FASD Center for Excellence

Partnership to Prevent FASD

Have a healthy baby. Be an alcohol-free mother-to-be. The Partnership to Prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) was established by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) in July 2001. SAMHSA's funding for the Partnership ended in 2004. The goal of the Partnership was to unite communities nationwide in a public health response to prevent FASD. The Partnership helped to empower mothers to deliver healthy babies by encouraging women who were planning a pregnancy or already pregnant to avoid alcohol. It also worked to foster social support among their significant others.

CSAP recognizes that prevention works best at the community level. With a network of local partners who understood the needs of specific areas, CSAP implemented the program in four community sites and plans to share these models with the national public health community. Various Partnership Resources are available.