No. 4 Year 4
Fourth Quarter 2006

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CICAD and the University of the West Indies unveil an online program for capability-building in drug abuse prevention and treatment

The University of the West Indies (UWI), through its Distance Education Centre (UWIDEC), is launching an on-line program in Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment in the Caribbean. It is receiving applications for the one-year, 10-course program until June 30. Academic activities will start on September 4 for those accepted in the program.

This initiative is the culmination of a two-year partnership between Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) of the Organization of American States (OAS) and the UWI, undertaken at the request of many Caribbean national drug commissions. Course development costs were financed by the governments of the United States and Canada.

Speaking at the official launch of the program in Jamaica, Dr. Lawrence D. Carrington, the UWI Pro Vice Chancellor and Chair of the Board of Non-Campus Countries and Distance Education, underscored the academic goal: “The issue of addressing drug abuse prevention and treatment in our region is precisely the kind of challenge to which we must turn our attention. It is a problem that calls for multiple responses. The responses cannot be limited to attempts at interdiction; they must extend to the provision of training for the several categories of person who must act to rehabilitate victims of the ravages of abuse, to guide the vulnerable away from contact with it and to foster within our societies the cultural strengths that would immunize more and more of our people against the lure of abuse.”

The On-line Certificate in Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment is intended to provide high quality, continuing education relevant to the career needs of professionals and other individuals working in the English-speaking Caribbean OAS member states and other English-speaking countries and territories. This includes those working in the prevention of substance abuse, treatment of substance abusers and management of substance abuse rehabilitation facilities, as well as school, health and justice systems.

"We are extremely proud of the finished product and the collaborative relationship that we have forged with our Caribbean partner, the UWI," said CICAD Executive Secretary James Mack.  "Together, we have been able to make use of cost-effective technology, develop and adapt coursework, train instructors in the online teaching methodology and meet academic requirements in an extremely tight project schedule. We are confident that UWI will carry the effort forward and develop it even further. "

The curriculum includes 10 three-credit hour courses, covering professional training needs in the areas of epidemiology, prevention, treatment, and management. Graduates will receive a University of the West Indies Certificate in Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment. Additional course offerings will be made in the future and a full university degree is in preparation.

Dr. Anna Chisman, the chief of CICAD's Demand Reduction Section said, "An on-line program means that anyone in the Caribbean with access to a computer and the Internet can benefit from a UWI education in drug abuse prevention and treatment, no matter where they live. Thanks to UWIDEC, UWI’s Internet platform for on-line education, and its visionary director, Dr. Stewart Marshall, we are today launching a revolution in education about the drug problem."

At the Trinidad and Tobajo training session in December 2006, the UWIDEC support staff,
CICAD staff and course content providers and instructors worked together
to understand the distance education technology. 

Participants may register with the intention of taking the whole program or individual courses. UWI has several admission options available for applicants who do not meet the traditional prerequisites for university studies. Based on a distance-learning methodology, the course work requires that all students have access to a working computer, adequate software applications and Internet access, in addition to any assigned texts and reading materials.

Please note that this is a tuition-based program, with a 30-credit certificate costing US$3,000. Individual courses cost US$300 each. If students require financing, they should consult with their respective employers or governments.

CICAD has sponsored other Internet-based projects for capacity building, including a Spanish-language M.A. in addiction studies, and an on-line research specialization program for health and related professionals to study the drug problem in Latin America, also in Spanish and Portuguese.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

• Addiction Studies flyer
• Visit our website: http://addictionstudies.dec.uwi.edu
• Email: addictionstudies@dec.uwi.edu
• Telephone: 246-417-4500
• Fax: 246-421-6753