Addiction Medicine Course

Lesson 1 • Epidemiology and Public Health Impact

Presents prevalence data, mortality trends, and societal costs of addiction. Contextualises clinical work within broader public health priorities.

Lesson 2 • Neurobiology of Addiction

Explains reward circuitry, dopamine dysregulation, and neuroplasticity changes. Provides the biological rationale for pharmacological and behavioural interventions.

Lesson 3 • Biopsychosocial Model of Addiction

Integrates genetic, psychological, and social determinants into a unified model. Prepares clinicians to assess patients holistically rather than through a single-cause lens.

Lesson 4 • Ethical and Legal Frameworks

Addresses confidentiality regulations, mandatory reporting, and patient rights specific to addiction care. Ensures compliant, ethical practice from the outset.

Lesson 1 • Comprehensive Clinical Interview

Structures a full addiction history including substance use timeline, consequences, and treatment history. Builds rapport while gathering diagnostically critical information.

Lesson 2 • Risk Stratification and Level of Care

Applies standardised placement criteria to match patients to appropriate treatment intensity. Prevents under- or over-treatment through structured clinical decision-making.

Lesson 3 • Screening Tools and Brief Interventions

Introduces validated screening instruments and motivational brief intervention techniques. Enables early identification and intervention before full disorder development.

Lesson 4 • Physical Examination and Laboratory Testing

Covers addiction-focused physical exam findings and relevant laboratory panels. Objective data strengthens diagnosis and monitors treatment response.

Lesson 1 • Nicotine and Emerging Substances

Covers nicotinic receptor pharmacology, vaping risks, and novel psychoactive substances. Keeps clinicians current with rapidly evolving substance landscapes.

Lesson 2 • Stimulants: Cocaine and Amphetamines

Explains monoamine reuptake inhibition, cardiovascular risks, and psychosis induction. Prepares clinicians for stimulant intoxication and crash presentations.

Lesson 3 • Cannabis, Sedatives, and Hallucinogens

Reviews endocannabinoid system, benzodiazepine pharmacology, and serotonergic hallucinogens. Addresses emerging clinical concerns including cannabis use disorder.

Lesson 4 • Opioids: Pharmacology and Risk

Details mu-receptor agonism, analgesic versus euphoric effects, and overdose physiology. Foundation for understanding opioid use disorder treatment and naloxone use.

Lesson 1 • Sedative-Hypnotic Withdrawal

Addresses benzodiazepine and Z-drug withdrawal, which carries seizure and mortality risk. Guides safe tapering and phenobarbital conversion strategies.

Lesson 2 • Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome

Covers pathophysiology, severity assessment, and pharmacological management of alcohol withdrawal. Addresses prevention of seizures and delirium tremens.

Lesson 3 • Opioid Withdrawal Management

Details COWS scoring, comfort medications, and transition to maintenance therapy. Reduces dropout during the critical early treatment phase.

Lesson 4 • Medical Complications During Detox

Identifies and manages serious medical events arising during withdrawal management. Ensures patient safety through proactive monitoring and escalation protocols.

Lesson 1 • Medications for Opioid Use Disorder

Covers buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone mechanisms, induction, and maintenance. Addresses regulatory requirements and patient selection for each agent.

Lesson 2 • Medication Safety and Monitoring

Addresses drug interactions, diversion risk, and ongoing monitoring protocols. Ensures safe long-term pharmacotherapy management in complex patients.

Lesson 3 • Emerging and Off-Label Pharmacotherapies

Reviews evidence for medications used in stimulant, cannabis, and behavioural addictions. Prepares clinicians to discuss options where approved agents are unavailable.

Lesson 4 • Nicotine Replacement and Cessation Agents

Covers NRT formulations, varenicline, and bupropion for tobacco use disorder. Guides combination therapy and management of psychiatric side effects.

Lesson 1 • Family and Group Therapy Approaches

Covers family systems interventions, CRAFT model, and therapeutic group formats. Addresses the relational context that sustains or undermines recovery.

Lesson 2 • Contingency Management

Explains operant conditioning principles, voucher-based reinforcement, and prize incentive systems. Strongest evidence base for stimulant and opioid use disorders.

Lesson 3 • Motivational Interviewing

Teaches OARS skills, change talk elicitation, and rolling with resistance. MI is the foundational communication style across all addiction treatment encounters.

Lesson 4 • Twelve-Step and Mutual Aid Programmes

Reviews AA, NA, SMART Recovery, and other peer support models. Facilitates appropriate referral and integration with professional treatment.

Lesson 1 • Managing Relapse and Treatment Resistance

Reframes relapse as a clinical event requiring plan revision, not treatment failure. Equips clinicians to respond therapeutically and adjust interventions.

Lesson 2 • Individualised Treatment Plan Development

Structures goal-setting, intervention selection, and measurable outcomes in treatment plans. Translates comprehensive assessment into actionable, patient-centred care.

Lesson 3 • Transitions of Care and Continuity

Covers discharge planning, step-down protocols, and warm handoffs between care levels. Reduces dropout and relapse risk during vulnerable care transitions.

Lesson 4 • Chronic Disease Management Model

Applies chronic illness frameworks to long-term addiction monitoring and support. Shifts clinical mindset from acute episodes to sustained recovery management.

Lesson 1 • Older Adults and Addiction

Covers age-related pharmacokinetic changes, atypical presentations, and polypharmacy risks. Older adults are frequently underdiagnosed and undertreated.

Lesson 2 • Adolescent Substance Use Disorders

Addresses developmental neuroscience, age-appropriate screening, and family-based treatment. Adolescent addiction requires distinct approaches from adult care.

Lesson 3 • Addiction in Pregnancy

Covers prenatal screening, MOUD in pregnancy, and neonatal abstinence syndrome management. Addresses the highest-stakes clinical scenario in addiction medicine.

Lesson 4 • Pain Management and Addiction

Addresses safe opioid prescribing, risk stratification tools, and non-opioid pain strategies. Manages the clinical tension between undertreating pain and enabling addiction.