American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian Initiative

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

How To Use This Resource Kit

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

(SAMHSA) Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Center for

Excellence has developed this resource kit to help you and your

community understand and prevent FASD. “FASD” is a term that

describes a range of lifelong effects that can occur in someone whose

mother drank alcohol during pregnancy. The materials in this kit have

been specially designed for the needs of American Indian, Alaska

Native, and Native Hawaiian communities, which we will also refer to as

“Native communities.” FASD is 100 percent preventable, so it is

important for everyone to share the message of prevention and hope

with mothers-to-be, policymakers, health professionals, and family and

community members.

What Are the Goals of the Resource Kit?

The goals of the resource kit are to:

❖ Increase knowledge about FASD prevention in Native communities

❖ Provide Native communities with user-friendly materials that support

FASD prevention

❖ Help people understand that if a mother drinks alcohol during

pregnancy, she may give birth to a child with an FASD

❖ Give people the tools to support loved ones and community

members in being alcohol-free mothers

Who Should Read This Information?

The resource kit was made for anyone who has an interest in working to

strengthen Native communities by reducing FASD. It is for friends,

relatives, health professionals, tribal leaders, and educators—to name
a few groups—including people with no knowledge about FASD. You

may choose the parts of the resource kit that best meet your needs, or

read everything for a broader overview.

How Should the Kit Be Used?

We encourage you to copy any of the pieces in the resource kit to share

with others in your family, State, territory, community, or tribe. You may

fax information sheets to friends, use the information for a school report,

make copies of a brochure to hand out at a community meeting, give

copies of the fact sheets to patients who are pregnant or thinking of

becoming pregnant—whatever uses you can think of.

What Does This Kit Include?

The resource kit includes information to help everyone understand what

FASD is and how to help prevent it. It also contains:

❖ Current data and statistics on FASD

❖ Everyday strategies to assist your community with FASD education

and prevention

❖ Suggestions for collaborating with other people, agencies, and

organizations to enhance FASD services

❖ Tips on how to seek help for yourself and how to help others

❖ Specific information for men, youth, women, and communities

❖ Two posters

❖ A CD with an electronic version of the entire resource kit and

FASD—The Basics, a resource for presentations

How Was the Kit Developed?

All items in the resource kit were developed and reviewed by a

committee of experts for quality and relevance. The committee included

representatives from American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native

Hawaiian communities, as well as professionals in the field of FASD.

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Where Can More Materials Be Located?

To order additional copies of the resource kit, contact the National

Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI) directly at

800-729-6686 or visit its Web site at www.ncadi.samhsa.gov. To find

FASD material quickly, use the “issues” button across the top of the

homepage and select “fetal alcohol spectrum disorders” from the

dropdown menu. NCADI is an excellent resource for information on

many alcohol- and drug-related issues, including FASD.

The SAMHSA Web site, www.fasdcenter.samhsa.gov, can provide you

with even more information on FASD, including current publications and

fact sheets, an FASD database, and links to related sites.

We hope that you will find these resources relevant and useful.

Thank you for caring for yourself and your community!

American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian Initiative

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

How To Use This Resource Kit (Continued)

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Pregnancy is Sacred

For more information, visit fasdcenter.samhsa.gov or call 866-STOPFAS.

www.stopalcoholabuse.gov

DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 07-4264

Printed 2007