A Substance Use Guide for School Mental Health Professionals
A practical guide to help school mental health professionals use the SBIRT approach—Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment— to support students with substance use concerns.
Why this is important
SBIRT is an evidence-informed, public-health approach that helps identify concerns early, offer the right brief supports, and connect students to more intensive care when needed.
Youth commonly use substances like alcohol, cannabis and vaping products; prevention and early intervention at school can reduce harm and help build coping skills.
How might I use this resource?
This guide was created to provide practical, up-to-date information and tools for early identification and brief intervention with common youth substances.
What’s inside
- Clear, step-by-step SBIRT guidance
- Practical tips for asking about substance use and building trust with students.
- Brief intervention skills (e.g., motivational interviewing, CBT, readiness ruler).
- Screening tools and decision prompts (e.g., CRAFFT, CUDIT-R, AUDIT).
- Guidance on working with parents/caregivers
This guide was created by Gwendolyn Fearing-Afflick (SMH-ON), PhD, MSW, RSW; Amar Ghelani, PhD, MSW, RSW; Anasua Kundu, PhD(c); Christopher Bourke, MA; and Jillian Halladay, PhD, BScN, RN, MSc.
We are grateful for Allison Potts, MSW, RSW for her contribution to the school-based interventions related to student cannabis use guide which informed and is part of this new guide. We are also grateful for the additional collaboration and consultation with researchers affiliated with the Centre for Addition and Mental Health (CAMH), CAPSA, and a key informant team of SMH-ON consultants (Alexandra Fortier, Ashley Hendy, Toni Lauzon, Sylvie Noutie, Heather Carter and Jamie Lee Liddell), Mental Health Leaders (Chantelle Quesnelle, Deana Renaud) and Ontario SMH professionals survey feedback.