A set of strategies aimed at reducing the negative consequences associated with substance use is known as what?

• A. Harm reduction
• B. Integrated health care
• C. Dry drunk
• D. Dual diagnosis

Answer: (A)

Harm reduction is a public health approach that aims to lessen the negative consequences of substance use, even when people continue using. It focuses on practical steps that reduce harm to safety, health, and well-being rather than insisting on abstinence. Examples include making naloxone widely available to prevent overdose deaths, providing syringe exchange to lower the risk of infections, offering safer-use education, and expanding access to treatment options like medication-assisted treatment. It also covers safer consumption services and testing for dangerous adulterants, all designed to reduce harm in real-world settings.

This is the best fit because the question describes a set of strategies aimed specifically at reducing the negative consequences of use. The other options refer to related concepts but not the same targeted approach: integrated health care is about coordinating services, not a specific harm-reduction toolkit; a dry drunk is a pejorative term about behavior in recovery, not a strategy; dual diagnosis refers to co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders, not a collection of strategies to reduce harm.