Addiction care employee (Medewerker verslavingszorg)
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An addiction care employee is a counselor who specializes in guiding and helping people who are dealing with an addiction. Which activities an addiction care employee performs exactly depends on the specialization as a care provider. Addiction can be a major problem for people, which can seriously affect daily functioning. Becoming addicted is usually gradual and is often denied until it is actually too late. There are different types of addictions, all of which in their own way limit people's functioning. With an addiction, it is important to recognize that there is an addiction before someone can really be helped to get rid of the addiction. Usually, a lot of help is needed from family, friends, or caregivers before anyone realizes that the addiction has really become a problem. Acknowledging an addiction is actually the most important step before a solution can be worked on. An addiction is a chronic brain disease, which in many cases cannot be solved independently. As an addict, it is therefore important to seek professional help. It's not that all forms of addictions extremely disrupt people's lives. Consider, for example, a smoking addiction or an eating addiction, which do not have to have a direct influence on the daily functioning of people. The profession of addiction care worker must also be seen as fairly general because an addiction care employee may have different responsibilities, depending on the specific profession. The level of education of an addiction care employee can also differ per specific profession. In addition, an addiction care employee may have to deal with specific forms of addiction. The profession of addiction care worker occurs in practice at MBO level to university level.
Employee addiction care should therefore be seen as a general name for professionals and specialists who work within addiction care. Some examples of different addictions include drug addiction, alcohol addiction, eating disorders, gambling addiction, drug addiction, gaming addiction, and sex addiction. These are all different examples of addictions, which can seriously affect people's functioning. One addiction makes you physically ill and the other addiction takes you financially to the abyss. Usually, addiction involves a combination of physical illness and financial despair. Nowadays, there are several clinics where people with an addiction are intensively supervised to get rid of their addiction. Even after the treatment, it is often still necessary to continue giving after treatment, so that people do not fall into a deep hole again. An addiction often takes a long period of time before it is gone, depending on the severity of the addiction and the patient. Most people who seek help in solving addiction problems initially end up with the general practitioner or a social worker. There may also be spake from people dealing with a probation worker. In that case, there is usually addiction rehabilitation. In some cases, an addiction care worker can also work as a sociotherapist.
ALCOHOL ADDICTION
An alcohol addiction is often very gradual and is perhaps one of the most difficult to recognize addictions because an alcohol addiction is often accompanied by sociability and is quickly brushed off as "don't whine like that; I'm not addicted to the booze". Opinions about alcohol addiction often differ, but if someone is already having a beer or wine in the morning, there is usually more to it. With an alcohol addiction, a person can continue to function normally for a long time and maintain his work. It often happens that it is colleagues who address someone that someone smells of alcohol and the problem becomes so clear to the employer. A big disadvantage of alcohol is that people can live in a kind of daze all day and can therefore become addicted to other substances more easily.
DRUG ADDICTION
A drug addiction is sometimes easy to recognize because it is physically visible, for example. Think, for example, of losing a lot of weight or of rotten teeth because the enamel of the teeth is seriously affected by the use of drugs. Other examples to recognize a drug addiction include severe mood swings, unexplained money problems, arguing a lot, systematically lying, not keeping appointments, being nervous, being anxious, panicky, being depressed, or general neglect. With drug addiction, it is usually necessary to consult an addiction doctor. This can differ per form of addiction because there are many different types of drugs available.
GAMBLING ADDICTION
A gambling addiction can have major consequences because a lot of money is often lost during gambling. Due to the arrival of online gambling sites and the various poker tournaments on television, someone can quickly get the idea that there is money to be made quickly with gambling. The problem is that usually only the winners are shown, and the losers are never shown. With the rise of online gambling sites, gambling has become much easier, with usually little supervision from the providers. Gambling can lead to big problems very quickly because the money can fly through it very fast. A gambling addiction is usually difficult to recognize as long as the addict has access to money. Most problems only start when the money runs out.
GAMING ADDICTION
Gaming addiction is relatively new and not equally known to everyone, but can be an addiction. Young people in particular are very sensitive to modern multimedia possibilities, such as always having to be online and wanting to play games all day long. Loss of concentration for important matters, such as school, can take on serious forms with a gaming addiction. Systematic (compulsive) visits to social media or following vloggers can also be considered as addiction in some cases. Among young people, internet addiction is now the most common form of addiction. An internet addiction can usually be recognized by reduced offline social contacts, poor performance at school or work, and by not responding to external stimuli.
EATING DISORDERS
Eating disorders are common in adolescents, who consider themselves too fat and want to do everything they can to lose weight. Eating nothing, and eating food to hide it, is common among adolescents. The adolescents are often influenced by well-known models, who are depicted super slim in well-known magazines and on the Internet. An eating disorder is generally characterized by the excessive attention to body weight. The excessive amount of fitness can also be an important signal that there is an eating disorder. An eating disorder should be seen as a mental illness.
HOW TO RECOGNIZE AN ADDICTION
Recognizing an addiction is not always easy and is usually difficult at first, because addicts can be trained liars and cheaters. Usually, an addiction only really emerges when the addict is in total despair, such as when the money has run out and there must be cheating and lying to continue the addiction. The sudden interference of external parties can also be an important signal. Think, for example, of the police, employer or acquaintances who hear certain things. Hiding goods, unexplained problems or forgetting things can also indicate an addiction. In some cases, there may also be housing problems.
ADDICTION CARE EMPLOYEE:
TRAINING TO BECOME AN ADDICTION CARE EMPLOYEE
The profession of addiction care worker can relate to various professions and training. Think, for example, of the MBO training pedagogical employee youth care, the Hbo training social pedagogical counselor, the university study psychology or the university study psychiatry. In general, an addiction care employee will have to have at least a targeted MBO education or HBO education. Which training will fit best depends entirely on the type of work. In addition, there are also plenty of external training institutes where you can follow a course. Accounting is also important as an entrepreneur.
COMPANIES WHERE AN ADDICTION CARE EMPLOYEE CAN BE EMPLOYED
As an addiction care employee, you can work for various institutions and clinics. In addition, an addiction care employee can work in outpatient care, such as home care. As described earlier, the term employee addiction care should be seen quite broadly because this can refer to different professions. Think, for example, of psychologists, psychiatrists, youth workers, pedagogical staff and pedagogues. Neuropsychologists and neurologists also do a lot of research on people with addictions. Where exactly an addiction care employee works depends on the specialization and type of training.
COMPETENCES ADDICTION CARE EMPLOYEE
The competencies that an addiction care employee must have cannot be clearly defined because they can differ per profession. In general, empathy can be regarded as the most important competence. Good communication skills should generally not be lacking either. This also relates to being able to listen to people. As an addiction care employee, you are also a confidant and you act accordingly. Other important competencies are stress resistance and conflict management. Generally important words are motivation, energy, knowledge, inspiration, vigilance, planning, organizing, collaborating, controlling and consulting. Obviously, an addiction care employee may also have to deal with fixed professional competencies, depending on the specific profession and further responsibilities.
LABOUR MARKET PERSPECTIVE AND CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AS AN ADDICTION CARE EMPLOYEE
The labour market perspective of an addiction care employee cannot simply be indicated because this depends entirely on the specific profession. In general, there is plenty of work to be found within addiction care. However, it is important that you have the right training. The career opportunities of an addiction care worker should be seen in obtaining more responsibilities. Consider, for example, the position of team leader, department manager, care coordinator or the position of care manager. The specific career opportunities are strongly dependent on the level of education, employer and your own competencies.
TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT AND SALARY OF ADDICTION CARE EMPLOYEE
The employment conditions for an employee in addiction care cannot simply be indicated because there are different fields of expertise and the work can also be done in different institutions, such as in the government or in private care. Usually, the employees in addiction care have a high salary because the training courses are long and the responsibilities are also large. For a salary indication, we refer to the above professions under the heading training.
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