Parents Check In with Teens

Compelled by tragic incidents of teen substance abuse, Parents Check In is a new campaign in Boston’s MetroWest communities. The key message is this—what parents say and do is critical to teens’ decision about whether to use alcohol and drugs. Parents who regularly check in with their teenage children can prevent substance use.

The campaign features a series of events along with posters, flyers, and booklets distributed throughout the communities encouraging parents to do the following three things: Talk, know, and model. Talk with their teens frequently about the importance of not using alcohol or drugs, including misuse of prescription medicines; know their teens’ friends and parents; and model good behavior themselves by making healthy decision about alcohol and drugs.

“This campaign encourages parents to take action in their day-to-day family life to prevent teen substance use,” says Diane Barry, project director for the MetroWest Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Initiative at EDC. “When parents have clear values about teen substance use, and set clear rules that they enforce, their teenage children will be more likely to meet these expectations.”

Like many other regions, teen substance use is prevalent in the MetroWest area. A 2006 survey funded by the MetroWest Community Health Care Foundation found that approximately 2 out or 5 of high school students have used alcohol in the past month, and 1 out of 4 reported binge drinking—consuming five or more alcoholic drinks in a row. Prescription drug abuse is also a growing problem with just over 1 out of 10 students misusing prescription drugs.

The recent deaths of local teens due to alcohol abuse underscore the importance of this effort. “I hope this campaign continues to build constructive dialogues between teens and their parents,” says Barry. “And it just might prevent future tragedies.”

It initiated a conversation between a Medfield couple and their 16 year old daughter and 11 year old son. “We want our children to know we are aware of what’s going on so when I saw the literature for Parents Check In, it was a good opportunity to have a family discussion about it,” says Jean Bourdon. “It gave me some better ideas about how to talk with our kids.”

She and her husband are also concerned about teaching their children what to do when others are drinking. They talked about what to do in a precarious situation, like being offered a ride by someone who’s had too much to drink. “We told them that they should find a way to excuse themselves, like saying they need to go to the bathroom, in order to call us so that we can pick them up.”

Bourdon is confident that checking in with her kids works. “Kids need structure… as much as they fight it,” she says. “When children know parents care, they feel more secure.”

The campaign was launched by the MetroWest Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Initiative of the MetroWest Community Health Care Foundation. The target towns have all received funding from the Foundation to prevent and reduce youth substance use. The three-year grants are improving youth prevention and intervention efforts in schools, homes, and communities.