PCSS-Universities Curriculum Integration Strategies and Program Outcomes

Current and past PCSS-Universities grantees with established curriculum programs can be a resource to programs interested in integrating curriculum on substance use disorder (SUD) and the use of medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) training and can provide support, guidance, and resources needed to establish a program.

These lessons learned offer considerations when establishing a program. From educational resources to expert advice, PCSS-Universities and these resources listed below can help to empower the effort every step of the way.

Curriculum Integration Strategies

Current and past PCSS-Universities grantees offer tried and true strategies and considerations for integrating from their past experience. These lessons learned can provide guidance and considerations when establishing a program.

These lessons learned can assist in integration efforts based on current and past PCSS-Universities outcomes.

Integrating Content into Current Curriculum

• Establish flexible delivery models i.e., in-person, virtual, and asynchronous learning opportunities.
• Enhance student availability for participation in SUD learning by offering hybrid self-paced, asynchronous learning with live faculty or artificial intelligence (AI) support.
• Include use of case studies throughout the curriculum.
• Utilize video or multi-modal simulations to model patient centered MOUD and medications for alcohol use disorder (MAUD) prescribing for students.
• Determine the best point in the learning continuum to offer SUD content, and how to incorporate experiential and dyadic learning.
• Offer ongoing student technical assistance and student learning supports, such as interactive student exercises to ensure learning acquisition.
• Identify a variety of student clinical experience/rotations and establish agreements with external sites that will offer suitable and compelling opportunities for SUD learning experiences.

Institutional-level Curriculum Integration

• Create a student advisory committee to engage students in the process of integrating SUD content into existing curriculum, to gain their feedback on content to be included and to assist with other implementation efforts.
• Identify and designate staff as internal champions who can help facilitate, support and help address barriers and challenges in integration of SUD content.
• Leverage leadership structures (e.g., academic advisory councils) within the college/university to facilitate faculty buy-in on SUD content integration. Include addiction medicine experts on advisory councils / leadership planning groups to serve as content experts to shepherd SUD content integration efforts.
• Establish policies that support integration of SUD content (requiring SUD curriculum rather than offering it as elective).
• Integrate SUD curriculum into graduation/accreditation requirements.
• Identify staff in-house or hire new staff with SUD competency to provide and support SUD education.
• Provide faculty development opportunities in SUD competencies.
• To address scheduling concerns, evaluate existing curriculum to determine opportunities to weave SUD into other topics, such as learning on structural racism, cultural competency, health disparities, SUD / behavioral health stigma, and infectious disease.
• Consider identifying or bringing in individuals with lived experience throughout the curriculum. People with lived experience can help to reduce stigma and misconceptions about SUD and MOUD.
• Identify internal and community sites for students to gain experiential learning. Collaborate with Departments of Psychiatry and providers in other fields (e.g., OB GYN, Surgery, etc.) to support critical SUD learning exposure.

Current and Past Program Curriculum Integration Outcomes

PCSS–Universities Cohort 5

View Program Details about Cohort 5

PCSS–Universities Cohort 4

View Program Details about Cohort 4

PCSS-Universities Cohort 3 Grantees

View Program Details about Cohort 3

PCSS-Universities Long-Standing and Past Grantees

PCSS-Universities Cohort 3

PCSS-Universities Cohort 2

PCSS University Cohort 1

Highlights from PCSS-U Past grantees

Past PCSS-U grant awardees accomplishments and contributions to their community.

University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School

The Center for Integrated Primary Care at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School offers an online, asynchronous course designed for schools interested in preparing health-profession students to improve their knowledge and understanding of the care of patients with opioid use disorder.

The course takes 8 hours to complete and is comprised of 12 modules. It is designed to deploy in your school’s Learning Management System. It is recommended that students complete modules 1-4 in sequence. The remaining modules can be completed in any order.

For more information about implementing this course in your medical, nursing, or physician assistant school please complete this form.

Contact Information:
Amy Green (University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School)
774-441-8171
Center for Integrated Primary Care (CIPC)

Saginaw Valley State University

The CARE4NPs project features an innovative scaffolding approach helping Family Nurse Practitioner and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner students become more knowledgeable, confident, competent, and ready to provide Medication for Addiction Treatment (MAT) to patients across Michigan. Through a didactic, virtual simulation and concluding with a live simulation working with persons in long-term recovery students build their skills and confidence to practice. The use of persons in long-term recovery, those with lived experience provides an environment rich with authenticity for the students’ practice. Students have shown significant improvement across domains of knowledge, attitudes toward using medications in the treatment of substance use disorder, confidence, competence and readiness to assist those in need of services.

Contact Information:
Kathleen Schachman (Saginaw Valley State University)
989-964-4339
[email protected]

Seton Hall University

This program worked to design a curriculum for medical, physician assistant and nurse practitioner students at Hackensack School of Medicine and Seton Hall University College of Nursing and School of Health and Medical Sciences. This curriculum was developed for an online learning management system that could be completed synchronously as well as asynchronously depending on the program. Student completion rate is monitored by both course instructor and the University’s instructional designer. Curriculum content is updated annually for changes in both the opioid epidemic and treatment management. This curriculum development assisted with sustainability.

They also focused on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved medications for the treatment of SUD training to include another university in New Jersey. A major highlight of this program was the recognition by the White House staff who invited the grant’s project director to meet in a roundtable discussion to discuss the opioid epidemic and measures taken at Seton Hall University to combat the escalating mortality and morbidity. This round table discussion was led by Dr. Rahul Gupta, then the newly appointed U.S. Drug Czar by President Biden. Read 'The Good Fight Against Opioid Use Disorder.'

Through grant activities, a manuscript addressing the dangers of xylazine has been accepted for publication. Neville, K., Bonfim, J. (2023). Infiltration of xylazine in Illicit Fentanyl. American Nurse Journal. 18(11). DOI:10.51256/ANJ112340.

Contact Information:
Kathleen Neville, Ph.D., RN, FAAN (Seton Hall University)
973 761-9311
[email protected]

University of Pennsylvania

This grantee implemented a student shadowing opportunity in MOUD-integrated primary care clinics for all MS2s to provide a hands-on learning environment to supplement classroom learning. Additional community-based harm reduction shadowing opportunities are available for learners and clinicians if interested.

Contact Information:
Jeanmarie Perrone (University of Pennsylvania)
267-693-4188
[email protected]