Addiction Medicine & Psychosocial Interventions

CAMH and St. Michael’s Hospital are excited to bring to you ECHO Ontario Addiction Medicine and Psychosocial Interventions (AMPI). ECHO AMPI aims to help healthcare providers build capacity in the treatment and management of addictions. The project works to empower healthcare providers to use evidence-based best practices to reduce the need for specialist visits, improving the quality of care for patients seeking treatment for addictions and related disorders in Ontario’s primary care settings. The ECHO AMPI curriculum is based on analysis of multiple needs assessments conducted with provincial primary care providers. 

Starting in Spring 2020, the ECHO AMPI curriculum switched to a modular format, so that it is now delivered through three eight-session modules, rather than through the original 24-session program. Module 1: Engaging Individuals in Evidence-Based Care was delivered in Spring 2020 and focused on strategies to engage patients in clinical care to address their substance use.  

Module 2: Principles of Addictions Care was delivered in Fall 2020 and provided an overview of substance-specific interventions. Assessment and treatment (including pharmacological interventions) for a variety of substances use disorders including alcohol, cannabis, opioids, and stimulants.

Module 3: Concurrent Disorders and Complexity launches in Winter 2021, and will review assessment and interventions for individuals with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders, with a focus on complex client populations (e.g., people with severe and persistent mental illness).