevention. The project entitled “Promoting excellence in drug prevention in the EU” is financed by the European Commission under the EU Drug Prevention and Information Programme. The project is headed by Liverpool John Moores University in cooperation with 14 partner organizations from across Europe.

Phase II of the EDPQS project is aimed at implementing the Standards by developing auxiliary materials comprising the following:

• support materials to help in applying the Standards to current practice,
• training courses for trainers, prevention practitioners and policy makers,
• indicators to help provide evidence for the achievement of the Standards,
• expert publications on specific issues related to quality standards in prevention.

These materials will help all those working in the prevention field to develop their work in accordance with sound principles and evidence. The EDPQS have been developed to be used in drug prevention; however, they can also be used in other prevention areas.

For more information on the European Drug Prevention Quality Standards please visit the project website at www.prevention-standards.eu.