Drug Addiction

This will get you up to speed with the essentials of drug addiction, touching on social attitudes and the reasons people get involved in drug taking. Some complex terms are explained. Take notes as you watch and you will have a good grasp of the big picture, recognising that for most, it is a sad and maladaptive response to misfortune in life. Couple this to the ready availability of drugs and you can see how easily we could all end up as drug addicts. Is it a glamorous or enviable lifestyle?

Here are the essentials of what to do about it. The programme concentrates on building up a relationship and understanding the complexities of treatment because this is so important. Medication is also mentioned. The recent Canadian guidelines state:

There is substantial evidence supporting that methadone and buprenorphine are similarly effective, particularly in reducing opioid use and adverse events, and both are now considered preferred first-line treatment options.

In part two the various types of psychotherapy (although not named) are discussed. One of the valuable clinical skills you will learn over time is how and when to offer medication.

The guidelines continue:

Psychosocial interventions can be offered as adjunctive treatment but should not be mandatory. The guideline reaffirms the importance of avoiding withdrawal management as a standalone intervention and of incorporating evidence-based harm reduction services along the continuum of care.

This programme will give you a very useful framework to use when you begin your work.

Most – all – therapists and medical staff will tell you that drug addicts are challenging to manage, even if in the end the results can be rewarding. In the following role plays, we present some typical situations. You can learn how to manage them and make the session therapeutically useful. Have a look and see whether you agree with the strategies suggested.

MARY

This role play interaction is surprisingly authentic in feel. Consultations like this can seem very challenging all round. How do you approach a user who is relapsing and make it a useful discussion? Has it been helpful for Mary? What do you think?

This version is useful in a lecture setting.

The other version has learning captions.

KATIE

In this role play the therapist has a tough time. Katie has been re-admitted and thinks her long term chances of success are zero. This situation is very common and for newcomers to the field it can also feel hopeless.

If you are a lecturer, use this as a trigger tape and see what happens.

The second version has the learning captions.

MARY

– Captioned teaching points.

This version is the same “MARY” but has has some added educational points throughout the video.

KATIE

– Captioned teaching points.

This version is the same as “KATIE” but has some added educational points throughout the video.