Introduction

Many people use licit and illicit substances without any problems. Some people will develop problems with their use that may, in turn, lead to significant harm for their children, their families and/or their own mental and physical health. Social workers are often called in to intervene at crisis point or find themselves working to prevent a substance related crisis. Yet, many social workers did not/do not receive training on their qualifying programmes although some receive minimal post qualifying training.

“Although training in the early identification of an alcohol or drug use problem is the first step, social workers will often suspect substance use or become aware of it during an intervention that is geared towards other goals, for example. a mental health assessment, assessing people for mobility aids, or child protection investigations.” (McCarthy and Galvani 2004)

This section is designed to support social workers by providing some basic information about identifying and assessing substance use. It also offers links to specialist websites if you want to access more detailed information on a range of related topics.

Alcohol drugs and their effects | Polysubstance use | Assessing substance use
How to assess | Overdose awareness | Websites