Brief Interventions (BI’s) for substance use concerns can be opportunistically provided in less than 5 minutes. BI’s are usually seen as early intervention rather than treatment - when well-delivered, using motivational strategies, BI’s can have a significant, long-term, positive impact on a person’s use of substances. The principles underlying a BI are useful when working with a person on any change process. Mental health workers are well-placed to provide BIs with people experiencing co-occurring substance use concerns.
Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this interactive, 1-hour, session participants will be able to:
- Discuss BIs as part of a Screening, Brief Intervention & Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) pathway
- Describe those situations where BIs may be useful and where contra-indicated
- Use ‘FRAMES’ to describe the key components of a Brief Intervention
- Introduce a discussion around substance use into a mental health consultation
- Evoke from clients their views and wisdom around changing their substance use
- Assess and work with a client’s sense of self-efficacy around changing their substance use
Facilitator: Gary Croton
Gary is a mental health-substance use nurse who has specialised in dual diagnosis capacity building since 1998. His current role is the Victorian Dual Diagnosis Initiative, Clinical Nurse Consultant, for Hume-Border region, auspiced by Albury Wodonga Health. Gary is responsible for a range of dual diagnosis-related publications and tools to assist services and workers in working effectively with people experiencing co-occurring mental health-substance use concerns.
Gary is the creator and administrator of the Dual Diagnosis Australia & New Zealand website. He has been the recipient of several awards including the State Nursing Excellence Award for Mental Health and Drugs Nursing and a Victorian Travelling Fellowship investigating integrated treatment of mental health-substance use in the UK, USA & NZ. Gary is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers.
