Shatterproof Just Five, an online, self-paced, mobile enabled program that increases awareness, reduces stigma, and shares information about addiction prevention and treatment was recently evaluated in PLOS One. The peer-reviewed, open access scientific journal published by the Public Library of Science covers primary research from all disciplines within science and medicine.

The evaluation of Just Five stated it is “a flexible digital approach to adult substance use education.” The evaluation is now freely available for anyone to read, cite and reuse under an Open Access license. Just Five was created by Shatterproof, a national nonprofit focused on ending the addiction crisis, and launched three years ago. The program contains six educational lessons about substance use disorder in five-minute learning experiences. Lessons combine animated and expert videos as well as interactive learning and supplemental materials. 

The research, authored by Shatterproof’s Leslie Damesek Litsky and Stephen D’Antonio, and scientific writer Erika Bonnevie indicates that substance use is a steadily worsening crisis, yet there is limited evidence on the effectiveness of brief educational programs related to substance use disorders. Just Five addresses this gap and is delivered through various organizations, including employers as part of workplace wellness, health plans as an additional free offering, and community-based organizations as a resource for the populations they serve.

Employer, insurer and community partners that offer the Just Five learning experience include the City of New York, Hazelden Betty Ford, JP Morgan Chase, New Directions Behavioral Health, QED Investors, and the State of Pennsylvania; these employers can reach and educate hundreds of thousands of people about the realities of substance use. Participants who use Just Five learn who is at risk for substance use disorders, how to discern whether a person may have a substance use disorder, how to support loved ones with this disease, and more. All lessons are woven together with a positive message that change is possible for everyone.

Given that the Just Five program enrolls organizations and participants on a rolling basis, surveys were delivered at differing times for each organization, depending on the organization’s enrollment into the program or new staff or plan members’ start dates (in the case of employers and health plans). The research evaluated the effectiveness of Just Five across 10 organizations in the initial launch. A cross-sectional survey was given to Just Five viewers to establish changes in perceived knowledge and attitudes toward substance use disorders.

Between December 2019 and September 2021, 2,749 baseline and 397 follow-up surveys were collected. Significant improvements were observed across almost all questions asked, with the largest improvements in respondent confidence to recognize signs of addiction (52.5% baseline; 87.7% follow-up); knowledge about ways to reduce the risk of addiction (54.1% baseline; 86.5% follow-up); and knowledge of how to help someone with addiction (38.7% baseline; 81.7% follow-up). All trends were replicated in sub-analyses. Agreement that addiction is a chronic medical illness also showed significant improvements across all three groups, from about 80–83% at baseline to 93–95% at follow-up.

“Substance use disorders impact 40 million people. Additionally, only one out of 10 seeks treatment,” said Gary Mendell, founder and CEO of Shatterproof. “Just Five is an important tool with the potential to increase knowledge and improve attitudes toward substance use disorders. This evaluation suggests that Just Five is a critical addition to the current evidence base around tools for adult substance use education.”

Substance use has severe societal impacts, and there is a need for effective programs like Just Five that can be quickly implemented across various environments at large scale.

Just Five was recently featured at the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting and Expo and currently has been viewed by more than 85,000 users.

You can read the full research article here.

To learn more about Just Five, visit: https://justfive.org/