The National Survey on Drug Use and Health

     I received a letter yesterday from the United States Department of Health and Human Services which informs me that my address is one of 200,000 randomly chosen for participation in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.  The letter looked official.  It was signed by Grace E. Medley, National Study Director, and Ilona S. Johnson, National Field Director.  Both of these ladies work for RTI International, a non-profit organization contracted to conduct the study.  An interviewer named Theresa Albino would come to my house to conduct my survey interview.  There was a picture showing a sample of the badge that Ms. Albino would wear as a way of confirming her identity.  The letter also referred me to a website (https://nsduhweb.rti.org/respweb/homepage.cfm) and provided a toll free phone number (1-800-848-4079).  As an incentive, I would even be paid $30.00 in cash if, after answering some basic questions, I were to be chosen to complete the full survey.  Of course, I spent an hour googling to determine if this was for real.  Turns out it is.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Survey_on_Drug_Use_and_Health

     Now, I don't have problems with government surveys like the decennial census.  In fact, I worked as a census taker in 2010.  The National Survey on Drug Use and Health has been conducted every year since 1971.  RTI International got the job of conducting the survey in 1988.  The survey includes questions about use or non-use of tobacco, alcohol, and drugs.  There are also questions about mental health and other health related topics.  After the initial screening, the household might be by-passed for participation.  If the household is selected for full participation, only one member will be interviewed, and that member might be a child age 12 or older.  If there is one thing I have observed in life, it is that everybody lies.  I'm willing to bet that almost everybody minimizes how much they smoke and drink, and they might increase the deception when it comes to revealing drug use and their mental health struggles.  I would almost be willing to bet my next Social Security check that a fourteen-year-old would tell the biggest whoppers of all, especially if their parents are in the room.  RTI International makes assurances that participants' information is completely confidential, but they know that this promise isn't always enough to extract the complete truth.  According to a report I read from the 2016 survey, RTI randomly samples respondents in an attempt to verify their answers.  The quote below comes from that report:               

     "Samples of respondents who completed screenings or interviews are randomly selected for verification. These cases are called by telephone interviewers who ask scripted questions designed to determine the accuracy and quality of the data collected. Any case discovered to have a problem or discrepancy is flagged and routed to a small specialized team of telephone interviewers who recontact respondents for further investigation of the issue(s). Depending on the amount of an FI's work that cannot be verified through telephone verification, including bad telephone numbers (e.g., incorrect number, disconnected, not in service), a field verification may be conducted. Field verification involves another FI returning in person to the sampled address to verify the accuracy and quality of the data."

     Verification problems might be caused by the participant changing a story or the participant might not want to talk about sensitive information with an unknown caller.  There is also the possibility  the interviewer fabricated answers to get the job done when participants won't cooperate.  The report goes on to explain that, should it come to light that the interviewer lied, they will be fired from their job.  You can read the full report here:

https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-MethodSummDefs-2016/NSDUH-MethodSummDefs-2016.htm

     Participation in the U. S. Census is mandatory under Title 13 of the U.S. Code.  You can be fined for failure to participate or for answering questions falsely.  However,  participating in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health is voluntary.  I don't have much to report to the Department of Health and Human Services other than having wine with dinner and popping the occasional ibuprofen when I work too hard in the yard.  None the less, I have decided to "just say no."