I think it is essential that space is given for the Ethics of Practice , either as a reminder and review for the existing professionals and most importantly for those who are seeking professional levels of knowledge and associated responsibilty. This is based on experience of educating drug workers who have never had the opportunity to examine such issues.

Jim Jones

Please note this e-mail address wil soon be defunct, please use [log in to unmask]
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From: Addiction Course Convenors [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Priest, Tony G. (Dr.) [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 23 November 2009 18:09
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: core skills

Dear All,


I think this is a good start.  My suggestions for improving the draft are:

1.  I think the first heading is redundant, as terminology is implied whenever we study something.  Instead, I suggest a heading:  Properties and Effects of Drugs and Alcohol, which would cover their main effects and side effects, withdrawal symptoms, tolerance, contra-indications and so on.

2.  I would be inclined to spell out "Psychosocial Interventions" a bit more.  For my course, that would be CBT and MI.

3.  Critical Issues: I wouldn't have included Spirituality, but I would have included homelessness, suicide, self-harm, sexual and physical abuse and domestic violence.

4.  Research Methods: presumably this will be a big thing for post-grad courses, but at DipHE/FD level, all we are aiming at is preparing the students to understand the main points in a research paper.  Perhaps there could be differentated versions of the Core Syllabus for different levels of course?  I know that sounds complicated, but if we want to deliver courses at different levels, the situation is complicated.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Tony Priest
Course Director, Foundation Degree in Drug and Alcohol Counselling
University of Leicester
01604-736231

Course Website:  www.le.ac.uk/lifelonglearning/counselling/courses
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From: Addiction Course Convenors [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of A.C.Ashenhurst [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 23 November 2009 16:08
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: core skills

Dear All,
A meeting of Addiction Course Convenors (ACC) in Higher Education was held at Birmingham University on Thurs 19th November. One of the matters discussed was the way forward for HE programmes across the UK. With a somewhat parallel agenda the NTA have recently convened a Skills Symposium which is addressing  the future training and education of practitioners working with problem substance users. Andy Ashenhurst was asked to liaise between the two groups in the first instance and present an ACC core curriculum at the next meeting of the NTA Symposium on December 4th.

At the ACC meeting those present agreed to develop a HE core curriculum for all members of the group. From an outsiders point of view it appears to be difficult to know what each of our programmes contains as they are so diverse. As a result the HE sector may be (is  already) losing student and stakeholder support. If the HE sector was able to agree on a core curriculum, student applicants, their employers and ultimately their clients will have an across the board idea of what our programmes contain.

 If a core curriculum is presented to the NTA meeting on 4th Dec, it will give other members of the symposium (most of whom are not NTA staff but service providers, service user groups, professional bodies, GPs etc) a basis for discussion about what a universal HE education and training agenda may look like in the future.

Attached is a first draft of a core curriculum. Please look through it, adding any broad topic areas you feel are missing and any brief comment that could help take this agenda forward. We have kept the categories deliberately broad at this stage to keep the process moving and leave room for people at the NTA symposium to add their inputs, but there is plenty of space for diversity within these categories.
To put such a core list to the meeting on 4th Dec will be a first step in presenting the HE sector as a coherent body  in a wider influential setting. In order to meet the needs of service providers and clients, the sector seeks to negotiate with NTA Symposium members a way forward leading to national benchmarks and standards.
Thank you for your  input by the end of November.

kind regards Andy





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