Community and Addiction

Build a shared understanding of addiction and the role of community. You will explore models of addiction, the social determinants that shape substance use, how problems spread through networks, and why stigma keeps people from help.

1. Models of addiction: moral, disease and biopsychosocial

   34m

   Build a shared understanding of addiction and the role of community. You will explore models of addiction, the social determinants that shape substance use, how problems spread through networks, and why stigma keeps people from help.

2. Social determinants of health and substance use

   34m

   Social determinants: Conditions such as income, housing, employment, education, discrimination and social connection that strongly influence who develops problems and who recovers.

3. How substance use spreads and is sustained in communities

   34m

   Social contagion: Substance use patterns spread through peer and family networks, shared norms and local supply, which is why problems often cluster in particular places and groups.

4. Stigma, language and community attitudes

   34m

   Stigma: Negative attitudes and labels, visible and invisible, that cause shame, discourage help-seeking and shape how services treat people who use substances.

Understand what substances and addictive behaviours do and why people come to depend on them. You will learn the continuum of use, the brain's reward system, behavioural addictions, and the strong connections between addiction, mental health and trauma.

1. Types of substances and their effects

   34m

   Understand what substances and addictive behaviours do and why people come to depend on them. You will learn the continuum of use, the brain's reward system, behavioural addictions, and the strong connections between addiction, mental health and trauma.

2. The continuum of use and the brain's reward system

   34m

   Reward pathway: Substances and some behaviours trigger dopamine release in the brain's reward system. With repetition, the brain adapts, driving cravings and tolerance.

3. Behavioural addictions: gambling, gaming and more

   34m

   Concurrent disorders: Experiencing a mental health condition and a substance use problem at the same time. Integrated support for both works better than treating them separately.

4. Concurrent disorders, trauma and adverse childhood experiences

   34m

   Adverse childhood experiences: Childhood abuse, neglect and household dysfunction. A higher number of ACEs is strongly associated with later substance use and mental health problems.

Develop practical skills for supporting people who use substances. You will apply the stages of change, use motivational interviewing techniques, communicate in trauma-informed and non-judgmental ways, and support families affected by addiction.

1. The stages of change and readiness

   34m

   Develop practical skills for supporting people who use substances. You will apply the stages of change, use motivational interviewing techniques, communicate in trauma-informed and non-judgmental ways, and support families affected by addiction.

2. Motivational interviewing and OARS skills

   34m

   Motivational interviewing: A collaborative conversation style that strengthens a person's own motivation for change, rather than persuading or confronting them.

3. Trauma-informed, person-first communication

   34m

   OARS: Open questions, Affirmations, Reflective listening and Summaries: the core skills of motivational interviewing.

4. Supporting families and responding to relapse

   34m

   Trauma-informed care: Practice that recognises the impact of trauma and prioritises safety, trust, choice, collaboration and empowerment to avoid re-traumatising people.

Explore the full range of community responses. You will learn levels of prevention, evidence-based harm reduction strategies, recovery-oriented systems of care, and how peers, mutual aid and recovery capital sustain long-term change.

1. Universal, selective and indicated prevention

   34m

   Explore the full range of community responses. You will learn levels of prevention, evidence-based harm reduction strategies, recovery-oriented systems of care, and how peers, mutual aid and recovery capital sustain long-term change.

2. Harm reduction principles and services

   34m

   Harm reduction: Practical approaches that reduce the harms of substance use without requiring abstinence, such as naloxone, drug checking and safer supply or consumption services.

3. Treatment pathways and recovery-oriented care

   34m

   Recovery capital: The personal, social and community resources, such as housing, relationships, employment, health and purpose, that help a person start and sustain recovery.

4. Peer support, mutual aid and recovery capital

   34m

   Peer support: Support from people with lived experience of addiction and recovery, who offer hope, understanding and practical guidance.

Bring your learning together for ethical, sustainable community practice. You will explore ethics and boundaries, cultural safety, collaboration across services, compassion fatigue and self-care, and plan the community-based response you will develop in your capstone.

1. Ethics, confidentiality and professional boundaries

   34m

   Bring your learning together for ethical, sustainable community practice. You will explore ethics and boundaries, cultural safety, collaboration across services, compassion fatigue and self-care, and plan the community-based response you will develop in your capstone.

2. Cultural safety, equity and lived-experience leadership

   34m

   Cultural safety: Practice in which people feel respected and safe in their identity. It requires understanding how history, colonialism and racism shape substance use and trust in services.

3. Building community partnerships and coalitions

   34m

   Nothing about us without us: The principle that people with lived and living experience should be involved in designing and leading the services that affect them.

4. Compassion fatigue, self-care and planning your capstone

   34m

   Compassion fatigue: Emotional and physical exhaustion from caring for people in distress. Supervision, debriefing, boundaries and self-care help prevent burnout.

5. Capstone project: Community Addiction Response Plan

   34m

   Choose a real or realistic community and develop a practical plan that shows how the community can prevent substance-related harm and support recovery over the long term.