• Introduction

    This course on the Prevention and Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorders teaches medical and public health trainees and practitioners about the health risks of excessive alcohol use as well as the approaches used to prevent and treat alcohol misuse. In addition, it provides practical insight into screening and assessment techniques for alcohol use disorders.

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  • This course on the Prevention and Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorders teaches medical and public health trainees and practitioners about the health risks of excessive alcohol use as well as the approaches used to prevent and treat alcohol misuse. In addition, it provides practical insight into screening and assessment techniques for alcohol use disorders.

    The course is designed to help you gain: 

    1. A basic introduction to alcohol use disorders and their causes.
    2. An overview of screening and interventions for alcohol use disorders.
    3. A brief overview of urgent situations and common comorbidities associated with alcohol use disorders.
    4. A brief overview of the direct physical effects and the indirect social effects of alcohol use disorders.
    5. Insights about the strategies used to communicate with people seeking care, their families, and caregivers.

    This course was developed by NextGenU.org (NGU).

    There are four (4) modules to complete, which include:

    Module 1: Introduction to Alcohol Use Disorder
    Module 2: Medical Consequences and Treatment
    Module 3: Psychosocial Aspects and Special Populations
    Module 4: Training, and Professional Development

    Approximate time for completion of this course is 46 hours at an average reading rate of 144 words/minute.

    Engaging with this course

    • To register for this course, complete the registration form. Begin the course with Module 1. For each lesson, read the description. 
    • There is a final quiz to assess your understanding of some important concepts. Click on the hyperlinks to take you to these items in each topic.

     

    Requirements to obtain the certificate 

    You may browse this course for free to learn for your personal enrichment. There are no requirements.

    To obtain a certificate, a learner must successfully complete:

    • All reading requirements
    • The final exam with a minimum of 80% and a maximum of 3 attempts and
    • The self and course evaluation forms

    This course meets nationally approved standards of education developed for the addiction/substance use disorders counseling profession. This course's participants are assured that the continuing education (CE) credits provided will be accepted toward national credentialing by the NAADAC Certification Commission for Addiction Professionals (NCC AP), as well as by many of the individual state licensing/certification bodies in the addiction and other helping professions.

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  • Competency covered in this module: 
    • Demonstrate knowledge of the various terminologies related to alcohol use, and understand the chronic nature of alcohol use disorder and the importance of treating them as medical conditions, incorporating pharmacology, psychiatry, general medicine, and psychology related to alcohol addiction.
    • Identify and diagnose Alcohol Use Disorder, Alcohol Dependence and the different types of Alcohol Use, and recognize the need for improved alcohol abuse education for medical students, residents, and practicing physicians.
    • Identify barriers to implementing alcohol abuse curricula in medical education and understand the importance of physician role models with expertise in alcohol abuse in implementing curricula changes and providing supervised experiences.

    Approximate time required for the readings for this lesson (at 144 words/minute): 8 hours and 50 minutes.

  • Competency covered in this module: 
    • Diagnose and manage alcohol withdrawal syndrome and its associated complications, including Wernicke's encephalopathy, withdrawal seizures, delirium, and alcohol hallucinosis.
    • Diagnose and manage alcohol overdose, complications associated with alcohol use disorder, and the medical sequelae of alcohol addiction, including hepatic, CNS, infectious, and nutritional deficiencies.
    • Recommend appropriate pharmacological treatment for patients with Alcohol Use Disorder by applying knowledge of the pharmacology of alcohol and its effects on the body in clinical practice.
    • Understand current prescribing regulations for medications treating alcohol dependence and identify barriers to the adoption of pharmacological treatments for alcohol use disorder.
    • Implement various treatment modalities (detoxification, medical complications, rehabilitation models, counseling, and psychotherapy) in patient care for alcohol use disorder.

     Approximate time required for the readings for this lesson (at 144 words/minute): 11 hours and 46 minutes.

  • Competency covered in this module: 
    • Identify and manage psychological, social, and spiritual problems related to chronic alcohol use, abuse, and dependence, including special problems related to pregnancy, babies born to affected mothers, and target populations (children, adolescents, women, and seniors).
    • Identify, educate, and treat patients with behavioral addictions (gambling, sex, internet, work, shopping, etc.) and adjustment disorders that may co-occur with alcohol use disorder, as well as provide support to their family members.
    • Gain clinical experience in managing patients with alcohol-related disorders, alcohol-induced disorders, and concurrent alcohol use disorder, utilizing laboratory assessments and questionnaire assessments related to alcohol addiction.

    Approximate time required for the readings for this lesson (at 144 words/minute): 8 hours and 30 minutes.

  • Competency covered in this module: 
    • Develop and implement comprehensive alcohol abuse training programs that incorporate interactive teaching methods, experiential components, and didactic elements, assessing changes in knowledge, attitudes, and practices of medical students and residents following participation.
    • Demonstrate knowledge of guidelines, core competencies, and specialized training programs for physicians in managing alcohol use disorders, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration and institutional integration.
    • Recognize the importance of continuing medical education (CME) programs, particularly interactive and longitudinal interventions, and recognize the need for multidisciplinary teaching in improving physician performance related to alcohol use disorder.
    • Appreciate the potential for expanding alcohol abuse training through online medical education programs and the need for a supportive administrative environment to improve the prevention and treatment of patients with alcohol use disorder.
    • Identify harm reduction strategies to promote abstinence or reduce alcohol intake to enhance personal and community health and well-being.

    Approximate time required for the readings for this lesson (at 144 words/minute): 17 hours and 13 minutes.

  • To take the final exam, you must complete all quizzes and complete all the required activities. 

    To access the exam, click on the name of the exam provided above. On the following screen, click the Attempt Quiz button to respond to the questions.

  • 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.