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. 2025;3(1):10.55922/001c.94859.
doi: 10.55922/001c.94859. Epub 2024 Mar 15.

Development of a brief inpatient curriculum to enhance trainee skills in assessment and treatment of adolescents with substance use and co-occurring mental health problems

Timothy D Becker  1   2   3 , Timothy R Rice  1 , Iliyan Ivanov  1
Affiliations

Development of a brief inpatient curriculum to enhance trainee skills in assessment and treatment of adolescents with substance use and co-occurring mental health problems

Timothy D Becker et al. Int J Psychiatr Trainees. 2025.

Abstract

Background: Adolescence is a critical period for substance use intervention, yet few youth receive evidence-based treatment for both co-occurring substance use and mental health problems. Gaps in professional training limit adequate assessment and treatment of substance use problems among youth receiving psychiatric treatment.

Methods: We developed a two-session curriculum, integrated into a child/adolescent psychiatry inpatient rotation, to improve knowledge and skills in evidence-based practices for screening, brief intervention, psychoeducation, and care coordination, among multidisciplinary mental health clinicians. A pre/post survey evaluated perceived helpfulness, confidence in clinical skills, and intentions to engage in evidence-based practices.

Results: Trainees perceived the content as helpful and reported significant increases in confidence and intention to engage in the targeted evidence-based practices.

Conclusions: Implementation of a brief, focused, skills-based curriculum in clinical settings can effectively introduce trainees to core concepts not currently adequately covered in existing curricula.

Keywords: adolescents; co-occurring disorders; inpatient psychiatry; substance use disorders; training and education.

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