UnitLevel 5Postgraduate

ASC5001 Fundamentals of addiction science and addiction policy

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

ASC5001 Fundamentals of addiction science and addiction policy is a level 5, 12-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, offered in 2023 in Semester 1 at Clayton. It has no prerequisites.

Credit points
12
Offered in 2023
Semester 1
Clayton
Assessment
No exam
3 tasks

This is the 2023 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.

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Requisites

Before ASC5001

No prerequisites or corequisites besides the enrolment rules below.

After ASC5001

No unit lists ASC5001 as a prerequisite in the 2023 handbook.

Enrolment rules

Corequisite: Must be enrolled in a Postgraduate degree

Overview

This unit introduces you to the concept of addiction, drug policy and public health responses to alcohol and other drug use.  Consideration is given to identifying biological, psychological, sociocultural, and environmental factors that may contribute to the development of addiction. 

The unit will further provide you with an overview and introduction to Australian drug laws and policies within an international context. Prevention and harm minimisation approaches are considered in regard to their impacts on mitigating addiction-related complications and consequences.

Students completing this unit should be able to integrate key theoretical models of addiction with public health and policy approaches to minimising harm. This unit provides the necessary foundational knowledge in addiction theory to undertake further study in this area.

Offerings in 2023

Teaching periodCampusMode
First semesterClaytonOnline

Assessment

  • Skills exercises (Equivalent to 3,000 words)
    30%
  • iSAP case (2,500 words)Competency hurdle
    30%
  • Report (4,000 words)
    40%

Learning outcomes

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

  1. 1

    Identify fundamentals of substances and behaviours related to addiction, and addiction diagnostic criteria.

  2. 2

    Explain the use of language to address the stigma that surrounds addiction.

  3. 3

    Discuss the evidence base for the physical, psychological, and social causes of addiction.

  4. 4

    Differentiate the biopsychosocial model of addiction as a holistic alternative to other theories and models of addiction.

  5. 5

    Recognise key evidence in relation to addiction theories, frameworks, models in the context of public health responses.

  6. 6

    Identify primary, secondary, and tertiary public health prevention strategies for addiction.

  7. 7

    Evaluate the impact of harm minimisation approaches, policies and public health interventions. 

  8. 8

    Contrast addiction policy responses across different jurisdictions both within Australia and overseas.

Workload and teaching

  • Teaching approachOnline learning

Students enrolling in ASC5001 will be expected to contact the course coordinator regularly throughout the semester and participate in online discussion with fellow students and academic staff. Students should expect to spend around 24 hours a week of self-directed learning. This includes accessing online lectures, podcasts and resources as well as participating in forum discussions questions and quizzes via Moodle in addition to conducting offline independent study such as reading, research and writing activities.

For full details of the teaching approach to this unit, please refer to Moodle.

Learning resources

Required resources

This unit will be delivered online using the Monash Moodle software delivery system. All learning resources including reading lists will be provided within the unit in Moodle and via Research and Learning Online.

Monash Library Unit Reading Lists can also be searched for via the Library, here.

Required resources: It is essential that students have access to a computer with stable internet connection during this unit of study. Support for logging into Moodle, and recommended settings to improve students' Moodle experience can be found here.

Students will be required to have access to appropriate software to complete assessment tasks and participate in online activities. A range of software is available for download onto Monash and personal devices for students with a Monash Authcate account through the My.Monash Virtual Environment (for example, Microsoft Office 365 is available to enrolled students at no cost). Alternately, students can search the Monash software catalogue here.

Contacts

Unit Coordinators
Dr Kirsten Schliephake
Chief Examiners
Dr Kirsten Schliephake

Common questions

What are the prerequisites for ASC5001?

ASC5001 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.

When is ASC5001 offered?

In 2023, ASC5001 runs in Semester 1 at Clayton, with an online option.

Does ASC5001 have an exam?

No. ASC5001 has 3 assessment tasks and no exam.

More details

Credit points
12
Level
5
Study level
Postgraduate
Faculty
Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational unit
Eastern Health Clinical School
Type
Coursework
EFTSL
0.250
Student contribution
SCA Band 2
Study abroad
Not available