Addictions and Community Health Professional

Core

• Addictions Awareness Today

  You will analyze the current state of addictions in Canada, covering such topics as behavioural addictions, homelessness, family support resources, and harm reduction.

  Gain a thorough understanding of contemporary addiction issues to effectively address and support the needs of those affected in your future career.

• Addictions Fundamentals

  This course provides students with comprehensive coverage of chemical and behavioural addictions. Specific substances studied will include: stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, opioids, cannabis, gambling, food, internet, shopping and sex. You will learn prevention techniques, harm reduction strategies, and treatment procedures, equipping you with the knowledge to effectively help those struggling with addiction in your future career

• Ethics

  This course outlines the in-depth counseling process with a focus on the counselor as a professional. Topics include: an introduction to the helping professions, working with difficult clients, values and diversity in counseling, ethical relationship issues, boundary issues, working with groups and families, community counseling, and crisis work.

  This knowledge will prepare you to handle ethical challenges and maintain professional standards in your future career, ensuring you provide high-quality support to your clients.

• Interviewing and Counselling Strategies

  Develop essential skills to conduct successful interviewing, counselling and therapy for addictions. The course covers the importance of ethics, values, and self-awareness; the skills, processes, and pitfalls of counselling and compassionate care; and evidence-based treatment approaches for motivating clients.

  Additionally, you will examine the Canadian health and social services structures, preparing you to navigate and excel in a Canadian counselling environment when working with those affected by addictions and mental health issues.

• Relapse Prevention and Intervention

  Explore the relapse prevention (RP) model to understand the conceptual and clinical features of the RP approach to altering excessive or addictive behaviour patterns.

  Students will analyze specific intervention techniques for both proactive and reactive intervention, learn about the importance of abstinence and opioid substitution programs, and explore other problems encountered in substance abuse rehabilitation. These skills will prepare you to effectively support clients in maintaining long-term recovery.

• Group Facilitation Concepts

  Learn the basic concepts and skills associated with facilitating support groups for addiction. This course covers the stages of groups, group processes, therapeutic forces, the purpose of groups, and the introduction, conducting, and process of exercises.

  You will also learn how to engage group members in counseling and therapy sessions, preparing you for a role in group therapy for substance abuse and addiction services.

• Pharmacology of Addiction

  In this course, students will be introduced to the latest information on drug use and its effects on society and the individual. You will examine drugs from behavioral, pharmacological, historical, social, legal, and clinical perspectives, providing you with the ability to support and educate those affected by addiction.

• Psychology of Addiction

  Learn the fundamentals of psychology as it relates to your everyday lives, including the basics of neuroscience and behaviour, sensation and perception, motivation and emotion, and thinking and development.

  This course also covers the basics of psychological disorders and their treatment, preparing you to understand and support individuals struggling with addiction.

• Family Dynamics

  Explore the risks and resilience of diverse family groups. The course introduces the family system as both a microsystem and a homeostatic system, helping you develop techniques for analyzing unhealthy family dynamics.

  You will learn both conceptual and practical information on key issues and problems, preparing you to work with at-risk youth in families. Evaluate family roles, substance use disorders in the family, and learn family therapy techniques.

• Intake Procedures and Treatment Planning

  You will learn topics and processes related to intake, assessment, and factors affecting case management services. Practicing intake and assessment skills through role playing, feedback, and hands-on exercises will prepare you to effectively manage and support clients in your future career, ensuring they receive the best possible care and treatment.

• High-Risk Populations

  Students will develop the skills needed to support the most common high-risk populations dealing with mental health and addictions in Canada. This course covers how to facilitate cross-cultural counseling, support clients showing signs of substance misuse, and show respect when engaging them in different types of addiction treatments.

• CPR, First Aid, WHMIS and FOIP

  This course provides students with hands-on training in first aid. Topics include medical/legal aspects, spinal injuries, environmental emergencies, bone and joint injuries, abdominal and chest injuries, burns and respiratory emergencies and much more.

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