Video: National Association of School Nurses Launches Educational Program to Address Surge of Prescription Drug Abuse by Ameri...( SILVER SPRING Md. April 16 -- Th...),Health

SILVER SPRING, Md., April 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) announced today "Smart Moves, Smart Choices," a program that responds to the growing rate of prescription drug abuse among middle and high school students nationwide. NASN has teamed up with PriCara(R), Division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. on the program, which features a news series and Web-based resources targeted to school nurses, teachers and parents. "Smart Moves, Smart Choices" educates teens about the serious risks of abusing prescription medicines, such as those used legitimately to treat pain.

To view the Multimedia News Release, go to: http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/orthomcneil/32722/

"As the onsite healthcare professionals in schools, school nurses are preparing themselves with the right tools to help with the prevention of prescription drug abuse," said Sandra Delack, RN, MEd, NCSN, NASN President-Elect. "This program will provide schools and parents with facts in a news-style format to motivate young people to make informed choices that lead to healthy behaviors."

A national survey of more than 1,300 school nurses revealed that nearly 60 percent of school nurses indicated prescription drug abuse is a growing or significant problem in their communities.(i) The nurses' observations are consistent with research showing the explosion of prescription drug abuse among youth:

-- Nearly one-quarter of 12th graders report that they have abused

prescription drugs by the time they graduate from high school(ii)

-- Every day, 2,500 youth age 12 to 17 abuse a prescription pain reliever

for the first time(iii)

"Smart Moves, Smart Choices" includes four videos and lesson plans prepared for the.Medic, a health and wellness feature of MacNeil/Lehrer Productions' the.News, a new national news servic
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