Course Summary
This course provides an overview of drugs, their effects on the body, and their impact on society. Students will learn about drug use and abuse, drug laws and policies, and how to help individuals struggling with drug addiction.Key Learning Points
- Gain a comprehensive understanding of drugs and their effects on the body
- Learn about drug laws and policies
- Develop skills to help individuals struggling with drug addiction
Related Topics for further study
Learning Outcomes
- Understand the effects of various drugs on the body
- Develop skills to help individuals struggling with drug addiction
- Gain knowledge of drug laws and policies
Prerequisites or good to have knowledge before taking this course
- No prior knowledge of drugs required
- Access to the internet
Course Difficulty Level
BeginnerCourse Format
- Online
- Self-paced
- Video lectures
Similar Courses
- Addiction Treatment: Clinical Skills for Healthcare Providers
- Pharmacology: Drug Actions and Reactions
Related Education Paths
Notable People in This Field
- Dr. Gabor Maté
- Johann Hari
Related Books
Description
This MOOC is the first of its kind, since it addresses critical issues related to drugs from a multidisciplinary, health and human rights-based approach. Throughout the course you will cover a range of questions including what are drugs and why they controlled? What are the benefits and harms of taking drugs? How public health policies can address drug use?
Outline
- Understanding drugs and the international drug control framework
- Teaser
- Video 1:Introduction to the MOOC
- Video 2: Introduction to Module 1
- Video 3: The social construction of drugs
- Video 4: Why do people use drugs?
- Video 5: Why are drugs internationally controlled?
- Video 6: What constitutes the international drug control framework?
- Video 7: Are the international drug control conventions binding on States?
- Video 8: The increasing questioning of the prohibition regime
- Video 9: UNGASS 2016: a crack in the international consensus?
- Syllabus and course plan
- Map of the content of all Modules
- Essential reading for Module 1
- Optional additional resources for Module 1
- Questions on Video 6 "What constitutes the international drug control framework? "
- Question on video 7 "Are the international drug control conventions binding on States? "
- Can you name the unintended consequences of the prohibition regime?
- Module 1 - Graded Quiz
- Drug Use Worldwide
- Video 1: Introduction to Module 2
- Video 2: Epidemiology of drug use
- Video 3: What is the World Drug Report?
- Video 4: Perceptions about drugs and drug users around the world
- Video 5: Stigmatization of women who use drugs
- Video 6: What does science tell us about the benefits and harms of using drugs?
- Video 7: Classifying drugs according to their harms
- Video 8: Does drug use mean dependence?
- Video 9: Health issues related to drug use
- Bonus video: HCV and HIV among People Who Inject Drugs
- Essential reading for Module 2
- Optional additional resources for Module 2
- Quiz on perceptions of drugs and people who use drugs
- Can you classify drugs according to their relative harms?
- What do you know about health issues related to drug use?
- Module 2 - Graded Quiz
- Module 3: Addressing drug use and health: prevention, harm reduction and treatment
- Introduction to Module 3
- Video 2: How public health policies address drug use
- Video 3: Harm reduction: concept and tools
- Video 4: What is the history of harm reduction?
- Video 5: Harm reduction is effective
- Bonus video: Harm reduction saves lives
- Bonus video: The Global State of Harm Reduction
- Bonus video: La Mission Interministérielle de Lutte contre les Drogues et les Conduites Addictives en France: Principes et actions
- Video 6: When is treatment necessary?
- Video 7: Fitting harm reduction into existing health policies
- Video 8: Prevention, harm reduction and treatment complement one another
- Essential reading for Module 3
- Optional additional resources for Module 3
- Survey: your language profile and your use of subtitles
- Can you name key populations related to drug use? and what do you know about the effectiveness of harm reduction measures?
- Can harm reduction be integrated into health policies?
- Module 3 - Graded Quiz
- Module 4: Questioning prohibition-based policies
- Introduction to Module 4
- Video 2: Most drug policies in the world are based on prohibition law enforcement and criminalization of drug use
- Video 3: Are prohibition law enforcement drug policies effective?
- Video 4: The negative impact on health of prohibition law enforcement drug policies
- Video 5: The impact of law enforcement on public health and public safety
- Video 6: How law enforcement and health can cooperate to improve health
- Video 7: How the human rights framework and the drug control framework interact
- Video 8: Prohibitionist drug policies: violations of human rights
- Video 9: Prohibitionist drug policies: violations of human rights of women who use drugs
- Video 10: A closer look at drug policies in Asia – the limits of extremity in drug policy
- Video 11: Violations of human rights in Central America and South America
- Video 12: Prohibitionist law enforcement drug policies negatively impact development and the environment
- Video 13: Prohibition fuels violence, crime and corruption
- Video 14: How prohibition fuels violence, crime and corruption: the situation in Central America
- Video 15: How drug law enforcement affects drug markets
- Bonus video: The situation in Indonesia
- Bonus video: Violations of human rights of people who use drugs: the situation in Latin America
- Bonus video: The situation in the Middle East and North Africa Region
- Bonus video: Violations of human rights of people who use drugs: the situation in Brazil
- Bonus video: Violations of human rights of people who use drugs: the situation in the Eurasian region
- Essential reading for Module 4
- Optional additional resources for Module 4
- Quiz on the relationship between international drug laws and international human rights laws
- Module 4 - Graded Quiz
- MODULE 5: Medical access to opioids for the management of pain and to other controlled medicines
- Video 1: Introduction to Module 5
- Video 2: The international scheduling of drugs
- Video 3: How the international system of scheduling of drugs works: the WHO perspective
- Video 4: The barriers to access to essential medicines
- Video 5: The special case of the opioid epidemic in the United States
- Video 6: Medical use of cannabis and cannabinoids
- Video 7: The case for a revision of the international scheduling of drugs
- Essential reading for Module 5
- Optional additional resources for Module
- Quiz on the international drug scheduling system
- Quiz on the barriers to access to essential medicines
- Quiz on the opioid epidemic in the United States
- Quiz on the international scheduling process
- Module 5 - Graded Quiz
- Module 6: The case for drug policy reform
- Video 1: Introduction to Module 6
- Video 2: The failure of prohibitionist drug policies
- Video 3: The case for drug policy reform
- Video 4: Decriminalisation
- Video 5: Legalisation and Regulation
- Video 6. Monitoring drug policies
- Video 7: The role of civil society
- Video 8: The role of drug user groups
- Video 9: Would you join the drug reform movement?
- Video 10: What you can do?
- Bonus video: What do drug policies look like in Latin America
- Bonus video: Approches de Réduction des Risques en Afrique de l'Ouest
- Conclusion
- Essential reading for Module 6
- Optional additional resources for Module 6
- Quick quiz on decriminalisation
Summary of User Reviews
The Drugs and the Brain course on Coursera has received positive reviews from users. Many users have praised the course for its comprehensive coverage of the subject matter, engaging lectures, and helpful resources. Overall, the course has been rated highly by users.Key Aspect Users Liked About This Course
The course is praised for its comprehensive coverage of the subject matter.Pros from User Reviews
- Engaging lectures
- Helpful resources
- In-depth coverage of the subject matter
- Well-structured course content
Cons from User Reviews
- Some users found the course to be too basic
- Course could be more interactive
- Some users felt that the course was not challenging enough
- Discussion forums could be better moderated
Michel Kazatchkine
4.7 Raiting
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