Social Workers Undertrained in effects of Substance Misuse
- 27 Feb
Charity shows that social workers should have compulsory training on substance misuse, and says there are fears they are not given adequate training or management supervision on substance misuse and its impact on parenting.
These gaps in training and support need to be addressed urgently as more weight is put on their judgement, and substance misuse is a common factor in most cases for social workers.
The charity Adfam have released a report showing widespread fears that social workers are not given adequate training or effective managerial supervision on substance misuse, in particular with its impact on children and parenting.
The report highlights that the Munro review of child protection is placing greater emphasis on the professional judgement of front line staff, they will require more information.
Combined with the safeguarding guidance being given to social workers by the government being dramatically lessened, it may leave them feeling unsupported and isolated when there is a gap in their knowledge when they are being expected to find the right answer and be confident with it.
Vivienne Evans, chief executive of Adfam, said she understood the caseload pressures faced by social workers, but the gaps in support for staff needed to be addressed urgently, as substance misuse features prominently in the caseloads of many social workers.
Dr Sarah Galvani, chair of the British Association of Social Workers' special interest group on alcohol and other drugs, said:
The experience from the DipSW shows that guidance alone doesn't work. It needs strong leadership and creativity within social work education to introduce completely new subjects and find the resources and time on the curriculum to deliver it.
There are a number of examples of good practice but it is patchy and we know a third of social workers still leave qualifying education without any substance use education."Anne Mercer, professional advisor for The College of Social Work, said the college did not support calls for mandatory substance misuse training:
Social work education covers a very wide and complex amount of learning and tuition and education establishments must be able to manage how this is provided.
Related articles
- 24 Jul
Closure of London substance misuse clinic
Over the past two years the clinic has lost around £600,000 a year which renders the service "financially unviable". Trust chief executive Claire Murdoch told the July board meeting that, while she...
- 30 Apr
Young people being treated for substance abuse
Freedom of Information requests have revealed hundreds of young people are at risk of becoming addicts or have begun abusing alcohol and substances themselves, leaving many charities requesting...
- 28 Feb
Legal highs summit to be held by government
Norman Baker, the Home Office minister, has said that the substances were a "very serious issues" for public health. He added that they were dangerous as people buying the hallucinogenic drugs did...
- 21 Nov
OECD: Antidepressant use on the rise
Figures show that doctors in countries with more wealth are writing prescriptions for more than one in ten adults. Iceland, Australia, Canada and other European Nordic countries are leading the way,...
- 30 Sep
NHS could supply drugs to addicts says UK police chief
Mike Barton, one of England's most senior police officers, has called for class-A drugs to be decriminalised and for the policy of outright prohibition to be radically revised, reports the...
- 19 Aug
Chief Medical Officer Says Drug Addiction Is Not A Criminal Issue
She said:"Of course it's a medical problem, I mean addiction is a medical problem, and it becomes a public health problem and then our society is choosing to treat that as a criminal justice...
- 13 Aug
'Smart Drug' Fears Expected As A Result Of Rise In ADHD Prescriptions
Officials at the watchdog said:"Health workers should carefully monitor the drugs because they have a potential for diversion or misuse."There has been a 56% rise in the administered prescriptions...
- 25 Jul
Local resident supports people suffering with drug and alcohol addiction
Dave Guy is a founding member of Marah, a Christian charitable organisation committed to supporting vulnerable and marginalised adults in the Stroud District, helping them to move on from their...
- 22 Jul
Substance Misuse Service Raises Awareness
Rotherham's 'Know the Score' provides drug treatment and relapse prevention for children and young people up to the age of 19 who have problematic drug and alcohol use. The service is multi-agency...
- 02 Jul
Salvation Army Plan to Tackle Substace Misuse
The Salvation Army today announced an expansion of their social work, to increase outreach work to support communities with alcohol dependency and its effects on health, families and futures.The...
How to fund Housing Support and Social Care Services "Alot of information in a short time, good for me because I travelled a long way. So I feel the journey was worthwhile." C.T - People First Dorset
