Training Workshops
Educational WorkshopsIntroduction to Harm ReductionThis evening Introduction to Harm Reduction educational workshop is recommended as a prerequisite for all other trainings if the participant is new to harm reduction philosophy and practice. This course is an examination of the history, philosophy and principles of the harm reduction model as it has evolved in the United States. Included are discussions on the harm reduction perspective of drug use in the context of an individual’s life, “traditional” drug treatment and drug use management.
Training for Trainers: Overdose Prevention, Recognition, and Response This hands-on "training for trainers" will focus on opiate/opioid overdose situations. During the training participants will: 1. Learn overdose prevention, recognition, and response techniques, including rescue breathing and naloxone administration (naloxone is an opiate antagonist traditionally administered by paramedics and emergency room personnel to bring someone out of an opiate/opioid overdose); 2. Create a draft protocol for addressing overdose situations at their agencies; 3. Practice talking with program participants about overdose risk; 4. Role play providing overdose education to program participants; 5. Learn results from naloxone prescription programs from around the country; and; 6. Discuss considerations for providing naloxone prescriptions to program participants at their agencies.
Motivational Interviewing Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a collaborative approach to drug use counseling that helps the client develop a schema about the positive and negative effects of drug use which facilitates readiness for treatment and drug use management, reduction and/or cessation. Participants will learn MI techniques such as reflective listening, delivering feedback, summarizing, decisional balancing, and developing change plans. Strategies for translating MI principles in action will be discussed (e.g. expressing empathy, developing discrepancy, avoiding argument, and dealing with resistance). This session will also focus on the understanding of client ambivalence in the counseling process and strategies for increasing client motivation, self-efficacy and optimism.
Crystal Meth and Women Women use and are impacted by methamphetamine differently than men. After discussing the pharmacology, current medical research, and treatment trends related to methamphetamine in general, we will explore issues specific to women such as use patterns, pregnancy and parenting, health impacts, and effective interventions strategies. Always lively and interactive, this workshop offers practical, “real world” approaches to working more effectively with women who use methamphetamine.
Burn-out Prevention & Self Care In our work as service providers most of our time is spent taking care of client needs. However, finding ways to care for ourselves is crucial to our own sustainability and that of our work/programs. The goal here is to provide training participants with; a short break from clients, tools for stress management, and methods to reduce and prevent burnout. Participants will evaluate their own stress levels, and look at some of the root causes of burnout within our programs. We will also explore a variety of techniques including centering, time management, and relaxation that can be incorporated into our work as a daily practice. Participants will leave having created a personalized burnout prevention plan and effective strategies to implement and maintain their stress reduction practices.
Introduction to Harm Reduction This evening Introduction to Harm Reduction educational workshop is recommended as a prerequisite for all other trainings if the participant is new to harm reduction philosophy and practice. This course is an examination of the history, philosophy and principles of the harm reduction model as it has evolved in the United States. Included are discussions on the harm reduction perspective of drug use in the context of an individual’s life, “traditional” drug treatment and drug use management.
Conflict Prevention, Intervention, & De-escalationThis workshop seeks to enhance staff abilities in preventing and addressing conflict, and de-escalating situations with clients in the street and within a community service setting. The overall goal of the workshop is for staff to share and learn skills to continue to build a safe and healthy community of staff, participants and clients.
In the workshop we will review basic "customer service 101," including the role of professionalism and boundaries and improving communications and trust levels with clients and team members to maximize crisis prevention. We will also discuss principles and strategies under the Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Model from the Crisis Prevention Institute, designed to help staff provide for the best possible care and welfare of disruptive or out-of-control clients. The workshop seeks to be highly interactive and fun. Among other games, we will role play our "nightmare clients" and situations when people are "about to loose their shit." Come ready!
Working with Transgender ClientsThis training will address the legal, medical, and social implications of a person's gender transition and discuss strategies for reducing harms and risks experienced by transgender people. Specific issues pertinent to people of the transgender experience, including sexual identity and gender, are explored.
Working with Dual & Triple Diagnosis Most behavior is motivated by more than one factor, and all humans get the choice of when to begin changing any behavior. For these reasons as well as a host of others, harm reduction psychotherapy is a particularly helpful model for working with dually diagnosed individuals whose behavior is often motivated by a variety of biopsychosocial factors that appear to be resistant to change. This class will focus on identifying the range of multiple diagnoses that individuals may present to the provider, how to do a comprehensive assessment of mental illness and substance use, the neurobiology of drugs and mental illness, and how to engage individuals in a conversation about their lives and the choices they’re making. Together we will develop a treatment plan for a client with co-existing diagnoses, and we’ll spend some time focusing on how to identify and use the feelings that arise when working with complex clients. This class is ideal for those new to working with dually diagnosed individuals as well as those with experience who wish to refresh their perspective on working with complex clients
Introduction to Harm Reduction This evening Introduction to Harm Reduction educational workshop is recommended as a prerequisite for all other trainings if the participant is new to harm reduction philosophy and practice. This course is an examination of the history, philosophy and principles of the harm reduction model as it has evolved in the United States. Included are discussions on the harm reduction perspective of drug use in the context of an individual’s life, “traditional” drug treatment and drug use management.
Harm Reduction Case Management This training workshop will be both didactic and interactive and will identify the various steps involved in harm reduction case management. The trainer will describe outreach strategies to engage potential clients/consumers, the domains to be covered in a holistic assessment, designing a service/treatment plan to address unmet needs, facilitating realistic goal setting, and motivating clients/consumers to follow through with accessing needed services. The discrete roles of the case manager in coordinating services and of the client/consumer in participating in program services will be emphasized. A harm reduction case management model can yield successful outcomes through an empowerment approach rather than fostering client/consumer dependency upon agencies for their needs. Case examples will be offered and participants are also encouraged to bring successful or challenging cases of their own to discuss and to receive constructive feedback.
Working with Drug Using Parents This full-day training outlines the application of harm reduction when working with drug-using parents. Participants will have the chance to discuss the implications of drug use in relation to parenting, providing abundant opportunity for exploration and assessment of potential harms. In addition, participants who attend this training will: review the principles of harm reduction, participate in activities designed to assist them in exploring attitudes and beliefs about harm reduction, drug use and parenting, develop practical skills and design interventions for utilization in their work with parenting substance users.
Housing Active Users This workshop will examine how harm reduction is applied within a supportive housing model. Participants will gain the necessary tools to help keep their tenant/residents housed in their apartment, SRO, or residential program. With a specific focus on persons who are actively using substances, topics covered during this training will include: tenant/landlord relationships, the role of the property manager, fostering community involvement amongst tenants, rent issues, tenant conflicts, and the importance of collaborating with outside agencies. Participants are encouraged to bring case examples.
Training for Trainers: The ABC's of Hepatitis The majority of injection drug users in the Bay Area have HCV, and HCV is the leading cause of death among peoples co-infected with HIV and HCV. This half-day training for trainers will cover the basics of hepatitis A, B, and C, including the transmission, prevention, and treatment of hepatitis, with a focus on HCV. Besides learning the "ABCs" of hepatitis, training participants will discuss training others to incorporate harm reduction based hepatitis prevention techniques and messages in their work.