Religiousness, current substance use, and early risk indicators for substance abuse in nursing students

Nursing students have been targeted by the American Nurses' Association ( ANA) for efforts focused on the prevention of substance abuse. This study surveyed 241 nursing students enrolled in their first year of nursing courses at seven faith-based colleges and universities. The purposes were to investigate the prevalence of current substance use and the number of early risk indicators for substance abuse and dependence among nursing students, and to examine the relationships among religiousness, current substance use, and early risk indicators for substance abuse. Efinger's Alcohol Risk Survey, the CAGE Questionnaire, and the Intrinsic/Extrinsic Revised Scale were used to collect data. Twenty-four percent of respondents reported current substance use, 15% scored in the probable abuse/dependence category: those who were more religious tended to have lower prevalence rates of substance use as well as fewer numbers of early risk indicators.