NCJ Number
168070
Date Published
1996
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This report describes Maryland's Pulse Check project, an effort to gather data on substance abuse within local communities for timely dissemination to State and local policymakers, program administrators and community activists.
Abstract
The Maryland Pulse Check (MPC) used modified qualitative research methods in its gathering of survey data to supplement the quantitative information the Center for Substance Abuse Research collects from national and state surveys and other administrative data collection systems. The MPC drew upon sources' experiential knowledge through loosely structured telephone interviews with respondents in the State's 23 counties and Baltimore City, and interviewed law enforcement, public health, education, prevention and research professionals currently working on Maryland's drug problem. Through its creation of a diverse network of sources across the State, the MPC can examine phenomena that are just emerging in a community and have not yet registered in the State's quantitative indicators, can study patterns of drug abuse that are unique to a particular county's population and present findings in a useful and timely manner to a broad audience. Notes, references, appendixes