Lesson 1Psychiatric history and current mental status: mood, suicidality, anxiety, trauma, psychosis, cognitive function, prior treatments and responseHere we learn how to ask about mental health history and check someone's mind now, covering feelings, thoughts of harm, worry, past hurts, strange thinking, brain work, and old treatments, to spot other problems and plan full care.
Screening for mood disorders and bipolar spectrumAssessment of suicidality and self-harm riskEvaluation of anxiety, PTSD, and trauma exposureIdentification of psychosis and cognitive impairmentReview of prior psychiatric treatments and responsesLesson 2Risk behaviors and safety assessment: overdose risk factors, current intoxication/withdrawal signs, injection practices, needle sharing, pregnancy risk, domestic violenceThis part teaches careful checking for overdose dangers, signs of being high or sick from stopping, injecting habits, sharing needles, chance of pregnancy, and home fights, to make safety plans and cut harm right away.
Assessment of overdose history and current risk factorsRecognition of intoxication and withdrawal signsInjection practices, needle sharing, and equipment useSexual risk behaviors, contraception, and pregnancyScreening for domestic and intimate partner violenceLesson 3Documentation and consent considerations: confidentiality, mandatory reporting, informed consent for medications, opioid treatment program rulesWe go over rules for writing notes and getting agreement in opioid care, like keeping secrets, when to tell authorities, clear okay for medicines, and program rules for records in our setting.
Essential elements of clinical documentation42 CFR Part 2 and HIPAA confidentiality rulesMandatory reporting and duty to warn situationsInformed consent for MOUD and off-label useOpioid treatment program policies and recordsLesson 4Screening instruments and structured assessments: COWS, Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale; ASSIST; AUDIT; PHQ-9; GAD-7; substance use disorder diagnostic checklistsLearn about tested tools for checking opioid problems, like COWS, ASSIST, AUDIT, PHQ-9, GAD-7, and lists for diagnosis, with tips on scores, meaning, and using them in clinic work.
Use and scoring of the Clinical Opiate Withdrawal ScaleASSIST and AUDIT for substance use screeningPHQ-9 and GAD-7 for mood and anxiety symptomsStructured SUD diagnostic checklists and criteriaIntegrating tool results into clinical decisionsLesson 5Social, occupational, legal and family assessment: housing, child custody, employment stability, intimate partner dynamics, social supports, forensic issuesCheck home life, work, law matters, and family, like where to live, kids' care, job steadiness, partner relations, community help, and court issues that affect joining treatment and healing plans.
Housing stability, homelessness, and basic needsEmployment, income, and workplace functioningChild custody, parenting, and family rolesIntimate partner relationships and social supportsLegal charges, probation, and forensic concernsLesson 6Medical history focused on injection-related complications, infectious disease risk, chronic pain, liver disease, medications and allergiesGet key health history for opioid patients, stressing needle harm, sickness spread risk, long pain, liver sickness, current drugs, allergies, and how they shape treatment.
Injection-related complications and soft tissue infectionsScreening for HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and STIsAssessment of chronic pain conditions and functional impactEvaluation of liver disease, labs, and medication safetyMedication reconciliation, allergies, and drug interactionsLesson 7Detailed substance use history: onset, patterns, routes, quantities, polysubstance use, periods of abstinence, previous treatments, overdose history, naloxone useAsk in detail about drug use start, ways, amounts, mixing drugs, sober times, past help, overdose past, and naloxone to guide right diagnosis and treatment choice.
Age of onset, progression, and key milestonesPatterns, routes, and quantities of opioid usePolysubstance use and high-risk combinationsPeriods of abstinence and relapse triggersPrior treatments, overdoses, and naloxone access
