Rates and Predictors of Substance Use in Pediatric Primary Care Clinics

Background: Screening for substance use within pediatric primary care provides a unique opportunity to identify adolescents in need of intervention. Methods: This study analyzed screening data collected across 13 Federally Qualified Health Centers over the course of an 18-month project designed to implement Screening Brief Intervention Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) for adolescents aged 12–21. A mixed-effects modeling strategy was used to describe associations between demographic, procedural, and clinical factors and adolescent reports of substance use. Results: In total, 10,813 adolescents were screened between December 2017 and May 2019, with 17% reporting past year use, including 11% at lower risk and 6% at high risk of a substance use disorder. Females, Hispanic, Black/African American, heterosexual, non-primary English speakers, and patients who did not have a co-occurring mental health disorder were all less likely to report past year substance use. While rates of disclosing any past year substance use were equivalent between patients screened by a staff member and those who completed self-administered screens, patients who were screened by a staff member were associated with reporting overall greater frequencies of use. Patients who were screened by a staff member with a parent present were less likely to disclose any past year substance use. Conclusion: While overall rates of disclosure of any past year substance use (17.2%) were lower than reported in research settings, a substantial proportion (6.3%) had screen results indicating a high risk for substance use disorder.