Wellness and Safety incorporates 0-0-1-3 principles

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. David P. Bourgeois
  • Air Force Materiel Command Surgeon General
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  This year the Air Force has included 0-0-1-3 in its Culture of Responsible Choices Campaign and Air Force Materiel Command officials has incorporated the principles of 0-0-1-3 into its Wellness and Safety Campaign initiatives. 

The concept behind 0-0-1-3 is to encourage responsible alcohol consumption among Air Force members in order to create a common social norm, blending it into Air Force core values, its culture, and eventually, its traditions.

What does 0-0-1-3- mean? The "first and second zeros" restate the law of zero underage alcohol use and zero driving while under the influence, or impaired by alcohol. The "one" indicates one drink per hour (one 12-ounce beer, 4 to 5 percent alcohol, or 1.5 ounce shot of 80-proof alcohol, or one 5-ounce glass of wine at 11 percent alcohol). The "three" stands for no more than three drinks per evening of alcohol use.

There were 543 reported alcohol-related actions involving active-duty members at AFMC bases in 2005.

This may seem insignificant, compared with the Air Force average of 5,300 over the past five years. But when you consider that 33 percent of completed suicides, 57 percent of sexual assaults, 29 percent of domestic violence incidents, and 20 to 25 percent of motor vehicles accidents in the Air Force are alcohol-related, it only makes sense to include the principles of 0-0-1-3 in AFMC's Wellness and Safety Campaign.

When the campaign debuted May 8, in conjunction with the command's quarterly wingman week, the Wingman Day Wellness Survey tool debuted as well. The survey is a tool AFMC leadership is using to get feedback on issues related to the wellness and safety of its workforce.

Question five on the survey asked respondents to answer "yes" or "no" to the statement, "In the last 3 months, my lifestyle consistently reflects the principle of 0-0-1-3 (zero underage drinking, zero DUIs, one drink per hour, and three drinks per session)."

The principles of 0-0-1-3 were initially piloted at F.E Warren Air Force Base, Wyo., in 2004 with success. Within the first two quarters, the base had shown a 27 percent decrease in DUI rates and a 74 percent decrease in underage drinking incidents.

In order to measure the success in initiating the principles of 0-0-1-3 and to ensure the word gets out, a question on responsible alcohol use has been included on the survey to monitor the number of alcohol-related events at AFMC bases.

To change the Air Force culture one must be alert to a wingman's needs, care enough to get involved when a wingman needs direction, and to have the courage to take action when a wingman is in distress.

More information on the principles of 0-0-1-3 can be found at www.afcrossroads.com/websites/corc.cfm. For more information about AFMC wellness, log onto www.afmcwellness.com.

The next AFMC Wingman Day is Nov. 9. The survey tool will be from Nov. 6 to 19.