Training employment service staff to recognise and respond to clients with drug and alcohol problems

This paper investigates the impact of a training course for Employment Service staff which was designed to provide basic level training on the identification and appropriate management of clients with drug and alcohol problems. The 2-day course was specially designed to meet the needs of staff working with unemployed people with substance abuse problems. The primary aims of the course were to help employment staff to be able to identify drug and alcohol problems, to assess their severity, and where necessary, to refer clients on to more specialized agencies. One hundred and forty-five people attended the training course and a random sample of 60 were followed-up 6 months after the course. Results showed substantial improvements in the confidence and ability of staff to deal with clients presenting with drug and alcohol problems. There was also a clear improvement in the willingness of staff to intervene with such clients.