Internet-Based
Addiction Counselor Education Study
Rhode Island College students and faculty within
the Chemical Dependency & Addiction Studies (CDAS) Program will
partner to conduct an investigation of an Internet-based preparatory
training modality for addictions counselors. Despite government
initiatives to translate evidence based research to substance abuse
treatment context the transmission of research to practicing
behavioral health professionals has been limited. A recent survey
found that, at best, only half of behavioral health professionals ever
received any specific coursework or training in substance abuse
topics. Further, the study found that one third of vocational
counselors working with individuals experiencing substance abuse
issues may not have any experience with substance abuse specific
coursework or training. The majority of behavioral health
practitioners may have only a singular or infrequent experience with
continuing education events (seminars and workshops) that currently
serve as the primary modality for the transmission of substance abuse
treatment information. Traditional continuing education seminars and
conferences have not made a sufficient impact on the practice of
substance abuse treatment providers. Therefore, addiction research
remains largely isolated from the treatment providers it is intended
to inform. Common barriers to training opportunities were time
commitments, inadequate financial resources, and inconvenient training
locations. Although some internet-learning addiction education
programs exist, no Internet-based learning modality currently
addresses the evidence-based treatment of individuals with
co-occurring addiction disorders and medical problems. This on-line
coursework would help bridge the gap between knowledge of effective
treatment in the research world to actual practice in the community –
a pressing priority identified by the Institute of Medicine30. In an
effort to bridge the gap between research and the evidence-based
treatment
knowledge of community-based practitioners, the Internet-Based
Addiction Counselor Education Study (IBACES) will:
develop and implement a pilot demonstration of
an innovative Internet based program for training Chemical Dependency/Addiction Studies (CDAS) students initially, with later
generalization to community-based practitione
disseminate
current knowledge about the Addiction Counseling Competencies of
Professional Practice and examine their impact on State
Certification for Chemical Dependency Counseling
conduct a randomized controlled trial to
measure knowledge transfer and
preparation using the Internet.
