Tobacco, Alcohol and Illicit Drugs is a wide ranging course that takes both a public heath approach and clinical perspective to understanding this important and complex issue. In this course we will explore different perspectives on drug use from points of view of the public health practitioner, researcher, government, the clinician and user. From the practising health professional’s perspective, patients will present with health problems resulting from drug use and misuse. Practitioners are seen as credible health experts and they have opportunities for early identification and intervention of harmful drug use. Patients will expect doctors to treat the consequences of drug use.

The range of public health approaches available to reduce use of tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs, including the range of harm reduction strategies, will be examined in this course. This course provides important knowledge and skills that will enable planning and evaluation of tobacco control measures and alcohol and drug services. The topics raise important controversial issues and have relevance for population health related to drug use, health management of people who are drug users and abusers, and drug policy.

This course offers you a wealth of choice in the range of activities and assignments offered. Options to focus on your areas of interest are also included in some of the weekly tutorials. This course is useful for doctors, nurses and other health practitioners, public health specialists, policy-makers and others in the public and private sectors of developed and developing countries. It is valuable for students who want to better inform themselves on the patterns of drug use and the clinical approaches and public health initiatives to address drug abuse and misuse in our community.