utilizing sbirt in clinical practice and training physicians to utilize sbirt in clinical practice allows us to identify patients who might not otherwise be ready to come forth to their doctors and tell them about it, and also be able to have a skill to talk to patients about how to reduce their alcohol or substance use, or get them to more specialized treatment. and i end up talking, telling some people in here that direct me to the right direction, to programs, outpatient programs, that were able to help me out. because the sbirt program is a very specific and practical skillset, we have a structure training program that helps residents, medical practitioners, nurses, pas, what have you, learn it so that they are able to bring it from the classroom into the ed. we've also created a virtual coach, and the virtual coach is the ability to do some of that training online. the user of the program clicks through and picks what steps of the b and i to do with this patient. and, depending on the level of correctness of their choices, the patient responds in various ways. sbirt gives the practit

sbirt gives the practitioner a needed skill in order to screen and intervene. it's a skill like any other skill that they learn in medical school, and it has the potential to improve the health of the public. i wouldn't even be here, or it would take me a longer time. the earlier, the better. you know, i was able to catch it in a stage that-you know, i'm not a long time user, but i am a user, so it was able to help me balance myself out and get myself into the help that i needed. i see many patients at the end stage of their disease, not only from their alcohol and substance use longstanding, but also from the co-occurring illnesses, which can result as, from, substance use. and so it's become vital to me, not only as a clinician but also as an educator, to really promote prevention, to allow us to identify patients before they really have reached these end-stage processes in their disease. and so, bringing these prevention techniques and early identification techniques to the residents, i feel, will only improve the health care of patients long term. so kriste