The use of drawings to explore young people's views of a service for those affected by parental alcohol misuse

Background: As services for young people affected by parental substance misuse evolve, it is important that young people are invited to express their views on the service they receive.

Method: As part of the evaluation of a new service for young people living with parental alcohol misuse, a self-report drawing method was used with 11 young people to elicit their views of the service.

Findings: The most common changes noted were: feeling happier and less confused, and having a more harmonious family life with families spending more time together. Many of the young people placed parental alcohol misuse centrally in their drawings.

Conclusions: Self-report drawing enabled the young people to reflect on change, and thus is a powerful tool for further research in this area.