For years, substance abuse prevention programs throughout our nation have gained increasing support. However, when looking at the full continuum of care, prevention is often given a backseat.

PREVENTION FIRST is a paradigm, a mindset, a new vision! It's a proactive, comprehensive stance to showcase the importance of substance abuse prevention throughout West Virginia.

This statewide, universal approach provides a clear, consistent, and incredibly strong message to community members, lawmakers, and other key stakeholders that "prevention" is an integral part of the continuum of care. And, prevention is a critical component of any thriving community.

The goal of prevention is to prevent the onset of mental, emotional, behavioral, and substance use related problems. Services types include information dissemination, education, alternatives, problem ID and referral, community-based processes, and environmental strategies.