Harm Reduction Masterclass (trainees)
Free Course
133 days left to RSVP
Training Mode
Online
Provider
HRVIC
Harm Reduction Masterclass (trainees)
March 4, 2026 @ 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Free Course
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This is a 2-day training.
Day 1: Wednesday 4 March 2026, 1:00PM – 5:00PM
Day 2: Thursday 5 March 2026, 9:30AM – 12:30PM
Location: Online
Description: An entry-level introduction to harm reduction principles and best practice, delivered by peer trainers from Harm Reduction Victoria. Across 7 modules (delivered over two half-days online), you’ll gain a basic understanding of key topics and learn directly from people with living experience about what people who use drugs really want and need from services. There is an activity that needs to be completed before attending the second day of training. Participants will receive details via email the week before the training.
DAY ONE – Wednesday 4 March 2026, 1:00PM – 5:00PM
Harm Reduction 101
- Understand the history of harm reduction in Victoria & Australia.
- Understand the National Drug Strategy policy of Harm Minimisation and how Harm Reduction fits into this policy.
- Understanding the Substance, Set and Setting principles as a way to understand an individual’s drug experience.
Safer Injecting
- Understand safer injecting practices, including injecting sites; using a tourniquet, and infection & Blood Borne Virus risk.
- Understand the circulatory system and the difference between veins and arteries.
- Understand through “hands-on” demonstration the drug mixing up the process and the transmission risk points during the process.
Drug Overdose & Adverse Effects
- Understand some of the common myths around opioid overdose.
- Be able to recognize the signs of overdose and of actions to take in different circumstances
- Understand when and how to intervene in overdose situations.
Naloxone Administration
- Understand where to obtain naloxone for clients
- Understand the different formulations of naloxone available
- Understand the difference between someone who is ‘on the nod’ or overdosing and the appropriate time to administer naloxone.
DAY TWO – Thursday 5 March 2026, 9:30AM – 12:30PM
Introduction to Pharmacotherapy
- Be aware of the pharmacotherapy options available to PWUD in Victoria.
- Understand how to access pharmacotherapy in Victoria.
- Be aware of Victoria’s “broken system”
Working Effectively with people who use drugs
- Understand barriers to effectively working with people who use drugs (PWUD), in particular, people who inject drugs (PWID)
- Understand and challenge the ‘gateway drug’ theory.
- Understand common myths about PWID, the effects of criminalisation, and the stigma on the health of PWUD
Stigma & Discrimination
- Understand how stigma and discrimination act as a barrier in healthcare settings.
- Understand how frameworks of morality and social discourse frame our understanding of drug use.
- Understand how we can all contribute to eliminating stigma and discrimination in ourselves and our services
Eligibility Criteria
This training has been funded for workers employed under the Victorian AOD Traineeship initiative.
Terms & Conditions
If you cannot attend, cancel your registration and make your spot available to someone else on the waitlist.
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VAADA acknowledges the support of the Victoria Government
We at VAADA acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung People as the traditional owners of the land on which we reside and pay respect to elders past, present and emerging. We also acknowledge that this land was never ceded.