Course Description:
Many survivors of domestic and sexual violence are exposed to substance use, either through their own use, the use of a partner or ex-partner, or both. Substance use is often used both as a coping mechanism of (by) a survivor and a method of coercion by the abusive partner. Historically, substance use services have generally not been included as onsite partners at Family Justice Centers (FJC). Often, substance use service providers have not been invited into the FJC framework because such programs are not perceived as “survivor-centered.”
Similarly, substance use programs have historically seen themselves as separate from victim-centered service programs and they generally serve both people who have been victimized and people who cause harm. Today, however, there is a growing understanding of trauma, health behaviors, and coping responses, and with it, an opportunity for creating transformational change in the provision of more holistic, hope-centered, and trauma-informed substance use advocacy and services in Family Justice Centers.
This 8-part training series explores the role of substance use in the lives of survivors and offers a framework and resources for nurturing hope in FJC clients who experience substance use as part of the trauma or victimization they face from an abusive partner.
The At the Intersection of Domestic Violence and Substance Use: A Toolkit for Hope, Healing, and Advocacy for Family Justice Centers was developed in conjunction with and serves as an accompaniment to this 8-part Virtual Learning Series. The toolkit offers a comprehensive array of resources, guidance, examples, and tips to enhance the implementation of the lessons offered through this Virtual Learning Series are provided. The series explores the role of substance use in the lives of survivors and offers a framework and resources for nurturing hope in FJC clients who experience substance use as part of the trauma or victimization they face from an abusive partner.
Your Instructors:
Gabriela Zapata-Alma, LCSW, CADC
Associate Director,
National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma, & Mental Health
Raeanne Passantino
Former Assistant Director, Family Justice Center Alliance
Alliance for HOPE International
Course Topics:
– The relationship between domestic violence, sexual assault, trauma, mental health, and substance use (including substance use coercion)
– Trauma-informed and anti-stigma framework for contextualizing substance use (and related behaviors) for survivors of domestic violence and/or sexual assault
– Why might survivors use substances?
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 2
Lesson 2: Introduction to Substance Use and Commonly Used Substances
– Patterns and dynamics of substance use
– Women and substance use
– Commonly used substances and their effects
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 2
Lesson 3: Confidentiality and Mandate Reporting
– Substance use and confidentiality
– Mandated reporting requirements
– Trauma-informed approaches to mandated reporting
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 3
– Overdose risk factors
– Recognizing and responding to opioid and stimulant overdose
– Providing education on overdose
– Creating an overdose prevention plan
– Information on Naloxone (the overdose antidote) including how to help survivors access it
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 4
Lesson 5: Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Support
– Formal treatment system
– Community-based recovery resources (including mutual aid)
– Gender-responsive and trauma-informed services for survivors of domestic violence & sexual assault
– Promising practices in creating sustainable collaborations
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 6
– Trauma-informed approaches to conversations about substance use
– Supporting survivors who appear intoxicated
– SBIRT: an evidence-based approach to screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 4
Lesson 7: Supporting Parenting Survivors Who Use Substances
– Prevalence and Potential Concerns
– Supporting parents and children impacted by substance use
– Evidence-supported clinical interventions that support parents who use substances and their children
Corresponding SU/FJC Toolkit Chapter 5
Lesson 8: Integrated Clinical Approaches
– Clinical assessment
– Evidence-supported interventions
– Continuing recovery planning and aftercare services
Gael Strack is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Alliance for HOPE International. The Alliance oversees the National Family Justice Center, Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention, Camp HOPE America, VOICES and the Justice Legal Network. Gael is an internationally recognized expert in non-fatal strangulation cases and regularly trains on numerous topics. Gael is also an Adjunct Professor at California Western School of Law teaching a class on “Domestic Violence and the Law”.
Casey Gwinn – Casey Gwinn is the President and Co-Founder of the Alliance. He is the visionary behind the Family Justice Center Movement, first proposing the concept of the Family Justice Center model in 1989. Casey founded Camp HOPE America in 2003. He is a national expert on domestic violence dynamics, including investigation and prosecution, the handling of non-fatal strangulation cases, and is one of the leading thinkers in the country on the science of hope. Prior to this position, Casey was the elected San Diego City Attorney.