Purpose of this kit

The kit draws from the best available evidence on AOD use and driving, and prevention messaging that is considered to be most effective in communities.

Activities delivered with the stakeholder kit aim to:

• increase LDATs and their community’s knowledge of AOD and driving harms
• connect LDATs and their community to AOD and driving resources
• increase access to information and earlier supports for those at risk of AOD and driving harms.

You can use this kit to support the development of your Community Action Plan (CAP). Although it can’t be selected as an individual approach, it can be used as a supporting resource to deliver your CAP activities if road safety issues is a concern in your community.

This kit can be used alongside the following LDAT toolkits:

• Supporting Teenagers: this toolkit focuses on educating parents/carers to prevent AOD harm in their teenagers. As most teenagers will be learning how to drive, it can be a good opportunity for parents to share information on how alcohol and drugs impact driving.
• Alcohol, Other Drugs and Young Adults – this toolkit focuses on helping young people in higher education and the workforce to reduce AOD harm. Many young people in this transitional phase will be newly licensed, so it can be a good opportunity to incorporate education around how alcohol and drugs impact driving.
• Alcohol, Other Drugs and Older Adults – this toolkit focuses on educating older adults on the health risks associated with AOD use as people age. This is a good opportunity to discuss the interactions between medications and driving ability, as well as the heightened risk when alcohol is combined with other drugs.
• Pharmaceutical Drugs and Your Community – this toolkit refers to programs and activities aimed at raising awareness of the risks associated with certain prescription medications. Conversations around how prescription medications impact driving can be incorporated.
• Healthy Workplaces – this toolkit refers to strategies that workplaces can use to prevent and minimise alcohol and other drug-related harms in the workplace. For workplaces where driving is part of the role (e.g. tradies, truck driving, delivery service, people who drive to attend different work sites as part of their working role), education around how AOD use can impact driving is crucial.

In Victoria, 1 in 5 drivers killed on the roads have a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .05 or higher, while 41% of all drivers and motorcyclists killed who were tested, had drugs in their system. Communities, particularly in regional Victoria, express deep concern about the toll that alcohol and drugs place on their residents, including the impacts of road accidents.

Harm experienced locally is often made worse by a lack of accessible alternative transport options and a low perceived risk of being caught. The most effective responses are those that actively involve the local community and frontline service providers who work closely with at-risk groups.