First-Episode Psychosis and Co-Occurring Substance Use Disorders

Course overview

This course is based upon material published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and is available as an open access article. The goal of this course is to review the literature on treating substance misuse and substance use disorders in the context of first-episode psychosis, distill the research into recommendations for practice, and provide examples of the ways that these recommendations can be implemented by first-episode psychosis treatment programs. For young people experiencing first-episode psychosis, reducing or stopping substance misuse yields significant improvements in psychotic symptoms, depressive symptoms, and the young persons ability to lead a meaningful life. Reducing or stopping substance use early in the experience of psychosis also predicts better long-term outcomes. Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC) is an integrated approach in which multi-component services are provided by clinicians with training and experience in working with young adults with first-episode psychosis and their families. This collaborative approach respects the autonomy and expertise of young people as part of the treatment process and allows young people and their families to feel better, gain hope for the future, and move towards recovery. CSC can support interventions to address substance misuse and substance use disorders that are provided alongside services for first-episode psychosis. This course on first-episode psychosis and substance use disorders is designed for social workers, professional counselors, psychologists, nurses, and substance abuse counselors, who do clinical work. This course is appropriate for beginning, intermediate and advanced level practitioners who wish to develop their knowledge of substance use disorders in the context of first-episode psychosis. It may also be useful for licensed clinicians who require clinical continuing education courses for license renewal. Authors: National Mental Health and Substance Use Policy Laboratory Learning Objectives: This course will provide the practitioner with detailed information regarding first-episode psychosis and co-occurring substance use disorders. Specifically, a professional will: Distinguish the effectiveness of treatment in the field of first-episode psychosis and substance use disorders Summarize examples of effective coordinated specialty care program models Distinguish resources for implementation, evaluation, and quality improvement of programs Citation: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: First-Episode Psychosis and Co-Occurring Substance Use Disorders. Publication No. PEP19-PL-Guide-3 Rockville, MD: National Mental Health and Substance Use Policy Laboratory. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2019.