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General
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Substance Use and Public Health Homepage
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to substance use disorders and public health. It addresses the risk factors associated with developing substance use disorders (SUDs), the burden of SUDs, the role that public health plays in lessening the burden of substance use disorders, the impact of prevention strategies, interventions, and control programs, and ethical practices in SUD care to ensure effective positive health outcomes. By the end of this course, students will be able to use appropriate screening tools to assess substance use disorders and identify prevention and treatment protocols to reduce the impact of substance use disorders within a population.
Like all NextGenU.org courses, it is competency-based; competencies were developed in collaboration with subject matter experts and take into consideration Tap 21 Addiction Counseling Competencies from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), which benchmark how curricula, educational programs, and professional standards are measured in the U.S. SUD treatment field, the Principles of General Care (GPC) for people with Mental, Neurological and Substance Use Disorders (MNS) conditions developed by the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP), and the WHO and United Nations (UN) International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders.
The course uses learning resources from accredited, world-class organizations such as the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and the World Health Organization.
The course was designed by Hugo Rojas, MD, MSc; Juan Jose Pemintel, MD; Leohrandra Graham, MSc; Margaret Niles, PhD, MEd, DipID; Valeria Reynolds, MD; Pablo Baldiviezo, MD. It was later reviewed by Magali Collonnaz MD, MPH, MSc; Anthony Schlaff MD, MPH; Reisha Narine, BSc, MSc, and Rhonda Prudent, BSc.
For publications on NextGenU.org’s courses’ efficacy, see NextGenU.org’s publication page. Subscribe to our newsletter to be notified of future updates, new courses and to be part of our community.
There are five Substance Use Disorder (SUD) modules to complete, which include:
- Module 1: Introduction to SUD in Public Health
- Module 2: Identifying SUD
- Module 3: SUD Interventions and Control
- Module 4: SUD Prevention Strategies
- Module 5: Ethics and Research in SUD Care
The completion time for this course is estimated at 123 hours, comprising 19 hours of learning resources, 37 hours of time to study content and assimilation, and 67 hours of participating in learning activities and quizzes to assist the learners in the synthesis of learning materials. This course is equivalent to 3 credit hours.
Upon completing the training (5 modules), participants will need to complete a final exam”. The final exam will be designed so that participants can have three opportunities to answer correctly until the required score of 70% or higher is obtained.
At the end of each module, there is a practice quiz of multiple-choice questions. At the end of the course, after you’ve completed each module, quiz, and learning activity, you’ll have access to a final exam of forty multiple-choice questions and a chance to evaluate this course. Once you’ve passed that last test, you will be able to download a certificate of completion from NextGenU.org. We keep all of your personal information confidential, never sell any of your information, and only use anonymized data for research purposes. We are happy to report your testing information and share your work with anyone (your school, employer, etc.) at your request.
Engaging with this Course:
This free course is primarily intended for public health students, public health professionals, or people working with patients suffering from substance use disorders (non-clinicians) who would like to learn more about the risk and protective factors of substance use disorders, prevention and intervention strategies, and the different treatment modalities. However, the course can be taken by both clinicians and non-clinicians as they are resources listed as suitable for BOTH audiences and other titles or resources specifically listed for clinicians or non-clinicians ONLY.
To obtain a certificate, a learner must successfully complete:
- All the reading requirements.
- All quizzes and pass with 70% having unlimited attempts.
- All case studies.
- The final exam with a minimum of 70% and a maximum of 3 attempts, and
- The self and course evaluation forms.
NextGenU.org is happy to provide your institution with:
- A link to and description of the course training so they can see all its components, including the cosponsoring universities and other professional organization cosponsors;
- Your grade on the final exam;
- Your work products (e.g. case study activities), and any other required or optional shared materials that you produce and authorize to share with them;
- Your evaluations -- course and self-assessments;
- A copy of your certificate of completion, with the co-sponsoring universities and other organizations listed.
To obtain a degree, NextGenU.org co-sponsors degree programs with institutional partners. To obtain a full degree co-sponsored with NextGenU.org, registrants must be enrolled in a degree program as a student of a NextGenU.org institutional partner. If you think that your institution might be interested in offering a degree with NextGenU.org, contact us.
We hope that you will find this a rewarding learning experience, and we count on your assessment and feedback to help us improve this training for future students.
Here are the next steps to take the course for credit:
- Complete the registration form.
- Take the pre-test.
- Begin the course with Module One. In each lesson, read the description, complete all required readings and any required activity, and take the corresponding quizzes.
*The previous version of this course is also available here for your reference but is not available for registration. Only students that were registered before can complete it
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Module 1: Introduction to Substance Use Disorder in Public Health
Instructional Goals covered in this module:
- Understand different models of addiction and the impact of substance abuse on individuals and public health.
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Module1: Lesson 1: Introduction to Substance Use Disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Define key terms associated with substance use.
- Describe different models of addiction.
- Examine substance use as a chronic relapsing disorder.
- Explain what substances are used and abused and their effect on an individual's health and social functioning.
9 URLs -
Module 1: Lesson 2: The global impact of Substance Use Disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Explore trends in the global burden of mental, neurological, and substance use disorders (MNS).
- Review the UNGASS 2016 position regarding the role of public health in addressing substance use disorders.
2 URLs, 1 Forum, 1 Quiz -
Module 2: Identifying Substance Use Disorders
Instructional Goals covered in this module:
- Describe the established diagnostic criteria for substance use disorders.
- Explain the socioeconomic, political, and cultural factors that influence substance use risk and resiliency among individuals and groups.
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Module 2: Lesson 1: Assessment of Substance Use Disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Differentiate among the main categories of substance use disorder behaviors.
- Explore commonly used substance use disorder screening instruments/tools.
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Module 2: Lesson 2: The Social Determinants of Substance Use Disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Correlate the social determinants of health to the risk of individual and group development and sustenance of substance use disorders.
- Analyze the factors that can contribute positively to individual and group resiliency to substance use.
3 URLs, 1 Forum -
Module 2: Lesson 3: Identifying the comorbidities of substance use and medical and mental disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Examine the co-occurrence of substance use and mental health disorders.
- Examine substance use and associated health conditions that are feature throughout the lifespan including HIV, diabetes, hepatitis, depression, and psychosis.
- Examine special reproductive health issues for women in relation to substance use, comorbidity, and pharmacological treatment.
4 URLs, 1 Quiz -
Module 3: Substance Use Disorder Prevention Strategies
Instructional Goals covered in this module:
- Articulate a range of substance use disorder prevention strategies across the socio-ecological spectrum, and identify the role of healthcare providers is participating in or supporting these strategies.
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Module 3: Lesson 1: Prevention Programs and Policies
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Investigate the range of policy options used to prevent alcohol, tobacco, and other substance use problems in society.
- Analyze the impact of policy and environmental interventions on the prevention of substance use disorders.
Click here to start this lesson3 URLs, 1 Forum -
Module 3: Lesson 2: The role of healthcare workers and social and community support in preventing substance use disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Examine the role played by family, social networks, and other community systems in the prevention of substance use disorders.
- Explore addiction prevention strategies such as social and community support, including educational, housing, and vocational support.
- Describe the role of healthcare workers in the prevention of substance use disorders.
7 URLs, 1 Quiz -
Module 4: Intervention and Control
Instructional Goals covered in this module:
Understand models of treatment, recovery, and relapse prevention for addiction and related problems. - Propose strategies to reduce negative effects of substance abuse according to different states of change and cultural identities.
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Module 4: Lesson 1 : Substance Use Disorders Treatment and Relapse Prevention
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Describe the components of comprehensive substance abuse treatment.
- Explain the models and effectiveness of relapse prevention.
- Discuss recommendations for public health interventions to promote treatment, recovery, and relapse prevention of addiction.
- Compare and contrast autonomy and independent living with the institutionalization of persons coping with substance use disorders.
Click here to start this lesson9 URLs -
Module 4: Lesson 2: Intervention Considerations in Therapy and Control of Substance Use Disorders
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Determine the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic interventions.
- Examine the advantages and disadvantages of pharmacotherapy interventions as a treatment option for substance use disorders.
- Assess strategies to minimize the negative physical and social impact incurred by the behaviors related to drug use.
- Differentiate stages of change and processes to undertake behavior change.
- Compare different intervention strategies for substance abuse.
- Propose addiction interventions that are sensitive to different cultural identities or states of change.
11 URLs, 1 Forum, 1 Quiz -
Module 5: Ethics and Research in SUD Care
Instructional Goals covered in this module:
Be competent in addressing stigma, and promoting and protecting the human rights of those you serve.
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Module 5: Lesson 1: Addressng Stigma in Substance Use Disorder Care Settings
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Define stigma in the substance use disorder context.
- Examine the impact of stigmatization, marginalization, and discrimination on SUD treatment /interventions.
- Compare the strategies to mitigate stigmatization, marginalization, and discrimination in SUD care settings.
Click here to start this lesson12 URLs, 1 Forum -
Module 5: Lesson 2: Ethical Issues in Substance Use Disorder Treatment Settings
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Summarize the ethical dilemmas faced in substance use disorder from a clinical and public health perspective.
- Examine the relevance of the NAADAC Code of Ethics in guiding client-counselor relationships in substance use disorder treatment settings.
- Determine the appropriate response strategies to the disclosure of private and distressing information e.g., self-harm, sexual assault.
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Module 5: Lesson 3: Challenges in Substance use Disorder Research
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Summarize the approach strategies for research involving human participants in LMICs.
- Examine the key challenges that impact substance use disorder research in LMICs.
- Explain the challenges of gaining informed consent of the persons involved in the SUD research.
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Course and Self Evaluation & Certificate
In this section, you can provide feedback about this course to help us make NextGenU.org better. Once evaluations are completed, you will be able to download your certificate of completion.