Educate...Don't Bombard...

Workers with D&A Information Way back in the 1960s, people use to say turn on and tune out, referring to using drugs and forgetting all the worlds cares. aking that old e!pression and gi"ing it a new twist produces, bo#bard and tune out. $o#barding people with the sa#e #essage o"er and o"er again beco#es an ineffecti"e co##unication strategy in the workplace. %u#an nature is such that regularly hearing dire warnings offering no conte!t on a routine basis turns i#portant #essages into ones that are tuned out. &rug and alcohol education progra#s in the workplace need to be structured to do e!actly what the description i#plies ' educate workers and in a way that #akes sense to the#. (#ployers can learn a lot fro# studies conducted to deter#ine the effects of #edia on listener attitudes towards illicit drugs. he public is bo#barded on a daily basis with news #edia reports co"ering a range of topics. hough the #essage is often intended to produce positi"e results, the opposite can happen. )or e!a#ple, #edia reporting on "iolence that is #eant to infor# and warn people can desensitise the# towards "iolence instead. he *uestion is whether bo#barding people with infor#ation about illicit drugs and drug acti"ity desensitises the# to the dangers of using the substances. &o people *uit listening+ &oes infor#ation o"erload change attitudes towards illicit drugs as to their risks and acceptability+ ,f so, is the change good or bad+ Framing a Rele ant !essage - study conducted in"ol"ing teenagers and young adults, #any of who# are e#ployed, indicated that how a #essage is fra#ed influences decision #aking. .edia #essages influence the for#ation of opinions and reinforce#ent of concepts, partly because younger people do not ha"e life e!periences to pro"ide personal conte!t. %owe"er, all people are influenced by #edia to so#e degree. /ew infor#ation #erges with peoples e!isting beliefs, and attitudes e#erge fro# the #i!. )or young adults, the e!isting attitudes ha"e de"eloped #ostly as a result of interactions with parents and peers.1 0lder adults ha"e life e!periences to fall back on and hear #essages with #ore solidified beliefs and attitudes. 1re2e!isting beliefs play a large role in deter#ining how so#eone interprets a #essage, which is why workplace drug and education progra#s get the #essage across #ore successfully with so#e people than others. /on2users of illicit drugs rely on news #edia, or other sources like e#ployer education progra#s, for their infor#ation, and these sessions ha"e a great influence on shaping attitudes about risks of drug use. 0n the other hand, those who ha"e pre"iously tried illicit drugs are likely to be #ore intrigued by news #edia reports about a new illicit drug hitting the streets. herefore, how a #essage is co#posed will influence its final i#pact. )or e!a#ple, people who are regular weekend partiers and regularly #i! drugs and alcohol will tune out an education progra# if it appears to be out of touch with the reality of polydrug use and talks about binge drinking and illicit drug taking as separate e"ents to be treated

separately. 3redibility of infor#ation is critical. 4tudies ha"e also indicated that #any younger people will take #edia #essages at face "alue, whilst older people need hard facts and research to change their attitudes or beliefs. his harkens back to the pre"ious point noted that peoples attitudes are for#ed through life e!periences, and it is difficult to o"erco#e what people ha"e witnessed, e!perienced, read and watched for years.5 "alking About the Right "hings elling workers o"er and o"er again that thou shall not take drugs or drink alcohol at work is not an effecti"e education progra#. 0ne of the conclusions reached is that there is a greater chance of deterring teenagers and young adults fro# workplace drug use by including the i#pact of drug use in #essaging. ,nstead of 6ust talking about the legal issues or the possibility of 6ob ter#ination if caught using drugs, the e#ployer can include infor#ation about cannabis psychosis and how that effect risks workplace safety. %owe"er, for workers of any age, changing e!isting beha"iours and attitudes relies on a regular education progra# that e!plains how drugs 7and alcohol8 i#pact the health and welfare of e#ployees and the workplace, and how substance abuse increases the risk of har#. 9 :egular education does not #ean bo#barding people with #essages, hanging anti2 drug posters all o"er the place, or sending e#ails e"ery day that end up getting deleted. ,t #eans consistent deli"ery of useful, rele"ant, and realistic infor#ation that workers can conte!tualise and internalise. (ach workplace is different, and e#ployers need to adapt their #essages to the audience. .ediscreen 7#ediscreen.net.au8 works with e#ployers to ensure they understand drug and alcohol testing procedures, the substances that can be tested, and docu#entation re*uire#ents. he first step in educating e#ployees is educating the #anage#ent and super"isory staff. his article has been taken fro# ; http;<<www.#ediscreen.net.au<educate2dont2 bo#bard2workers2with2da2infor#ation<