NAADAC NCAC I study plan
NAADAC NCAC I · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Clinical Evaluation & Treatment Planning
Diagram the ASAM dimensional criteria and map three written client vignettes to a defensible level of care with stated rationale.
Score the AUDIT, DAST-10, and CAGE on three practice vignettes and write a two-paragraph interpretation of each score set.
Reproduce the DSM-5-TR substance use disorder criteria from memory and assign correct severity (mild, moderate, severe) on five vignettes.
Convert three vague client problem statements into measurable treatment objectives containing a behavior, a condition, and a time frame.
Your checkpoint
A three-vignette assessment-and-plan packet: each entry containing screening scores with interpretation, a DSM-5-TR diagnosis with severity specifier, an ASAM level-of-care justification, and three measurable objectives.
Referral & Service Coordination
Compile a referral directory of at least 12 services spanning withdrawal management, residential, outpatient, medication-assisted treatment, housing, vocational, and legal supports.
Write a standard referral note template and complete it for two vignettes, documenting the reason for referral, consent obtained, and warm-handoff steps.
Map a client's multidisciplinary team on paper and list three coordination tasks with owners and deadlines.
Rehearse and record two five-minute warm-handoff scripts, then note the barriers raised and the follow-up plan for each.
Your checkpoint
A 12-entry referral directory plus two completed referral packets, each including a documented follow-up contact plan with dates.
Counseling & Client, Family, and Community Education
Label ten written counselor statements by MI microskill (open question, affirmation, reflection, summary) and identify change talk versus sustain talk in each.
Outline a six-session relapse prevention group with one measurable objective per session.
Draft a 30-minute family education session explaining substance use disorder as a chronic condition, written in plain language at approximately an eighth-grade reading level.
Script and practice two counselor responses to client resistance, then log which response decreased sustain talk and which increased it.
Your checkpoint
A six-session relapse prevention group outline plus a one-page plain-language family handout verified with a readability checker and revised until it meets the target level.
Documentation & Professional and Ethical Responsibilities
Write three progress notes in DAP format that meet timeliness and objectivity standards, rewriting any subjective or conclusory language into observable behavioral description.
Build a one-page comparison of 42 CFR Part 2 and HIPAA confidentiality requirements and apply it to three release-of-information scenarios.
Analyze five ethical dilemmas (dual relationships, bartering, social media contact, gift giving, impaired colleague) using the NAADAC code and defend each decision in writing.
Draft an informed consent document covering limits of confidentiality, mandated reporting duties, and termination conditions.
Your checkpoint
A documentation-and-ethics portfolio containing three DAP notes, three release-of-information decisions, and a five-entry ethics log citing the specific code standard relied on.
Clinical Evaluation & Referral
Work five complex vignettes (co-occurring disorder, withdrawal risk, adolescent, court-involved, pregnant client) end to end from screening through referral decision.
Identify at least three situations that require referral outside your scope and document the reasoning for each decision.
Audit the referral directory built in week 2 for cultural, linguistic, and financial accessibility, and add three services that fill identified gaps.
Re-score the week 1 assessment packet against a written rubric and correct every objective that lacked a measurable indicator.
Your checkpoint
A complex-case workbook of five vignettes, each with assessment findings, level-of-care determination, referral action, and coordination notes.
Treatment Planning & Service Coordination
Revise two treatment plans in response to a simulated week-four client progress narrative, documenting the rationale for every change made.
Construct a coordination contact log for one vignette involving court, child welfare, and a prescribing clinician, with dates and communication purpose for each entry.
Explain in writing the ASAM criteria that would justify moving a client to a more or less intensive level of care.
Identify three coordination breakdowns in a written case scenario and propose a corrective action for each.
Your checkpoint
Two revised treatment plans with documented update rationale, plus a completed coordination contact log and corrective-action list.
Clinical Evaluation & Treatment Planning & Referral & Service Coordination & Counseling & Client, Family, and Community Education & Documentation & Professional and Ethical Responsibilities
Complete two 100-item practice exams under timed conditions without notes or reference materials.
Categorize every missed item by domain and by root cause (knowledge gap, misread question, terminology confusion, application error).
Write a one-page from-memory summary for each of your three weakest subtopics and check it against source material for omissions.
Re-attempt all previously missed items and score at least 85 percent on the second pass.
Your checkpoint
An error-analysis spreadsheet covering at least 40 missed items, sorted by domain, with a named remediation task and completion date for each.
Clinical Evaluation & Treatment Planning & Referral & Service Coordination & Counseling & Client, Family, and Community Education & Documentation & Professional and Ethical Responsibilities
Complete one full-length timed practice exam and score at least 80 percent overall with no domain below 70 percent.
Recite from memory the DSM-5-TR substance use disorder criteria, the ASAM dimensions, the core NAADAC ethical principles, and the basic 42 CFR Part 2 protections.
Build a one-page personal reference sheet from memory, then verify every entry against source material and correct errors in a different color.
Rehearse exam-day logistics: confirm test location or platform, plan sleep and meal timing, and script a break strategy for a long testing session.
Your checkpoint
A verified one-page from-memory reference sheet and a full-length timed practice exam scored at or above 80 percent with domain-level results recorded.
Milestones
Week 2: Complete a 30-item self-written quiz covering domains 1 through 4 and score at least 75 percent; the referral directory contains 12 verified entries.
Week 4: Complete a 50-item mixed quiz across all eight domains and score at least 75 percent; the documentation sample earns at least 80 percent on a self-applied objectivity and timeliness rubric.
Week 6: Both revised treatment plans pass a self-check for measurable objectives and documented rationale; the first timed 100-item practice exam is finished with results recorded by domain.
Week 8: Full-length timed practice exam scored at least 80 percent overall with every domain at or above 70 percent, and all items missed twice have a written remediation note.