Exploring alcohol and other drug use among culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Victoria

This post forms part of our series in showcasing abstracts of presentations featured at our annual postgraduate interdisciplinary conference on refugee and forced migration research, hosted in November 2018 at The University of Melbourne.

CAITLIN DOUGLASS

Australia’s national drug and alcohol policies identify culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities as priority populations for reducing drug and alcohol-related harms. Although prevalence of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use is thought to be lower among people from CALD backgrounds, some individuals from these communities face significant barriers in accessing AOD treatment services and are vulnerable to factors associated with AOD-related harms (including mental health conditions and experiences of trauma).

This PhD project aims to explore the context of AOD use in CALD communities from the perspective of key stakeholders, young people and parents of CALD backgrounds in Victoria, Australia. Participants will be purposively sampled through community-based organisations. The study will adopt qualitative and participatory research methods to enable young people of CALD backgrounds to frame the research agenda. Data will be collected through workshops, in-depth interviews and focus groups. Analysis will be guided by the social-ecological model to understand the role of individual, interpersonal and community-level factors on AOD use. Results may inform culturally appropriate prevention, harm reduction and treatment strategies for AOD.

Caitlin Douglass is a PhD student at Burnet Institute and University of Melbourne. She has a Bachelor of Health Science from Monash University. Her research interests include alcohol and other drug use, sexual health, social media and young people of migrant and refugee backgrounds