Lessons learned from statewide contingency management rollouts addressing stimulant use in the Northwestern United States.

Increases in stimulant drug use (such as methamphetamine) and related deaths creates an imperative for community settings to adopt evidence-based practices to help people who use stimulants. Contingency management (CM) is a behavioral intervention with decades of research demonstrating efficacy for the treatment of stimulant use disorder, but real-world adoption has been slow, due to well-known implementation barriers, including difficulty funding reinforcers, and stigma. This paper describes the training and technical assistance (TTA) efforts and lessons learned for two state-wide stimulant-focused CM implementation projects in the Northwestern United States (Montana and Washington).

Pono Choices: Lessons for School Leaders From the Evaluation of a Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program.

Background: The US Office of Adolescent Health (OAH) funded studies of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention programs in 2010. The results of a 5-year OAH study conducted in the state of Hawai'i with middle school youth has implications for school leaders in the selection and implementation of comprehensive sex education curricula yielding positive outcomes for youth.

Methods: A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted across 34 middle school in the state of Hawai'i with 1783 student participants in pre-, post-, and 1-year follow-up surveys to determine effectiveness of a culturally responsive teen pregnancy prevention curriculum, called Pono Choices, specifically developed for youth in Hawai'i.

Culturally Responsive Adolescent Pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infection Prevention Program for Middle School Students in Hawai'i.

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of Pono Choices, a culturally responsive adolescent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention program targeting middle school youths in Hawai'i.

Methods: We conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial with the school as the unit of random assignment over 3 semesters between 2012 and 2013. The sample consisted of 36 middle schools and 2203 students.

Healthy Weight in Lesbian and Bisexual Women Aged 40 and Older: An Effective Intervention in 10 Cities Using Tailored Approaches.

Background: Lesbian and bisexual women are more likely to be overweight or obese than heterosexual women, leading to increased weight-related health risks.

Methods: Overweight women aged 40 or older who self-identified as lesbian, bisexual, or "something else" participated in five pilot interventions of 12 or 16 weeks' duration. These tailored interventions took place at lesbian and bisexual community partner locations and incorporated weekly group meetings, nutrition education, and physical activity.

Use of Maryland Biological Stream Survey data to determine effects of agricultural riparian buffers on measures of biological stream health.

This study was undertaken to determine the importance of riparian buffers to stream ecology in agricultural areas. The original Maryland Biological Stream Survey (MBSS) data set was partitioned to represent agricultural sites in Maryland's Coastal Plain and Piedmont regions. ANOVA, multiple linear regression (MLR), and CART regression tree models were developed using riparian and site catchment landscape characteristics.