Curriculum for Addiction Professionals > Competency 3: Treatment Strategies for Working with Clients with an FASD > 5. Adults

Please Select One 1. Competency Description 2. Pretest 3. Learning Objectives 4. Introduction 5. Adults 5a. Assessment and Treatment Plan Development 5b. Chronological Age Compared to Developmental Age 5c. Ways To Modify Facility Treatment Plans and Staff Expectations 5d. Counseling Strategies 5e. Counseling Strategies: Boundaries 5f. Counseling Strategies: Strengths 5g. Counseling Strategies: History of Abuse 5h. Counseling Strategies: Loss and Grieving 5i. Counseling Strategies: Stigma 5j. Counseling Strategies: Self-Esteem and Personal Issues 5k. Counseling Strategies: Resistance, Denial, and Acceptance 5l. Motivational Coaching 5m. Education, Direction, and Support for Families 5n. Appropriate Birth Control and Referral for Pharmaceutical Assessment 5o. Ongoing Assessment for Comprehension of Information 5p. Transitional Planning and Case Management 6. Adolescents 6a. Treatment Plan Development 6b. Treatment Plan Development: Points to Consider 6c. Medical and Mental Health Assessments 6d. Ongoing Assessment for Comprehension of Information 6e. Educational Support (IDEA and FAPE) 6f. Transitional Planning and Case Management 7. Children 7a. Medical and Mental Health Assessments 7b. Educational Support 7c. Case Management 8. Issues Related to Professional Values and Ethics 9. Matching Activity 10. Posttest 11. References

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Competency 3: Treatment Strategies for Working with Clients with an FASD

Adults

Adults with an FASD often experience multiple risk factors in multiple domains. Risk factors include inability to find and maintain employment, difficulty in obtaining a stable living environment, persistent conflict with family members, and bonding difficulties in interpersonal relationships. If areas of risk are not buffered by protective factors, people with an FASD will be at risk for alcohol and drug  problems, and many will need treatment. Streissguth and colleagues conducted a study¹ in which 21 percent of those with fetal alcohol syndrome had substance abuse problems and 32 percent of those with other fetal alcohol spectrum disorders had substance abuse problems.

Treating adults with an FASD is extremely complex and little has been written about it.¹  However, promising strategies that have been proposed for working with clients with an FASD reflect some of the successful approaches used in advocacy programs, including mentoring and family involvement. Persons with an FASD seem to respond well to mentoring, one-on-one relationships where they feel a personal bond with a person who acts as an advocate.

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