Safer Cornwall & DAAT Training: Dual Diagnosis Training (2 day) 18th & 25th October 2024

Practitioners can often feel very overwhelmed when faced with clients who present with complex and multiple needs. This course offers participants to understand the key concepts in dual diagnosis. It begins by offering a clear insight into the differences and overlap between substance misuse and mental health problems. This explains why dual diagnosis rapidly becomes bigger than the sum of its parts. The course then demonstrates different sub-types of dual diagnosis clients who present with different challenges to services whether it is primary mental health, personality disorder or substance misuse led.

The programme then goes on to map critical phases of change in dual diagnosis and offers practitioners practical skills in manging each phase. This includes building relationships and sustaining strong alliances, tipping point points of change and treatment interventions. The course offers practitioners key psycho-social skills in abating common mental health symptoms to allow client to focus on recovery process.

Who is This Course For?: The programme is suitable for anyone working with complex needs including housing teams, substance misuse teams, criminal justice team and wider services.

Method of Delivery: The training course is highly interactive, even during presentations. It uses a wide variety of learning approaches including presentations, pairs and small group work exercises, video and online interactive learning. The course is also supported with free e-learning and further resources to re-cap, review and refresh learning.

Course Aims & Objectives:

The aim of the course is to increase confidence and ability to work with dually diagnosed clients.

By the end of the course participants will have had opportunities to:

• Explain how substance misuse and mental health interact

Describe the needs of different sub-populations of dual diagnosis clients

• Work within the recommended NHS framework to support dual diagnosis clients

• Practice key skills in symptom management for mental health problems