CPDD 78th Annual Scientific Meeting Program

WORKSHOPS
Monday, June 13
IX. Marijuana laws: the changing legal landscape and its consequences
Chairs: Marsha Lopez Andrew Freedman
Marijuana is still illegal under federal law, but over half the states in the US have
decriminalized or legalized it in some form. The effects of these changes are highly
controversial. Public opinion about marijuana use is rapidly becoming more
permissive, while proliferating marijuana dispensaries for medical or recreational use
are providing ways to consume marijuana not previously seen at this scale, including
marijuana-infused food and beverage products, electronic delivery devices, and
emerging marijuana tourism in states with legalized recreational use. Many questions
remain unanswered about the impact of these developments on the risk for marijuana
use and related problems, questions that are the focus of intense public and scientific
debate as the public considers and votes on medical and recreational marijuana laws,
and as clinicians and policy-makers seek guidance from research findings. This
workshop brings together important new findings from studies of these issues,
including information on how adolescent attitudes and behaviors have been
influenced by the law changes in Washington; how patterns of medical marijuana
use in California correspond to health outcomes; how trends in hospital and poison
center usage have been impacted by medical and recreational legalization policies in
Colorado; and how social media is being used to track emerging cannabis trends.
Tuesday, June 14
X. Research and emerging strategies for parents of substance-involved
adolescents and youth: Results from NIDA’s Parents’ Translational
Research Center
Chairs: Kimberly C. Kirby and Elena Bresani
Use of illicit drugs, binge drinking, and heavy alcohol are highest among adolescents
and young adults (16-29 years old), and heroin use and overdose has increased over
the past 5 years among young adults (21-29 years). As their children begin to
deteriorate in the face of increasing drug use severity, parents are often desperate and
unsure how to help. An abundance of advice is available, but much of it is conflicting
and very little has a basis of empirical support. The goal of this workshop is to present
the translational research that has been completed during the past 5 years by the first
NIDA-funded center focused on the needs of parents of drug-involved adolescents and
young adults. Speakers will present findings from research addressing parental
responses to substance use at a broad continuum of severity, beginning with factors
influencing parents’ initial detection and response to substance use (N=1,102), through
guidelines for selecting and evaluating treatment options (N=208) and changes in
adolescent service provision (N=435), to methods for facilitating treatment entry of
treatment resistant adolescents and young adults (N=59). Future research and the
importance of providing parents with information and practical tools for addressing
substance use of their adolescents and young adults will be discussed, highlighting
parent needs and quality of services.