There's a tendency of some rehabs to using any counselor to do this job. In my professional experience, I found out this carries some challenges.
Personally, I would prefer having any counselor to have some working knowledge of how to conduct addiction counseling.
Some training is needed in the following areas;
- Documentation: Any advise which is documented means that it never happened.
- Subjectivity: An addiction counselor should be knowing how to sieve through the many words that are spoken by the client, removing what is unnecessary and deal with those that are necessary
- Objectivity: An addiction counselor should listen to what is not spoken, read facial expressions, analyze body language and incoherence due to mental issues.
- Assessment: An addiction counselor should be able to make conclusions from the subjective and objective order to empower other care takers that are going to do further interventions.
- Planning: Addiction counseling is effective when there's a goal to achieve. Without planning for those goals, it will be an open ended talk and Without therapeutic relationship with the environment, for example; family, self, God, community among others.
Conclusion: SOAP
Those are the targeted therapeutic objectives that must be achieved by an addiction counselor.
Am not ruling out the use of pastors, family counselors, community interventions but rather that these people should have working knowledge of SOAP.
This article is not conclusive, Dr Chris is wishing you to add on and give advise where need be.