Clinical & Public Health Aspects of Addiction – (M.Sc.)

Contents

* Clinical Issues, Assessment, Skills & Treatment (45 Credits) (Core Module)

The educational aims of this module are to: consider the clinical science germane to the management of drug, alcohol and nicotine dependence; acquire basic clinical skills working with individual substance misuse clients; explore the assessment of the suitability of different treatment approaches for particular clients; understand crisis intervention and structure for assessing and managing risk in alcohol and drug misuse; examine the clinical issues of HIV and Hepatitis B & C in clinical practice; examine the involvement of different agencies and the organisation of services for substance misusers.

At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to demonstrate M level competence in the:

* application of theoretical knowledge to clinical practice;
* advanced knowledge of the principal aspects of a successful therapeutic relationship;
* competent execution of clinical interview and presentation skills;
* critical awareness of the processes involved in patient assessment and management;
* comprehensive ability to assess and manage substance use & misuse problems;
* presentation and writing up of standard and complex cases;
* ability to disseminate information regarding the organisation of services for substance misusers;
* recognition of the need for a multi-agency approach.

Assessment is by: a one-hour short-answer unseen paper (10); one two-hour clinical examination (50 of the final grade for this module.

* Neurobiology & Psychopharmacology (15 Credits) (Core Module)

The educational aims of this module are to gain: an understanding of the scientific basis and treatment of substance misuse and dependence from a biological perspective; to examine in detail the neurobiological basis of treatments for drug dependence and withdrawal; to examine current knowledge with regard to the clinical evaluation of the treatment efficacy of pharmacological treatments; to understand the principles of pharmacokinetics, chemistry and clinical toxicology relating to routes of administration of different drugs of abuse.

At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to demonstrate M level competence in the:

* knowledge of the biological basis of the addictions;
* specialist knowledge of the onset, course, symptoms, signs and treatment of the alcohol withdrawal syndrome;
* mechanisms of action of drugs on brain reward systems, the processes of tolerance, sensitisation, dependence and withdrawal;
* understanding of cellular mechanisms of neuroadaptation;
* awareness of the assessment of abuse liability using laboratory methods;
* specialist knowledge and evaluation of pharmacological treatments for drug abuse and dependence;
* knowledge of laboratory methods for screening for drugs of abuse;
* knowledge of the risk factors for the transmission of HIV and other blood borne viruses.

Assessment is by a 3000-word essay accounting for 100 of the final grade) and a 1500-word book review (50 of total grade), a 30-minute oral presentation (15).

* Research Methods & Epidemiology (15 Credits) (Core Module)

The education aims of this module are: the development of research skills relevant to epidemiology and health service research; to examine epidemiological study designs and their application in different clinical settings; to enhance the ability to discuss and evaluate research projects and papers; to understand the research principles involved in hypothesis testing and estimation procedures; to develop generic skills in data analysis and statistical procedures.

At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to demonstrate M level competence in the:

* critical understanding and explanation of research principles;
* evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of epidemiological study designs and how they can be applied in different clinical settings;
* interpretation of basic descriptive and inferential statistical methods; requirements for writing a study protocol;
* advanced discussion, analysis and critique of scientific information pertinent to the addictions field;
* research methods, data analysis and interpretation;
* problem solving in theory and practice pertinent to the addictions field.

Assessment is by a one-hour MCQ paper (50).

* The Scientific Basis of Psychological Interventions & Clinical Practice (15 Credits) (Core Module)

The educational aims of this module are to: explore the principles of psychological assessment and formulation in addiction settings; understand the stages of change model related to addictive behaviours; evaluate the principles of different theoretical approaches; examine the use and comparative efficacy of different psychological therapies in clinical practice; examine psychological approaches used with specialist populations.

At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to demonstrate M level competence in the:

* psychological science germane to the management of drug, alcohol and nicotine dependence;
* critical awareness of the current literature related to psychological theories of addiction;
* advanced discussion, analysis and critique of scientific information pertinent to the psychological basis of addiction;
* critical ability to assess the efficacy of different psychological approaches;
* application of theoretical knowledge to clinical practice; critical awareness of processes involved in psychological assessment and formulation.

Assessment is by one 3000-word essay, which accounts for 100% of the total grade for this module.