Substance Abuse Interview

Contact between an addictions counsellor and a client is usually initiated by the client referring him/her self, an outside agency refers them, family physician or the addictions counsellor initiates contact through outreach or other agencies. Assessment can be seen as the beginning of treatment and it becomes an opportunity to encourage the client to begin to move towards change. The initial assessment involves a mutual investigation and exploration between the client

Practice models used in treatment of substance abuse have up until recently only been recommended for the intervention of younger addicts. As a result, treatment approaches for older adults are lacking in evidence. However, screening for substance abuse is the first step towards determining if a more thorough assessment is needed. Cook et al. (1998) reported that it is necessary to take a holistic approach to treatment, and take a broader focus than just the chemical abuse because as people age their psychological and health problems become more complex (p. 146). Older adults face life changes and lack of poor support networks are more deeply felt. Bogunovic (2012) answered that, “A comprehensive evaluation should include a thorough physical examination and laboratory analysis and psychiatric, neurological, and social evaluation.” Such measures are effective when paired with screening

When most people think of substance abuse and addiction counseling they often only think of the 12 step program or alcoholics anonymous. The truth is that an addiction counselor must have a vast knowledge in the

Currently, I am a counselor in training at East Carolina University within the Department of Addictions and Rehabilitation Studies. Upon graduation, I will be pursuing licensure as a Clinical Addiction Specialist and a Professional Counselor. I am working at the Navigate Counseling Clinic, under the supervision of Qunesha Hinton, who also serves as my ECU doctoral student supervisor. My faculty supervisor is Shari Sias, Associate Professor, Substance Abuse and Clinical Counseling Program Director at East Carolina University (office number: 252-744-6304; email: siass@ecu.edu) and facility supervisor is Dr. Leigh Atherton at Navigate Counseling Clinic (office number: 252-744-6300; email: athertonw@ecu.edu) .

It should be noticed that in the recent few decades, the science developed at an astonishing pace, and the problem of substance abuse cause a huge public concern. Currently, substance abuse has already become a pandemic around the world. It costs individuals substantially, and it of their family as a whole. It is essential for the society to help those people who struggle with drug addiction to get rid of their pain and get back their health and balance life. Therefore, I understand the substance abuse is a tough area, and people who are struggling with addiction really need help. During the course of the interview, I

A question that I was curious about asking dealt with how individuals in recovery function as substance abuse counselors. From experience, I have noticed that most substance abuse counselors are themselves in recovery. When I was in treatment, I related much better to

Per my customary tradition of attending anything for the first time I arrived early to survey the environment as well as obtain a seat that would provide the most optimum observation vantage point. The alcoholics anonymous (AA) meeting I attended was held at the House of Disciples Life Recovery Center, a ministry of Wiseman Ministries. Interestingly enough, it used to be a funeral home. As I walked through the doors the first thing I noticed was a faint but distinct smell of burnt coffee, tobacco, and donuts. Making my way deeper into the meeting hall I located the source of the smell. After helping myself to a cup of java I walked over to a table sitting in front of chairs placed in a

Chemical Dependency counselors have quite a few ethical dilemmas to deal with. Therapists that are in recovery may confront some even more complex dilemmas, opposed to those who are not. There is a high percentage of addiction counselors that are in recovery. In fact, 55% of 36,000 members of the National Association of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Counselors (NAADAC) are recovering alcoholics and 21% are recovering from some other chemical dependency. This brings up two sides to counselors in recovery. "There is something about the personal experience that assists counselors to being especially attentive to the needs of the recovering client." On the other hand, counselors bringing personal

I had the privilege of talk to Diana W. Bear of the Inter-Tribal Substance Abuse/Prevention & Treatment Center. She is a Counselor at the facilities at Miami, Oklahoma. She confided in me why she pursued a career in substance and alcohol prevention as a second career in her life. She also had family member that difficultly with addictions and wanted to know more about addiction. With her desire to learn and overwhelming desire to want to help others to overcome it. She started by enrolling in some online class and finished up with attending Pittsburg State University for part of her college career. She started out as doing her practicum at the same facilities as she later got a job; she has been a counselor with Inter-Tribal Substance Abuse/Prevention & Treatment Center for now ten years.

Stevens, P., & Smith, R. L. (2013). Substance abuse counseling: Theory and practice (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Another challenge of working with substance users occurs when clients arrive intoxicated for a session. This may at times be a way of testing the counsellor, and although from the outside the client may seem impaired, being intoxicated may be their more familiar, functioning state. If the client is still able to engage, it is possible and often beneficial to continue with the session, if only in a limited way, Helen says.

I would approach a woman, such as Jaclyn, in a non-accusatory manner, because I would not want her to feel attacked. I would ask her about her health rituals and if she smokes or drinks. That would open the floor to more alcohol specific questions. I would use alcohol screening techniques or questionnaires, such as the T-ACE or Prenatal Alcohol Use Interview, to understand the extent of the woman’s alcohol consumption (Chang, 2001). After the woman confirmed the drinking, I would ask her (in questionnaire or interview format) on average, how many days a week she drinks, then I would proceed to ask her, on the days she does drink, how many drinks does she have, (“Screening for Alcohol Problems”, 2005). Another important factor is the timing

The use of substance is not a new subject in the history of human kind. In the past, elderly group of population were more habituated comparing to that of adolescent. Currently, the significant number of adolescent has been affected by the substance abuse. Substance abuse is defined as the use of toxic psycho stimulant or depressant substances which may be multiple drugs or alcohol. The types of substance that are commonly used are alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, marijuana (Kraanen et al., 2014, pp. 533). Among these substance, the consumption of alcohol seems to be in high rank. The prevalence of alcohol consumption and other illicit drugs is 12% and 2-3% respectively (Merikangas and McClair, 2012, pp780). This essay is about critique of substance use interview that has been provided by The University of Wollongong to the nursing students. The following headings further explores the interview related to the substance abuse.

Many social stigmas are associated with drug use within our society. At one point in my life I shared the negative connotations associated to drug abuse with the vast majority of the population of this country and the society in which I live. As I matured and began forming my own opinions based on several personal experiences, I began to disagree with the believed norm that drugs are bad for our society. They are a means of escape for some just the same as alcohol and tobacco is for millions of others in this country. Those legal substances are just as bad for your body and habit forming as other illegal substances. Why do so many people frown on those of us who need our help? Drug addiction is a disease yet it’s

In Counseling for Alcohol and Drug Abuse, the need to use different techniques is an integral part of the process. Working with an individual that is either entering into recovery or actively in recovery, the clinician must take their time with introducing the 12 Steps. The individual may not be open to the 12 Step philosophies at the onset. Addiction is very complex and actively affects the person on a daily basis; therefore, it is so important to start from the beginning of counseling to create a structured program.