The impact of a community-based risky drinking intervention (Beat da Binge) on Indigenous young XXXX .

@entity1 @entity285
BACKGROUND: @entity285 misuse imposes substantial harm on Indigenous Australians whose health status is poorer than non-Indigenous Australians. Although Indigenous youth are over represented in Indigenous @entity285 harms, few interventions addressing @entity285 -related harm among Indigenous youth have been evaluated. Given this paucity of evidence, a survey was designed to evaluate the effects of a whole-of-community, anti-binge drinking intervention for young @entity1 in an Indigenous community in far north Queensland, Australia. METHODS: A cross sectional, baseline-post intervention study assessed the impact of a two year anti-binge drinking intervention targeting young @entity1 (18-24 years). A survey was developed and implemented at baseline and again two-years post-intervention, administered by young local @entity1 employed as research assistants. Survey respondents were recruited through snowballing techniques. Survey items asked about respondents' knowledge of binge drinking and standard drinks, involvement in @entity285 -free social activities, frequency of short-term risky drinking (binge drinking), and mean @entity285 expenditure during short-term risky drinking occasions. The intervention was called Beat da Binge. Two major events and multiple minor activities each year were implemented, focusing on drinking education, @entity285 -free community-wide social events, and youth-specific sporting and social activities to facilitate self-empowerment. RESULTS: Beat da Binge was associated with a statistically significant 10 % reduction in the proportion of survey respondents who reported that they had engaged in an episode of short-term risky drinking, in the frequency of short-term risky drinking for all beverage types except wine (ranging from 4 % to 31 % reductions), in mean expenditure on @entity285 during short-term risky drinking sessions ( 6.25) and in the proportion of activities with family/friends that usually include @entity285 (7 %). There were also statistically significant increases in awareness of binge drinking and standard drinks (28 % and 21 % respectively). In addition to @entity285 -specific outcomes, there was a statistically significant 8 % increase in the proportions of respondents engaged in training as their main weekday activity, which was partly off-set by a 13 % reduction in those whose main weekday activity was family care or home-related tasks. CONCLUSIONS: Reductions in the proportion of survey respondents who reported binge drinking, along with increases in awareness and involvement in @entity285 -free social activities suggest the community-based intervention was effective. The potential impact of sample selection and self-reporting limitations on results need further investigation. There is an urgent need for Indigenous, community-driven public health programs that are well evaluated to both improve Indigenous health and the strength of the current evidence base to inform future community interventions.
