Addiction assessments & requirements

Your assessments and requirements to complete the Certificate of Advanced Training in Addiction Psychiatry are: 

• eight Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs), two per 6 month rotation  
• one Observed Clinical Activity per 6 month rotation 
• mid-rotation and end-of rotation In-Training Assessments (ITAs) 
• a written a case history of 3000-5000 words
• 60 written case summaries of 50-100 words each
• a final qualitative report
• study requirements based on your formal or self-directed learning.

You will complete learning and development plans each year. At the end of your Certificate, you will complete a checklist and sign off.

Learning and development plan 

At the beginning of each year of certificate training, you must submit a written proposal outlining your plans for learning and development.  

Learning and development plan [MS Word form; 74 KB] 

Entrustable Professional Activities  

You must attain 8 Stage 3 addiction psychiatry EPAs, 2 per 6-month FTE rotation. 

To achieve a particular EPA, you have to complete at least three workplace-based assessments.

Six mandatory EPAs

ST3-ADD-FELL-EPA1 - Acute assessment and diagnosis of substance use.
ST3-ADD-FELL-EPA2 - Long-term management of severe alcohol use disorders.
ST3-ADD-FELL-EPA3 - Advanced management of substance intoxication & substance withdrawal.
ST3-ADD-FELL-EPA4 - Management of comorbid substance use, including tobacco dependence, and other mental health problems.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA5 - Treatment of substance use disorder with psychological methods.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA6 - Provide training for other clinicians in delivery of brief interventions for substance use disorder.

Two elective EPAs chosen from this list

ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA7- Alcohol and other drug (AOD) consultation–liaison.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA8 - Management of chronic pain with comorbid substance misuse.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA9 - Assess and manage a patient with opioid drug use problems.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA10 - Treatment of people with gambling disorder and other behavioural addictions.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA11 - Assess and manage complex comorbid substance use and physical health problems, including tobacco use.
ST3-ADD-AOP-EPA12 - Impairment assessment and report for patients with substance use disorders

Observed Clinical Activity 

You must undertake one Observed Clinical Activity (OCA) of a patient experiencing addiction in each 6-month rotation. 

In-training Assessments 

You must complete mid-rotation and end-of-rotation ITAs. You must submit an end-of-rotation ITA form via inTrain within 60 days of the completion of a rotation.

Written case history 

You must complete a written a case history of 3000-5000 words based off one case presentation in addiction psychiatry.  

The case history should include a full psychiatric history, mental state and physical exam, formulation, treatment plan, discussion of issues raised, and a brief review of the literature relevant to key aspects of the case.  

Process for submission and assessment of case history [PDF; 29 KB] 

Written case history submission form [PDF; 57 KB] 

Written case history mark sheet [PDF; 168 KB] 

Case summaries 

You must complete 60 written case summaries of 50-100 words each.  

There should be six case summaries for each of these 10 topics: 

• benzodiazepines/sedatives/hypnotics 
• psychostimulants 
• tobacco 
• cannabis 
• other substances 
• substance-induced psychiatric disorders 
• substance use in pregnancy 
• pain disorders 
• gambling disorders or other behavioural addictions 
• special patient populations, e.g., culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD), Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, Māori, child or adolescent, forensic. 

Case summary form [PDF; 131 KB] 

Final qualitative report 

Provide a final qualitative report to your DOAT. 

Checklist and sign off 

You must submit a checklist of all activities for the certificate via the inTrain.

Checklist and sign off [PDF; 198 KB]