Training for Intervention Procedures

Developed in 1979, the Training for Intervention Procedures (TIPs) program sought to create a plan that would give bartenders and servers the skills and confidence needed to prevent customers from becoming intoxicated.

Since its creation, the TIPs program has expanded to tailor-make services for specific environments, which are:

  • On-Premise
  • Off-Premise
  • Concessions
  • Gaming
  • University

TIPs training is appropriate for anyone who sells, serves, and/or consumes alcohol. Members of the Mercer Council staff are certified TIPs trainers, and are always interested in partnering locally to encourage healthy, safe and responsible communities.

Please reach out to us if your business or organization is interested in receiving TIPs training. For more information on the TIPs program, please visit https://www.gettips.com/about/

Tackling Opioids through Prevention for Athletes

Tackling Opioids through Prevention for Athletes (TOP) is intended to help raise awareness of opioid use among student athletes and to provide evidence-based information to strengthen policies and practices within schools, athletic departments and community-based athletic programs.

TOP exists to educate athletes about the pathways to addiction and offer alternative pain management strategies. Athletes are more prone to injuries that could result in getting prescribed prescription opioids, like narcotic pain relievers, which can lead to misuse, addiction, accidental overdose, and even death.

Mercer Council staff are available to provide free presentations and support to schools, teams, and community sports programs across Mercer County. Interested coaches, school personnel, or healthcare providers are invited to contact us for more information. Download the TOP Toolkit to learn more.

Safe Dates (An Adolescent Dating Abuse Prevention Program)

Safe Dates is a dating abuse prevention program which raises student awareness of what constitutes healthy vs. abusive dating relationships, and equips students with the skills and resources needed to help themselves or their friends who may be in abusive relationships.

Dating violence encompasses more than simply physical aggression. It also includes psychological, sexual, and emotional harm in a relationship, and it can occur both in person and digitally. Dating violence is a relatively common issue among high school students, and the Safe Dates program is here to help.

This evidence-based program educates youth and adolescents on how to identify and prevent dating violence. Through ten engaging sessions, students will:

  • Learn and discuss the causes of dating violence
  • How to help a friend in an abusive relationship
  • Gender stereotypes about dating violence
  • Important prevention techniques

In addition, the curriculum will include updated facts and statistics on dating violence and sexual assault, information on dating abuse through technologes, and a new Families for Safe Dates program to help facilitate conversations about healthy relationships and dating violence.

It is important to consider how we’re educating youth on the topics of dating violence and sexual assault. Safe Dates is an effective solution, and its interactive format will help students of all backgrounds to truly understand the power of their voice, when it comes to dating violence prevention.

Healthy Outlooks for Older Adults: Alternative Approaches to Managing Pain

This one-hour program will engage older adults and provide them with information regarding appropriate medication use and management, as well as alternative approaches to treating chronic and acute pain.

Through this program, individuals will:

  • Learn about the risks of prescription pain medications (Vicodin, Oxycontin, Codeine)
  • Find alternatives to pain management (acupuncture, yoga, physical therapy, chiropractic, massage, mediation, etc.)
  • Gain insights into prescription medicine misuse and safety

Nurtured Heart Approach (Fee for Service)

The Nurtured Heart Approach is a relationship-focused methodology that is a powerful way to help awaken the inherent greatness in all children.

The Nurtured Heart Approach is a relationship-focused methodology that is a powerful way to help awaken the inherent greatness in all children. It has a proven impact on every child, including those challenged behaviorally, socially, and academically, and has been shown to create transformative changes in children diagnosed with ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Reactive Attachment Disorder, and Autism Spectrum Disorder.

The Nurtured Heart Approach is available in three types of workshops (1-hour, 3-hour, 6-hour) or as a six-session training.

Seeing is Believing (Fatal Vision Goggles)

This program includes interactive dialogue between participants and facilitators, hands-on activities, and role-playing. Utilizing the Fatal Vision Goggles, students will experience the effects of alcohol and other drugs on their ability to perform tasks.

Fatal Vision Goggles are specially designed and manufactured goggles that simulate the visual impairment caused by alcohol or other drugs. Viewing through the goggles, the wearer experiences a loss of equilibrium, one of the effects of intoxication. The underlying principle is to demonstrate how quickly impairment can turn fun into devastating consequences.

As each student tries on the goggles and makes an attempt to complete hands-on activities, they experience how impairment makes certain activities (such as driving) extremely dangerous. This is an excellent tool to use in schools and youth groups to educate young people on the risks of underage drinking, as well as risks of marijuana use and driving.

Through this program, students will:

  • Examine the effects of alcohol/marijuana on the brain and body systems
  • Improve decision-making skills about alcohol and/or marijana-related situations
  • Understand the legal, physical and emotional risks of underage drinking and marijuana use

Don’t Get Vaped In

This comprehensive, multi strategy approach is designed to engage youth tobacco prevention and assist schools and communities in responding effectively using educational and supportive approaches.

We also adapt this program to cover cannabis/marijuana and to address school-specific needs.