Preventing Prescription Stimulant Diversion and Misuse via a Web-Based Intervention: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

This article evaluates the efficacy and feasibility of a brief, interactive web-based intervention designed to reduce prescription stimulant diversion (sharing, selling, or trading medication) and non-medical use (using medication in ways not prescribed) among college students with stimulant prescriptions. Conducted as a randomized controlled trial with 235 undergraduates from three U.S. universities, the intervention targeted psychoeducation, refusal skills, and medication adherence strategies. While the intervention did not significantly reduce the frequency of diversion or non-medical use episodes or intentions compared to a placebo, it produced small-to-medium improvements in secondary outcomes such as perceived risk, perceived norms of non-medical use, and self-efficacy to avoid misuse. Post-hoc analyses suggested that intervention participants had lower odds of any diversion and non-medical use over six months, though these findings require cautious interpretation and replication. The study highlights the need for future refinements including tailoring content to participants’ risk levels and recruiting higher-risk students to enhance intervention impact.