BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, October 04, 2024 (SKNIS) – The National Council on Drug Abuse Prevention has engaged thirty frontline workers in a training programme designed to equip them with the necessary tools to identify and ultimately address substance abuse issues within communities.
This is being done through the Universal Prevention Curriculum Core Course, which commenced with an opening ceremony on Friday, October 04, 2024, at the Solid Waste Management Corporation’s conference room. The actual training sessions begin on Tuesday, October 08.
The Core Course comprises ten modules representing different aspects of prevention science and their application to practice. It is designed to give participants a foundation in the knowledge and skills needed to undertake evidence-based prevention programming at the community level.
Chairman of the National Council on Drug Abuse Prevention, Travis Rogers, stated that the training programme represents an opportunity to enhance and share best practices for combating substance abuse.
“Together, we can develop effective strategies to promote prevention and support those affected by substance abuse. The National Council on Drug Abuse Prevention remains committed to ensuring our frontline workers are adequately trained and certified to address the impacts of substance misuse and abuse across various fields,” Chairman Rogers added.
Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of National Security, Glenroy Blanchette, described the Core Course training as extremely timely, as it will also help to address another pertinent issue plaguing our communities—crime and violence.
“At the heart of this course and at the heart of the Council is prevention, and so exercises like these will certainly empower our people to better understand and respond to the crime that we are witnessing in the Federation,” Mr. Blanchette said.
The course will provide an overview of the fundamental processes that underlie addiction and the brain, the basic pharmacology of psychoactive substances, and preventive mechanisms that are effective in more than 30 years of prevention science.
The training, led by International Trainer Dorothy Joann Lei Labrador Rabajante and local trainer, Sasha-Gay McDermott, will be conducted virtually.
The Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission in the Organisation of American States (OAS) provided funding and technical support for the training programme.