The Well reports 23 percent of students drink and drive

Mechelle Hankerson

News Editor

According to The Well’s spring 2012 National College Health Assessment, 23 percent of VCU students reported driving after drinking any amount of alcohol.

According to Amanda McGann, health educator at The Well, said that the number of VCU students who reported drinking and then driving has remained constant since about 2009.

The Well’s statistics show that the majority of VCU students don’t drink and drive and according to McGann, don’t drink in ways that will harm themselves or others.

However, the reality of the physical effects of alcohol cannot be ignored, McGann said.

“Students could have their (Blood Alcohol Content) under the legal limit, drink fewer than four drinks in a sitting and still be impaired if they were to drive after drinking,” she said.

The NCHA survey also showed that 97.4 percent of VCU students did not drink after having five or more drinks in the past 30 days.

The Well continues to implement strategies and programs for students to avoid drunken driving.

“We know that even one student driving after drinking has the potential to cause harm to him (or) herself or others, so we are committed to continuing our work with VCU students to reduce high-risk drinking and encourage students to party smart,” McGann said.

The Well runs a campaign, entitled Your Strategy, to encourage students to implement strategies to avoid drunken driving and dangerous situations.

The campaign suggests alternating alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, drinking an alcoholic look-alike or avoiding drinking games.

The Well is still working to process all data from this year’s NCHA survey and is also working on a new campaign to present the information to students.