FAQs

Professional membership is important to your clients, it provides them with the assurance that you work ethically andare accountable to our Code of Ethics. For registered practitioners it shows that you are competent to practise as an addiction practitioner.

Yes, of course you can. You will need to adhere to both Associations Codes of Ethics and Rules of Membership and pay both lots of fees.

No. Membership belongs to the practitioner, no matter who pays for it.

Your clients, colleagues and employer have assurance that you are competent to practise.

You can retain other memberships as well as being a member of DAPAANZ. Some employers may only reimburse you for one membership.

If you are endorsed as a support worker or are a registered practitioner and need to take time out of addiction practice because of parental leave, personal or family illness, unemployment, overseas travel, or some other reason - you can take a leave of absence (LOA) for up to 12 months without losing your registration or fullfiling the requirement for supervision and CPD points. You can also apply for a further 12 months after this period if necessary.  It will be noted on the website that you are on LOA, and you cannot work as an addiction practitioner during this period. You will need to pay standard membership during LOA, but not registration or endorsement fees. You will not need to earn CPD points if you are on LOA for 12 months. If you return early you will need to earn a proportion of your CPD requirement ie, if you return after six months you will need 50 CPD points rather than the full 100. 

Leave of absence should be applied for as soon as you know you need to take time out.

To qualify for a student fee, you will be undertaking addiction-related study either full or part time. You do not qualify if you are receiving a salary for over 20 hours from your employer.

You don’t have to study or do courses to earn points.  For instance, a reflective journal is worth 50 points .  The journal is an account of 2 or 3 practice interest issues a year. It could consist of case studies of 2-3 people who you have worked with, their presenting issues, what you did, what went well, what you may have done differently and what models you used in your work with this client. 

Points can also be earned through in-house training, case presentations in-house, providing supervision, developing a professional development plan, having your work peer-supervised and more.

It is important that you undertake enough activities to earn your required CPD points. If you have not achieved this because of unforeseen circumstances your renewal will be reviewed.  In this situation you could: get re-assigned to a lower level, lose your registration, be placed under a mentoring scheme, or in some circumstances you may be given extra time to complete or resubmit a reflective practice journal.   This process may include communication between the association, the practitioner and the manager.

Clinical supervision is crucial for practitioners engaged in addiction practice.  Dapaanz advises that supervision is provided regularly (a minimum of once a month), and more frequently for new or inexperienced practitioners, or if the work is complex. It is important that supervision is provided by a more experienced, or at least an equally experienced practitioner, who has been trained in supervision.  Supervision is about supporting, guiding and providing feedback and reflection to the practitioner. It is not about personal development or therapy for the practitioner.

Supervision can be provided either internally or externally to the agency. This is usually based on the policy of the agency.  It can also be provided in group settings or one-on-one.  Aronui provides guidance on supervision for addiction practitioners, supervisors and managers.