Inclusion of Substance Abuse Training in CACREP-Accredited Programs

✍ Scribed by Kathleen M. Salyers; Martin H. Ritchie; Wendy S. Luellen; Christopher P. Roseman

• Publisher: American Counseling Association
• Year: 2005
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 77 KB
• Volume: 45
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0011-0035
• DOI: 10.1002/j.1556-6978.2005.tb00128.x

✦ Synopsis

Professional counselors and counselors-in-training continue to serve clients who have substance abuse issues, yet systematic training in substance abuse counseling is not available to many counselors. The authors investigated the extent to which students in programs accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP; 2001) are exposed to clients presenting with substance abuse issues and the relationship between state licensure or certification in substance abuse and the resulting perception of the need for the inclusion of substance abuse training in these programs. Three methods are presented for possibly including substance abuse training in CACREP standards.

Substance abuse continues to be a national problem, and there are no indications that it is decreasing in its level of severity or in the number of individuals dealing with this problem (Chappel & Lewis, 1997). According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, SAMSHA, and the Office of Applied Studies (2001), an estimated 16.6 million Americans, ages 12 and older, were classified as having either substance abuse or dependence disorders. In addition, approximately one third of clients with psychiatric disorders have a history of alcohol or other drug abuse, and half of the clients with substance abuse or dependence disorders experience symptoms that are sufficient enough to warrant being diagnosed with another mental disorder (Regier et al., 1990). These numbers are indicative of an enormous need for the provision of services for persons in this population.

Professional counselors are frequently called on to provide services to persons with substance abuse issues. Nugent (2000) stated that "A dramatic increase in the need for counseling services has also occurred because of the growing numbers of reported cases of child neglect and abuse, domestic violence, and substance abuse"