STAD (Stockholm prevents alcohol and drug problems) started as a project in 1995 and today is an educational resource and research center for prevention of alcohol and drug abuse. Organizationally we are part of the Center for Psychiatry Research (CPF), which is a working collaboration between Stockholm County Council and Karolinska Institute.

STAD’s activities, with a focus on prevention of alcohol and drug abuse, consist of five strategic areas:

• Research

• Method development

• Method Implementation

• Evaluation

• Training

STAD’s work is characterized by a systematic approach, i.e. that successful prevention efforts should be based on interdisciplinary and cross-sector collaboration between key operators who work together to influence the availability and demand for alcohol and drugs in society.

STAD's activities are research driven. The prevention methods STAD works with have been developed and implemented with close collaboration between research and working practice. Assessment is of paramount importance to STAD and ensures that the use of prevention is as effective as possible. Assessments are both formative and cumulative, i.e. they systematically investigate both implementation processes and final results of the prevention activities STAD performs in society. Another integral part of STAD’s work is publicizing our findings on prevention and preventative action. This is done through comprehensive training and educational activities.

At STAD we use Interdisciplinary Research. By working together, researchers from various disciplines create and develop a field of knowledge for prevention of alcohol and drug abuse. The research team is strategically composed of scientists with expertise in epidemiology, public health, social work, sociology, communication studies, criminology and psychology .Methodically, the research group’s work from the perspective of both quantity and quality.

STAD’s project leader collaborates with the research team to develop and implement prevention methods to prevent alcohol and drug abuse. The development and implementation work is conducted interdisciplinary and interdepartmentally. Project managers and researchers cooperate with various community members to ensure the effective implementation of our methods.

One example of STAD's work is Ansvarsfull alkoholservering (AAS). STAD has developed and implemented this method in Sweden which is based on the American model “Responsible Beverage Service”.  AAS (RBS) aims to create a better and safer pub and restaurant environment by reducing violence and injuries related to alcohol and drugs. This concept and method has been further developed by STAD and customized to reduce drug-related problems in the restaurant environment with the creation of the project “Clubs Against Drugs” (KMK). Both AAS and KMK have spread nationally and pubs, restaurants and nightclubs across the country have been working with these methods for several years now. In recent years the concept has also been used in the prevention of doping in Swedish gyms and fitness centers with the project “100% Pure Hard Training”. Presently fitness centers, county councils and municipalities throughout Sweden are participating in the operation.

Education in brief alcohol counseling in primary care is yet another example of STAD’s activities. The method is based on “screening and brief intervention”, which is a scientific evidence-based treatment for alcohol abuse. Within the framework of the operation are, for example, courses for medical staff of healthcare centers in discovering and implementing shorter treatments for alcohol abuse and moderate forms of alcoholism, rather than referring patients for addiction treatment.

Another activity is Children in abusive environments (BIM), where STAD, along with Lund University, develop and evaluate web-based support programs aimed at children and adolescents whose parents have substance abuse problems. The project aims to develop efficient and accessible programs that provide young people with support in a difficult situation and help prevent that they themselves are developing problematic drinking habits and mental illness.

STAD's latest venture is a project aimed at tackling supporter violence with alcohol prevention in sports stadiums, which was initiated in 2015. The project aims to reduce violence at sporting events, with a focus on alcohol and drug prevention. The work is done in collaboration with key players such as football clubs, police and restaurants.

Read more about STAD’s prevention work in different areas under the tab “Operations”.

 For more information about STAD, contact the Director Johanna Gripenberg