Program Curriculum

The curriculum includes key advances in clinical addiction medicine through lectures, case discussions, skills practice, visits to support groups and syringe services, small group meetings with individuals in recovery, Naloxone administration, and one-on-one mentoring for developing a Substance Use Teaching Project.

Addiction Science

Epidemiology and neurobiology
Pharmacology of drugs and alcohol
Substance-related health conditions
Impact of drugs on racially and ethnically minoritized populations

Clinical Practice

Screening, assessment, and brief intervention
Motivational interviewing
Treatment approaches (e.g., pharmacotherapy)
Relapse prevention
Pain management in patients with a substance use disorder
Safer opioid prescribing for pain
Optimizing safety in people who use substances
Overdose education and naloxone distribution
Criminal justice involvement and health impacts

Teaching Skills

Incorporating addiction medicine into a residency curriculum
Effective teaching techniques (e.g., teaching the reluctant learner, giving feedback to learners)

Research Exposure

Review of clinically relevant addiction medicine research
Exploration of career opportunities in addiction medicine research

Mentoring Skills (for faculty participants)

Review goals and approaches for effective mentoring
Practice mentoring techniques
Support chief resident in their development of a Substance Use Teaching Project

Program Evaluation

Participants are expected to complete a series of evaluation instruments to help us gauge the effectiveness of the program. For Chief Residents this process includes a baseline survey as part of the application; a pre- and post-test and a post-training survey while at the training; four bi-monthly logs about teaching addiction medicine; a six month follow-up; and a brief final survey at around 10 months following the training. Faculty Mentors and Junior Faculty complete variations on a subset of these. Responses are confidential, and data are aggregated across participants.