Academic Degrees:
Doctor in Epidemiology (PhD) - Universidad de North Carolina en Chapel Hill, Estados Unidos de Norteamérica, 1990 - 1994
Master in Public Health - Universidad de Alabama en Birmingham
Birmingham, 1984 - 1986
Recent training:
-
Global training in drug demand reduction. Cohort III Latin America. UNODC, August 02 to September 30, 2021.
-
Certified Master Trainer in courses of the Universal Prevention Curriculum, at coordinators and implementers level. Cartagena, October 2019
Recent academic activities:
-
Training in Monitoring and evaluation of school-based interventions and policies for the for the staff of the Directorate of Inclusive Education of the Ministry of Education and Sciences of Paraguay. March 2022
-
Adaptation of the Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC) Line of specialization in policies and interventions in school prevention - Series of Implementers for the School of Government and Public Policies Norberto Bobbio, Paraguay. ICUDDR, 2021.
-
Adaptation of the Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC) for the Intercontinental Technological University – UTIC, Paraguay. ICUDDR 2020
-
Implementation of the Diploma in School Prevention of the Use of Psychoactive Substances for Implementers at the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia. 2020
-
Adaptation of the UPC to the university system, CICAD 2018.
-
Implementation of the Diploma in Prevention of the Use of Psychoactive Substances for Coordinators at the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia. 2017
-
Trainer of UPC Coordinator Series Courses and UPC Implementer Series: School
Track Courses. Lima and Cajamarca, Peru 2018 - 2020
Recent research and evaluation activities:
-
Associated investigator: Implementation of the Introduction to Evidence-Based Prevention (INEP) online course: A Feasibility Study in the Different University Settings. ICUDDR, 2022
-
Principal Investigator of the Media-based prevention intervention in middle school students in Cajamarca. Perú 2021-2022
-
Principal Investigator of the Demonstration and Evaluation of the UPC Series Study in Peru 2107-2021.
-
Development of the Lions Quest program monitoring and evaluation system - Argentina. Buenos Aires March, 2017-2021
Abstract
Demonstration and Evaluation of the Universal Prevention Curriculum –School-based Prevention Interventions and Policies
Objective: Evaluate the effectiveness of training schoolteachers to implement evidence-based substance use prevention interventions in Peru, using the School-Based Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC).
Rationale: There is lack of effective strategies implemented in Peruvian schools addressing the prevention of adolescent substance use and related risk behaviors.
Methodology: The study design involved 28 schools randomized to either intervention or control condition. Teachers at intervention schools received UPC training for implementing effective school policies; improving schools’ climate; and building and sustaining the organizational structure necessary to implement these strategies. Teachers were trained for administration of Unplugged, an evidence-based drug prevention program. Data were collected through four cross-sectional student surveys between May 2018 and November 2019.
Results: Findings showed statistically significant relative reductions in the likelihood of past year and past month smoking (20% and 33%, respectively). Students in the intervention group reported that fewer of their friends engaged in tobacco, alcohol, marijuana use. They also reported increases in school bonding and a greater awareness of school policies related to substance use.
Conclusion: This RCT provides evidence in support of UPC training as an effective means of disseminating prevention science concepts, skills, and practices to support the implementation of evidence-based interventions in school settings.