Harm Reduction Training Program: The Development, Implementation and Lessons Learned

Overview: This panel will explore the justification for a harm reduction training program in three graduate schools of social work, the development of the training modalities, the collaborative process of evaluation, and findings from year 1. The panelists represent the non-profit organization, three schools of social work, and program evaluation team.Proposal text: An analysis of CSWE accredited MSW programs found that only 14.3% offered a specialization in substance use disorder (SUD) training and 4.7% had one or more course offerings related to SUDs (Estreet et al, 2017). Despite 71-87% of social workers reporting that they have come in contact with those who suffer from opioid use disorder (OUD) and SUD in a variety of settings, a large majority of MSW programs did not require or offer a course that addresses SUDs (Estreet et al, 2017). Many social workers lack the experience and training to adequately intervene with the OUD/SUD population (Estreet et al, 2017). In addition, research confirms that holistic and longitudinal training is associated with greater gains in knowledge and skills over short-term training programs (Fenster and Monti, 2017; Vakharia and Little, 2017). Recent research also suggests the growing racial justice gap in opioid related mortality rates necessitates enhancing the diversity and skill of practitioners in the field of harm reduction (Friedman and Hansen, 2021).
To address the current gap in harm reduction training, a statewide nonprofit organization established a harm reduction internship training program within three graduate schools of social work to enhance the training and capacity of social workers to end the opioid epidemic and reduce its devastating social and economic impact (Maclean et.al, 2020). The internship training program provides paid internships to support clinical partnerships and training opportunities in harm reduction while increasing the presence of racially, socially, and socio-economically diverse social workers in the field of harm reduction for those with OUD/SUD. The internship training program seeks to enhance graduate education for social workers to include principles and practices of harm reduction with the goal of replicating a training program locally and nationally. In addition, the training program aims to: 1) promote a culture of harm reduction; 2) increase the clinical presence at harm reduction organizations/agencies to improve linkages to behavioral health and medical treatment; and 3) increase the presence of racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse social workers in the work of harm reduction. Embedded in the training program is a program evaluation to assess the success of the program’s capacity to increase the diversity of highly trained social workers in the field of harm reduction, enhance harm reduction education within schools of social work, and identify key program components that are critical for program expansion or replication.
This panel discussion will explore the a) the need for a social work training model, b) the development of the training modalities within each school site, c) the collaborative process of evaluation, and d) findings from year 1 of the study. The panelists represent the non-profit funder, three schools of social work, and program evaluation team. Findings from this panel can be utilized to inform current or future harm reduction based curriculum or training materials within schools of social work.