Univ. of Hawaii Gets $2.3 Million Grant to Study Vapes

A $2.8-million grant to develop and evaluate a school-based, culturally-grounded e-cigarette prevention intervention for Hawaii’s rural youth has been awarded to University of Hawaii Cancer Center researcher, Scott Okamoto.

Funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the project builds on Hoʻouna Pono, a drug prevention curriculum designed for rural Hawaiian adolescents, according to the university.

The e-cigarette intervention plan will update the existing Hoʻouna Pono curriculum and introduce new e-cigarette and vaping prevention content, including a social and print media campaign across middle/intermediate and multi-level public and public-charter schools on Hawaii Island.

More than 500 students are anticipated to enroll in the study over five years.

“To our knowledge, this is the first study to develop and test an e-cigarette prevention intervention tailored to rural Hawaiian youth,” Okamoto said. “Our proposed intervention will educate youth on the risks of e-cigarette use, while also reflecting the cultural and relational values of rural Hawaiian youth and communities.”