In our professional field of Drug, Alcohol & Addiction Counseling, which in recent years has been renamed "Chemical Dependency Counseling" due to the influence of the Medical model upon us, the professional body of literature has been flooded with research papers written by physicians and other medical professionals. Government has given highest recognition to this body of literature and medical professionals in making decisions about the future of our rapidly developing profession. This has taken place in spite of the fact that most other models show the same or better recovery rate than the Medical model shows in validated longitudinal studies. Of all the counseling models, the Biblical model has shown the highest rate of recovery outcomes yet is significantly under represented in our professional literature, giving way to the predominance of medical model and humanistic model guidance in our field.
For this reason, ACADC Institute, has initiated its board certification program, to stimulate and increase the professional body of literature in our field from a Biblical Model orientation. Whereas most board certified program boards are comprised of physicians and other medical model professionals, the board that has been established for this purpose is comprised of Doctorate level Biblical model Drug, Alcohol, and Addiction Counselors who have contributed to the body of literature in our field and have excelled in the work of their profession evidenced by much fruit.
ACADC Institute is working toward the goal of increasing the amount of literature that sheds the light of Biblical wisdom upon the minds of future drug, alcohol & addiction counselors entering professional practice in our society. All counselors with a degree or certification recognized by ACADC Institute (in AOD counseling, or a related field) are encouraged to submit a well researched and written paper to our board to be considered for the ACADC Board Certified designation. If accepted, a Board Certified designation will be awarded to the candidate and his/her professional paper will be published in the ACADC Institute Journal of Professional Drug, Alcohol and Addiction Counseling scheduled to be published in January 2009.
Requirements to become a Board Certified Drug, Alcohol & Addiction Counselor Candidate: The Candidate must possess a degree or certification, or an equivalent certification from an approved certification organization or an accredited school. The candidate may also qualify by having a certification or licensure in any behavioral science, art, or ministry as a practitioner authorized by state, national, international, church or ministry jurisdictional bodies. Qualified certifications and licensure may be in the following professions: AOD Counselor, Pastor, Pastoral Counselor, Psychiatrist, Psychologist, Addiction Nurse, Education Counselor, Social Worker, Marriage & Family Therapist, Criminal Justice Professional and other related professions.
Requirements for matriculation to Board Certified status:
1. Must meet the above requirement to become a candidate.
2. Must distinguish him/her self by making a valuable contribution to the body of knowledge pertaining to counselor competencies outlined in the SAMHSA/CSAT Technical Publication 21 guidelines from a Biblical Christian worldview. This is done by writing an article that will equip the reader with tools necessary to counsel effectively and will be published in the Association of Christian Alcohol & Drug Counselors Professional Journal published and updated annually.
3. Must make an oral presentation of an excellent work speaking to a specific aspect of one of the major skill, knowledge, or attitude areas covered in the Technical Publication 21 guidelines from a Biblical Christian worldview, with complete biblical references for each point made.
4. The work mentioned above must be approved by a convening of the elected and nationally accredited ACADC Certification Board. To be approved, the board must determine that the work is consistent with Biblical truth and the professional standards contained in the SAMHSA/CSAT TAP 21 guidelines.
For further information about becoming Board Certified, please call ACADC Institute at 877-478-5756
