Examining Substance Use Education in Social Work: A Survey of MSW Program Leaders

ABSTRACT

Substance use is a chronic social issue that has a substantial effect on social welfare topics in the United States. As one of the primary professions responsible for providing mental health services in the United States, it is imperative that social workers are prepared to meet the challenges presented by this ongoing epidemic. However, several studies have indicated that Masters-level social work (MSW) programs are providing students insufficient instruction on how to adequately address substance use problems. To better understand the role and implementation of substance use education in social work, a survey of MSW program leaders was conducted to identify the perceptions of program leaders on: the emphasis, necessity, and importance of substance use education to social work; the preparedness of MSW students to implement substance use initiatives following graduation; and specific substance use education needs and barriers for MSW programs. The results of the survey indicated that program leaders perceive substance use knowledge to be highly important to the field, but that graduating students are not prepared to provide substance use services following graduation. Program leaders also indicated that a large number of substance use curriculum and resource limitations exist in the MSW educational field.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

This article was developed [in part] with funding from contract number HHSS283201200059I/HHSS28342001T from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The views, policies, and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of SAMHSA or HHS. The funding organization had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Notes on contributors

Dane Minnick

Dane Minnick is an assistant professor in the social work department at Ball State University. His research interests include illegal drug policy, substance use treatment and prevention, and social work education.