CAADAC - About CAADAC

The California Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors (CAADAC)

CAADAC is the largest AODA counseling certification (CCBADC) organization in California. Since its origination in 1979, it has conferred certification upon thousands of counselors who have successfully treated clients struggling with the disease of addiction. CAADAC counselors are recognized for their professional training and education in the field of alcoholism and drug abuse and are considered experts in treatment and treatment management.

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Annual Conference

Thank you to all those that attended and supported our 31st Annual Conference in Sacramento, California. Please join us next year for the 32nd Annual Conference at the San Diego Mission Valley Marriot October 4, - October 7, 2012.

Helping Hands

CAADAC’s success as an organization lies in its strong adherence to competency based standards that are nationally and internationally recognized as benchmarks for quality. the International Certification and Reciprocity Consortium (IC&RC), CAADAC meets the highest levels of quality preparation and testing of its counselors and ethical responsibilities to clients.

CAADAC is a strong leader and advocate for the profession of AODA counseling and for the needs of addicts in California. As a co-sponsor of Proposition 36, the sponsor of legislation to promote voluntary licensure for counselors, and an invited participant to state and federal level regulatory meetings, CAADAC is a strong voice for certified counselors in California.

CAADAC is member driven and supported by numerous academicians, counselors, treatment supervisors, educational institutions and original founders of the treatment movement. CAADAC has pledged to unify the field of AODA treatment by offering all professionals a stake in the future of the field through its “Career Ladder” approach to career development. In a rapidly changing environment CAADAC stands on its strong roots of supporting the individual counselor in his or her professional development, yet remains flexible through continuous membership input and active involvement in state and national affairs.

MISSION

CAADAC's mission is to unify addiction focused professionals interested in achieving excellence through the attainment of the highest levels of advocacy, competency and ethics.

OBJECTIVES

CAADAC helps its members develop professional contacts, acquire new skills, qualify for certification discounts and benefit from interaction with members and counselors in the alcohol and drug field.
CAADAC memberships consists of individuals and agencies interested in statewide and national activities that affect our exciting profession. Membership options include individual membership, agency membership and student membership.

CAADAC, through its publications, meetings and conferences, provides state-of-the-art information applicable to those in the chemical dependency field.

STATEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY

The major subject of any philosophy concerning chemical dependency counseling must be the client. The client should have reasonable assurance that he or she is provided the best assistance possible. Counseling is a professional service which should be rendered by those with adequate training, skills and expertise. Such training, skills and expertise requirements are determined through the certification process which is based on the professional standards of prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and recovery related to alcohol and other drug problems.

Current data shows that alcohol and other drug dependency is a treatable condition. It has become increasingly evident that no one treatment modality is successful with all persons who exhibit chemical dependency problems. Due to the fact that individual problems, needs and resources vary greatly, a variety of treatment strategies must be available. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that alcohol and drug counselors take responsibility for upgrading their skills by remaining current on new counseling theories and practices.

Most counselors working in the field of chemical dependency now recognize that addiction is a disease accompanied by emotional, health, family, employment, financial, legal and/or other problems. It is believed that if effective assistance and rehabilitation are to be brought to a larger portion of persons with addiction problems, then the creation of meaningful standards for both specialized training and accreditation are necessary. In keeping with this philosophy, we recommend and encourage counselors to take the "holistic view" in the counseling process. Using this view, it is believed that counselors will more readily see the need for maintaining proficiency and skills in dealing with the many varied issues related to alcohol and other drugs.

A major purpose of the alcohol counselor certification process is to reinforce the ideology that addicted people can be rehabilitated through effective intervention by both degreed and non-degreed counselors who meet the professional standards which have been developed and adopted by the CCBADC. The Board believes that every effort should be made to enhance certification by uniting with agencies in supporting national standards.