On Friday June 5, 2009 I spent my last of 64 hours of skills training with the 50 participants of the Solano California State Prison’s Mentor Addiction Certification Program. I was extremely impressed with the men’s enthusiasm and hunger for the training. I also found them to deviate significantly from the stereotype of the “typical prisoner mentality.” Once again these men worked together collaboratively on the experiential components of my training and had great responses and insightful questions throughout this day and all of the 64 hours of coursework. I only wish all of my training audiences were as motivated and enthusiastic about learning.

I also want to invite you to read an insightful article by Margaret A. Bengs, Adult Programs, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation that you can read in its entirety by Clicking Here.  I’m also posting a few excerpts below from that article that is on the California Department of Corrections website .

Like the invigorating wind, a groundbreaking program is breathing new spirit into California’s correctional system – a program that could “revolutionize the way we provide rehabilitation in this state’s prisons,” says Sol Irving, Correction Counselor III.

The first class of 50 long-term inmates, most of them “lifers,” will soon complete the Offender Mentor Certification (OMC) Program. Those who pass a national exam in June will be certified as alcohol and drug counselors by the California Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors (CAADAC), and assist fellow inmates with recovery. California is believed to be the first state in the nation to launch an in-prison substance abuse counselor certification program.

Some OMC program graduates will be transferred to work in other prisons in the state. Program graduates who are eventually released can use the certification to obtain a job. The program is administered by the Orange County Department of Education, which provides certified alcohol and drug counselors to facilitate the program workshops, under contract with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).

This “extremely innovative, cutting-edge program” is “a major innovation in criminal justice rehabilitation,” says Terence T. Gorski, an internationally recognized expert on substance abuse, violence and crime, and among the top experts in the recovery field who are teaching Solano’s first OMC class. “It is a way to bring a sense of meaning and purpose into the lives of long-term offenders and also to expand by multiples the availability of addiction treatment within correctional facilities without increasing costs,” he says. He predicts that the program will make “a tremendous difference” in reducing recidivism.

Program participants attend class more than eight hours a day, six days a week, and sometimes study until midnight. In the few months since the program was launched, the warden [John W. Haviland, Warden, California State Prison, Solano] has already seen the change it has made in the inmate population. Offenders see how they can positively affect “their sphere of influence,” especially on those who are newly incarcerated. “I am using that influence to reduce the levels of violence in my prison,” he says.

Through the OMC program, “we are changing the culture” of the prison, says Haviland. “We are changing the mindset of the inmates.” As new classes graduate, more inmate counselors will become available, with a ripple effect on the prison system. By the time we reach 200 graduates,” Haviland says, “I’m looking at a serious reduction in violence. Reducing violence means a safer prison. It means better safety for prison staff.” It also cuts costs. Just one prison riot can cost taxpayers $700,000, says Randy Grounds, Chief Deputy Warden.

Today’s instructor, Dr. Stephen F. Grinstead, a Senior Consultant and trainer for the Gorski-CENAPS Corp., describes the inmates as “hungry.” They are “more motivated,” and “more enthusiast” than most other certification students he has taught all over the world.

Explaining why so many “master trainers” have come to teach this premier class, including Gorski; Al J. Mooney, MD, a pioneer in the field of addiction medicine and Associate Professor of Family Medicine with the University of North Carolina; and Stephanie Brown, PhD, Director of the Addictions Institute in Menlo Park and an internationally recognized authority on addiction and recovery, Grinstead says, “We want to show that this can work. People’s lives are at stake here.”

On a different topic; if you would like to be skill trained in a treatment model that teaches how to implement a multidisciplinary chronic pain management treatment plan we have an Addiction-Free Pain Management® 20 Hour Certification Training scheduled this Spring at Valley Forge Medical Center and Hospital in Noristown PA on June 10-12, 2009. It’s not to late for people to sign up and in fact by mentioning this Blog I will make sure you get a $20 discount for this training. To get this discount you must call my partner Ellen at (916) 575-9961 and ask her for the discount. Also, for this and other upcoming trainings you can check out our Calendar page.