WASHINGTON – Social workers are providing care for individuals with substance use disorders at increasing rates, Mickey J.W. Smith said in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse.
The study data were collected by the National Association of Social Workers as part of a survey of 2,000 social workers funded in part by the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, said Mr. Smith of the NASW.
The social workers reported that 27% of their clients in 2002 had a primary or secondary substance use disorder, up from 25% in 2000. Clients seen by social workers in organizational settings had higher rates of primary diagnoses, compared with those seen by social workers in private practice in 2000 and 2002 (9% vs. 6% both years). Clients seen in organizational settings also had higher rates of secondary diagnoses, compared with private practice in 2000 (20% vs. 13%) and 2002 (21% vs. 17%).
The total average number of hours social workers spent in addictions-specific training decreased slightly, from 4.4 hours in 2000 to 4.3 hours in 2002, Mr. Smith reported.
Overall, 65% of social workers took part in addictions-specific continuing education in 2002, compared with 68% in 2000. But participation in several other types of addictions-specific training increased: 39% of the social workers took formal coursework in 2002, up from 38% in 2000, and 26% engaged in clinical supervision activities in 2002, up from 24% in 2000. In addition, 18% of respondents took part in field placement in 2002, up from 16% in 2000, and 6% did volunteer work in 2002, compared with 5% in 2000.