The MAKINGtheLINK Parent Workshop educates parents about the adolescent barriers to seeking help for cannabis-related problems from a professional and how to minimise them. It explains what kinds of helpers there are in school and in the community, how to access them and how they can help. It promotes parents as important helpers, and teaches them how to assist and motivate young people to seek professional help.
The multimedia vodcasts model to parents how they can talk to teenagers about difficult issues, such as substance use.
The workshop was trialled with two parent groups in Melbourne in 2011. The evaluation report is available upon request by clicking here.
The MAKINGtheLINK Parent Workshop has four components:
Trainer’s Manual - includes background information, instructions and materials for all the activities.
PowerPoint presentation - presenter’s slides
Online Vodcasts; Motivating Teens to Seek Help for Problematic Substance Use – models to parents different strategies they can use when talking to young people about substance use and seeking help.
Evaluation Report – a short report which outlines program development and pilot results.
This program has been developed by Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre, Eastern Health, for the National Cannabis Prevention and Information Centre (NCPIC). It is an accompaniment to the original school-based program MAKINGtheLINK: Promoting Help Seeking for Cannabis Use and Mental Health developed by Orygen Youth Health for NCPIC.
Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre, Eastern Health, is a consortium member of NCPIC.
