National Addiction Workshop: A Virtual Adaptation to Support Competency Development in Opioid Use Disorder Management

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Public Health
• Substance Use Disorder Treatment

Background:

• There is a critical need for accessible, manualized, skill-based training for healthcare professionals to effectively manage the opioid epidemic.
• Existing healthcare systems require enhanced capacity to address the growing prevalence of substance use disorders (SUDs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To design, implement, and evaluate a manualized, interprofessional, skill-based training workshop for healthcare staff on managing SUDs.
• To assess the impact of the training on participants' knowledge, skills, attitudes, and confidence in treating patients with SUDs.

Main Methods:

• A 2-day interprofessional workshop incorporating interactive learning strategies, including case discussions, skill demonstrations, patient panels, and interprofessional team simulations.
• The workshop was adapted to a virtual platform and delivered to 177 healthcare staff and trainees across the United States.
• Training focused on key areas such as medication management, stigma reduction, and collaborative care for SUDs.

Main Results:

• Participants reported high satisfaction with the workshop content and structure, particularly regarding medication management, stigma, and collaborative care.
• Significant increases in confidence were observed in assessing, diagnosing, and treating SUDs post-training.
• Interprofessional team simulations were identified as a particularly beneficial component for skill-building.

Conclusions:

• The manualized, skill-based workshop effectively improved healthcare staff's confidence and preparedness to manage SUDs.
• This training model demonstrates potential for wide dissemination to enhance SUD treatment capacity across various healthcare settings.
• The training fostered a more positive conceptualization of SUD as a treatable chronic condition.