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Welcome to Prevention! An Introduction to the Primary Prevention Field
September 3, 2025 at 9:00 am to 11:00 am
Overview
This introduction to substance use disorder (SUD) prevention is where to come to get answers to (at least some of!) the questions you’ve had about the primary prevention field, including:
- What is primary prevention?
- What is it that we’re actually doing when we “do” prevention?
- Are there things called “prevention” that don’t work?
- Where does the money come from that supports prevention services and pays our salaries?
- What makes SUD prevention a “science”? What do we mean by “evidence”?
- Are there theories that guide prevention science?
If you’re new to the prevention field, or still trying to gain a fundamental understanding of primary prevention best practices at the local, state, and national levels, this training is for you! Participants will gain a foundational knowledge of prevention, including the Strategic Prevention Framework, common acronyms and day-to-day challenges, and key strategies from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Center for Substance Abuse Prevention for the successful implementation of primary prevention strategies.
About the Presenter
Charlie Seltzer (he/him) was the Substance Use Disorder (SUD) prevention coordinator for the Mendocino County Public Health Department for 10 years. When he retired from full time work, he asked to become a consultant for CARS. He enjoyed prevention, but he wanted to assist the whole field, not just his county. Now, he gets to consult with people all across the state, assisting them to design and implement strategic plans and build capacity for their local prevention work. He also enjoys offering SUD prevention trainings to the field and has led numerous Prevention-101 trainings, trainings on environmental prevention, the Strategic Prevention Framework, social determinants of health, conducting focus groups, designing logic models, and Diversity/Equity/Inclusion/Belonging issues for LGBTQ+ individuals, the disabled and rural populations. When he’s not working in the SUD prevention field, Charlie enjoys playing the piano (he’s quite good), gardening, reading, cooking, hiking the beautiful hills of Mendocino County, and being home with his husband and their cat.
Outlook Live 
