Addictions Track 1: Addictions Treatment Foundational Skills

Continuing Education Offered

• 27.5 hours regular asynchronous online
• 1 hour pain management asynchronous online*
• 1.5 hours regular live interactive online

Description

It is understandable that individuals struggling with substance abuse problems are often highly ambivalent about engaging and committing to treatment and recovery, especially upon initial contact with a helping professional. The skills of engagement and enhancement of client motivation are thus critical for anyone seeking to effectively assist substance-involved populations. Additional understanding of and ability to appropriately assess individuals according to whole-person frameworks is also important.

This set of learning sessions will focus on these foundational knowledge and skill areas, as well as equipping participants with the professional ethics knowledge and perspectives necessary for working with substance-involved populations.

Objectives

1. Identify nine evidence-based relational elements and describe why valuing the client relationship is important.
2. Describe the importance of engagement and how it relates to the entire therapeutic/treatment sequence.
3. List the four variables in the "change equation" for difficult behavior, and their relative importance.
4. Identify and describe the six stages in the transtheoretical model of change.
5. Describe why it is important to identify a client's stage of change before attempting treatment interventions.
6. Describe the primary goals and types of interventions corresponding with the four stages of treatment.
7. Describe the four phases of working with clients in the motivational interviewing framework.
8. Identify the 5 strategic skills of motivational interviewing and describe how they are useful in working with ambivalent clients.
9. Describe how the spirit of motivational interviewing is different from some traditional addictions treatment approaches.
10. Distinguish between simple and complex forms of reflective listening.
11. Describe ten techniques for evoking change talk.
12. Distinguish between four types of preparatory change talk and three types of mobilizing change talk.
13. Identify the acute intoxication and withdrawal syndromes from depressant, stimulant, and hallucinogenic substances of abuse.
14. Describe how neurochemistry functions in both intoxication and withdrawal syndromes and their associated symptoms.
15. Describe three relapse prevention strategies, and how to address the challenges of post-acute withdrawal from various substances.
16. Identify the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous and their various wider applications.
17. Compare and contrast the 12-Step model/approach with other peer-led models/approaches.
18. Describe how to build and leverage partnerships with 12-Step fellowships and other peer-led support groups in the local community.
19. Describe the efficacy findings of cognitive behavioral therapy from the Project MATCH research study.
20. Identify five distinctive elements of cognitive behavioral therapy compared with other intervention models.
21. Describe two evidence-based applications of cognitive behavioral approaches, for use with clients addicted to alcohol, and to cocaine.
22. Describe the differences between didactic, process, and skill-building treatment groups.
23. Describe how utilizing three different types of group work enhances treatment effectiveness at different stages.
24. Identify content/curriculum for use in delivering each of the three levels of stage-matched group work.
25. Define a meaningful clinical, working definition of “addiction” that applies to both substance use disorders and behavioral/process conditions.
26. Survey the leading candidates for consideration as behavioral/process addictions in the areas of gambling, spending money, eating, relationships, sexual behavior, and internet-related activities.
27. Briefly describe approaches to treatment and recovery related to behavioral addictions.
28. Describe 5 aspects of understanding replacement addiction.
29. Define harm reduction and when it is ethically and clinically indicated as a treatment option in support of sustainable recovery.
30. Describe the ways in which the so-called “opioid epidemic” has impacted harm-reduction strategies involving opiate replacement medications.

Modules

• Engagement, and Understanding Difficult Behavior Change
• Stages of Change and Motivational Enhancement
• Motivational Enhancement Skills I
• Motivational Enhancement Skills II
• The Brain Chemistry of Addiction, Withdrawal and PAWS
• The Twelve-Step Model and other Peer-led Resources
• Cognitive Behavioral Approaches (CBT)
• Stage-matched Group Work
• Behavioral Addictions
• Transferring Addictions / Harm Reduction

Instructors

Stephen Wiland & Michael Johnson

CE Approval Statement

The University of Michigan School of Social Work, provider #1212, is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved as ACE providers. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. The University of Michigan School of Social Work maintains responsibility for this course. ACE provider approval period: 5/15/2023-5/15/2026.

Social workers participating in this course will receive 30 general continuing education contact hours.

*This course offers one pain management hour for Michigan-based health professionals.

Please see the CE Policies page for more information about continuing education.