Place of Last Drink Survey . . .
Place of Last Drink Survey:  A Multi-Faceted
Tool for Prevention
Ventura County is thought to have one of the largest and most well maintained Place of Last Drink (POLD) survey databases. Currently, Ventura County’s POLD database includes more than 22,000 surveys gathered over the past eight years from convicted DUI offenders. Approximately 6% of these respondents are underage DUI offenders. POLD data are routinely analyzed to help identify the places, settings and circumstances associated with impaired driving by underage drinkers. Findings from the POLD database are used by law enforcement, community coalitions, and a Safe Bars Task Force to plan and implement data-driven environmental prevention strategies. This workshop will provide:  (1) an overview of POLD data collection methods, (2) recent findings from underage DUI offenders, and (3) concrete examples of how findings have been used to address underage drinking issues and measure change.  This workshop has three primary learning objectives:

Objective 1
Workshop participants will develop a better understanding of how Place of Last Drink survey findings can be used to inform and enforce underage drinking prevention policies. Concrete examples will be provided demonstrating how law enforcement, community coalitions, and task force members have used data to support activities and policies designed to reduce and prevent underage drinking in Ventura County. Participants will also learn how to effectively utilize underage drinking data in their own communities. 

Objective 2
Participants will leave this workshop with best practices for collecting and managing Place of Last Drink Survey data within a DUI offender program setting. Participants will have new ideas for increasing the reliability and validity of their data collection methods, and will be motivated to implement or improve current data collection practices related to underage drinkers, particularly DUI offenders.

Objective 3
Workshop participants will learn about recent findings from underage Place of Last Drink survey respondents.  For example, where these youth are most frequently drinking before being arrested for DUI, gender differences in drinking behaviors on the night of their arrest, and which approaches underage DUI offenders suggest for preventing future DUIs.

Northwest Alcohol Conference