The TWO Field Placement courses:

AMHW-310 – Field Placement 1  
AMHW-410 – Field Placement 2

AMHW-310: Field Placement 1

The voices of community members and service consumers have been largely and systematically excluded from the dominant discourse around addiction, mental health and care, but fortunately, this is changing. This AMHW-310 course offers an opportunity for learners to learn from and connect with not only service providers but also to learn from, connect and honor the voices of community members living with and experiencing mental health and/or substance use challenges.

The AMHW 310 course envisions building a bridge between AMHW learners and future professionals, with the resilient members of the community who use services. This course provides learners with an exciting experiential opportunity to grow and practice emerging skills, knowledge, values and attitudes required to be a caring and effective helping professional within the field of addiction and mental health.

Learners will attend two days per week and participate in a 224-hour field placement in a mental health and/or addiction services agency over the course of 14 weeks. Throughout this field placement course, learners are expected to adhere to their AMHW program core values, professional code of ethics, and implement and remain grounded in an anti-racism, anti-Black racism, anti-colonial, anti-oppression, gender-informed and trauma-informed framework.

Opportunities to demonstrate supportive care, professionalism, and leadership abilities in an agency setting will be a core outcome of the field placement. This course allows learners to deepen their understanding, empathy, and capacity to work with and support community members and organizations in the field of addiction and mental health. Learners will practice the integration of classroom teachings and skills within the context of the self, relationships, and practice. Supportive supervision in an agency setting supports learners in their preparation to pursue a career in this challenging and rewarding field.

AMHW-310 – Field Placement 1 – Course Learning Outcomes

The student will reliably demonstrate the ability to:

1. Learn about and articulate knowledge of the community members served, the agency’s structure, funding source, mission, values, programs, policies, communication channels, staff/supervisor roles, learner role, and agency role within the addiction and mental health sector.
2. Establish and maintain a respectful, inclusive, positive, non-judgmental attitude towards community members who are accessing services and living with, and/or are experiencing, substance use/misuse and mental health challenges.
3. Establish and maintain positive relationships with agency staff, supervisors, and community members that reflect safety, care, collaboration, and professionalism.
4. Maintain confidentiality and all applicable ethical legislations and standards of practice, as per the agency’s policies, procedures, and standards.
5. Apply effective active and empathetic listening, written, verbal, and non-verbal communication skills. This may include, but is not limited to, email correspondences, phone etiquette, meetings (virtual and in-person), and engaging with peers, agency staff, community members, and college faculty.
6. Apply anti-racism, anti-Black racism, anti-colonial, anti-oppression, gender-informed, and trauma-informed principles to field placement practice; demonstrate and articulate the application of these skills through practice experiences and evaluation discussions.
7. Foster caring and supportive relationships and remain committed to learning, unlearning, understanding, respecting, and honoring the voices of community members they are supporting within their placement settings.
8. Demonstrate professionalism by integrating the information provided in the AMHW field placement manual, taking initiative, meeting evaluation and agency-assigned task deadlines, and utilizing agency and college-provided supports.
9. Integrate feedback from agency field supervisors, college field supervisors, field placement coordinator, and community members into practice in order to respond to agency and community members’ needs, and to grow as an AMHW professional in training.
10. Practice self-care and utilize agency and college-provided supports to mitigate the risk of vicarious trauma, burnout, and transference, which can be detrimental to self and community member care.

AMHW-410: Field Placement 2

Course Description
The voices of community members and service consumers have been largely and systematically excluded from the dominant discourse around addiction, mental health, and care, but fortunately, this is changing. As outlined in AMHW310, this course continues to offer an opportunity for AMHW learners to learn from and connect with not only service providers, but also to learn from, connect with, and honor the voices of community members living with and experiencing mental health and/or substance use challenges.

The AMHW410 course continues to build a supportive bridge between AMHW learners and future professionals, with the resilient members of the community who use services. This course builds on the AMHW310 Field Placement 1 course and continues to provide learners with an exciting experiential opportunity to further grow and practice skill development, enhance knowledge, and strengthen values and attitudes required to be a caring and effective helping professional within the field of addiction and mental health.

Learners will attend four days per week and participate in a 448-hour field placement in a mental health and/or addiction services agency over the course of 14 weeks. Throughout this field placement course, learners are expected to adhere to their AMHW program core values, professional code of ethics, and implement and remain grounded in an anti-racism, anti-Black racism, anti-colonial, anti-oppression, gender-informed, and trauma-informed framework.

Continued opportunities to exemplify supportive care, enhance professionalism, and demonstrate leadership skills in an agency setting will be a core outcome of the field placement. This course allows learners to gain additional skills and field experiences to further deepen their understanding, empathy, and professional capacity and readiness to work with and support community members and organizations in the field of addiction and mental health.

Learners will continue to practice the integration of classroom teachings and build upon their skills from the AMHW310 course within the context of the self, relationships, and practice. Supportive supervision in an agency setting prepares learners for graduation and a successful career in this challenging and rewarding field.

AMHW-410 – Field Placement 2 – Course Learning Outcomes

The student will reliably demonstrate the ability to:

1. Maintain a respectful, inclusive, positive, and non-judgmental attitude towards community members who are accessing services and living with, and/or are experiencing, substance use/misuse and mental health challenges.
2. Maintain positive relationships with agency staff, supervisors, and community members that reflect safety, care, collaboration, and professionalism.
3. Maintain confidentiality and adhere to ethical legislations and standards of practice as per the agency’s policies, procedures, and standards.
4. Apply effective active and empathetic listening, written, verbal, and non-verbal communication skills. This may include, but is not limited to, email correspondences, phone etiquette, meetings (virtual and in-person), and engagement with peers, agency staff, community members, and college faculty
5. Apply anti-racism, anti-Black racism, anti-colonial, anti-oppression, gender-informed, and trauma-informed principles to field placement practice; demonstrate and articulate the application of these skills through practice experiences and evaluation discussions.
6. Foster caring and supportive relationships and remain committed to learning, unlearning, understanding, respecting, and honoring the voices of community members they are supporting within their placement settings.
7. Demonstrate enhanced professionalism by integrating the information provided in the AMHW field placement manual, meeting evaluation and agency-assigned task deadlines, and utilizing agency and college-provided supports.
8. Integrate feedback from agency field supervisors, college field supervisors, field placement coordinators, and community members into practice to respond to agency and community needs and to grow as an AMHW professional in training.
9. Exemplify oneself as a qualified and caring AMHW professional-in-training, demonstrating leadership skills and professional readiness for working in the field.
10. Practice self-care and utilize agency and college-provided supports to develop and implement a work-life balance plan and to mitigate the risk of vicarious trauma, burnout, and transference, which can be detrimental to self and community members.