In 2003, Guam competed and was subsequently awarded a Strategic Prevention Framework-State Incentive Grant (SPF-SIG) for substance abuse prevention and control by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP). Utilizing the principles of outcomes-based prevention, the grant specified the creation of a State Epidemiological Outcomes Workgroup (SEOW), which would oversee the strategic use of data to inform and guide substance abuse prevention policy and program development on Guam. Guam’s SEOW was subsequently established in 2004. Throughout 2005, the SEOW undertook a data inventory, and collated and reviewed data on substance abuse consumption patterns and consequences. The first Guam State Epidemiological Profile (Epi Profile) on substance abuse and consequences was published during the 3rd quarter of 2007. Subsequent updates to the profile were published in 2008 and 2009. The SPF-SIG formally ended in 2010.
In 2008, the Guam DMHSA successfully applied for a SAMHSA youth suicide prevention grant. The three-year grant, entitled Focus on Life-Guam Youth Suicide Prevention, ran from September 2008 to September 2011. One of the grant’s objectives was to strengthen and enhance suicide data collection, surveillance and analysis. This was assigned to the SEOW, which released Guam’s first Suicide Profile in January 2009. Two updates were published in April 2010 and September 2011. The suicide prevention grant ended on September 2011.
In late 2010, Synectics, a SAMHSA contractor, awarded a sub-grant to Guam DMHSA to sustain the SEOW. DMHSA issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) and selected Health Partners, LLC (Dr. Annette M. David) to oversee the SEOW process in January 2011. The Government of Guam finally issued the work order in October 2011.
Building upon the previous SEOW infrastructure and membership, this subcontract will enable the strengthening of a unified and coordinated mechanism to pool the island’s existing statistical and data expertise for systematically managing data to inform policy and program decisions not only for substance abuse prevention but also for a broader range of behavioral health areas. As a start, data on suicide indicators will be incorporated with substance abuse consumption and consequences data. Eventually, the coverage will be expanded to include additional behavioral health indicators, such as risk and protective factors for mental health.
Currently, Guam’s SEOW is considered the definitive authority on substance abuse epidemiology on the island. Its data products are readily acknowledged as comprehensive community resources, and its work has consistently influenced substance abuse policy and program development, prevention resource allocation, services delivery and decision-making at the State government level as well as within individual agencies, institutions, and community organizations.
The SEOW’s work has been cited and utilized by the Office of the Governor and Lt. Governor, the Guam Legislature, the University of Guam and Guam Community College, the Departments of Public Health and Social Services and Mental Health and Substance Abuse and various other policy leaders and program managers on Guam. The SEOW has contributed significantly to various policies directly related to substance abuse prevention, including Public Law 28-80 (Guam’s smoke-free law, 2005), Public Law 30-80 (raising tobacco taxes and earmarking tobacco tax revenues for cancer prevention and health promotion, 2010) and Public Law 30-156 (raising the minimum legal drinking age from 18 to 21 years, 2010). It has also guided prevention program planning and resource allocation in diverse health areas. For instance, the SEOW’s Epidemiological Profile is widely quoted in the Guam Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan and is a major reference for the Guam Non-communicable Disease Control and Prevention strategic plan and the Guam Focus on Life suicide prevention program. It has also been used as a reference by the University of Guam’s Cancer Research Center for its U54 research grant application to the National Cancer Institute.
The expanded mandate of the SEOW and its ongoing support through the sub-grant will ensure that this valuable community prevention resource will continue to provide the local evidence base for effective substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion in Guam.
Guam State Epidemiological Outcomes Workgroup (SEOW)
| Organization | Individual Representative(s)(s) | Designation |
| Health Partners, L.L.C. | Dr. Annette M. David | SEOW Lead |
| Department of Public Health and Social Services (DPHSS) |
Elizabeth Guerrero Grace Bordallo Kristen Rivera |
SEOW Members |
| Guam Department of Education | Celini Higa | SEOW Member |
| Guam National Guard | SSgt Corina Andre | SEOW Member |
| Guam Police Department | Captain Donald R. Flickinger | SEOW Member |
| Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center |
Sara Harrell Audrey Benavente KristiAnna Whitman Hanna De Fiesta Karina Reyes |
Project Director Project Director Project Director Technical Assistance Coordinator Technical Assistance Coordinator |
| Superior Court of Guam | Grace Rosadino | SEOW Member |
| Pacific Island Health Officers' Association | Helene LeMouellic | SEOW Member |
| Guam Alternative Lifestyle Association, Inc. | Hannah Mendiola | SEOW Member |
| WestCare Pacific Islands |
Kathleen Aguon Melissa Rhea Krisha Mae Ayson Mia Madlambayan |
SEOW Members |
| Hagu Foundation | Landon Aydlette | SEOW Member |
| Guam Department of Youth Affairs | Melanie Brennan | SEOW Member |
| Guam Memorial Hospital | To be designated | SEOW Member |
| GBHWC Partnerships for Success | Dr. Ray Somera | SEOW Member |
| Mañe'lu | Daena Mansapit | SEOW Member |
| Sanctuary, Incorporated | Victor Camacho | SEOW Member |
| University of Guam |
Dr. Yvette Paulino Peter Barcinas |
SEOW Members |
