Apr 19, 2019
NAATP Executive Director's Conference Welcome
Moving Forward with Core Competencies
Our work over the past several years has focused, quite correctly, on responding to a toxic business practice environment. Unprofessional, unethical, and illegal conduct by addiction treatment profiteers hurt our clients and our reputation. Greed and the absence of community values seemed to overshadow the lifesaving service that NAATP members provide. We all know the stories, ranging from deceptive marketing to illegal patient brokering.
We responded. The NAATP Code of Ethics hit the field, setting the standard for prohibited conduct. NAATP cleaned its own house and raised the bar for membership. A complaint process was installed. The field took notice and membership grew, especially following the October hearing of the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, where NAATP provided testimony about the problem and the solution. We came together as a community at a powerful NAATP National 2018 in Denver as a professional society dedicated to values-based best practices for the treatment of addiction. Our community was built, and it was growing as a result of our ethics stance.
Reactivity was necessary then, but proactivity and positive messaging are in order now. NAATP, therefore, launched its Quality Assurance Initiative (QAI) designed to demonstrate the best practices. This is seminal and necessary work. It represents NAATP’s bright hope and vision for our field.
At the center of the QAI is the Addiction Treatment Provider Quality Assurance Guidebook: A Guide to the Core Competencies for the Delivery of Addiction Treatment Services. The Guidebook sets forth 32 service provider guidelines within nine areas of core competency. The Guidebook, combined with NAATP membership criteria and accreditation, ensure that NAATP members are the finest in the field upon which the consumer and payer may rely.
The Guidebook core competencies and the demonstration of proficient practice – what we should do, not what we can’t do – therefore, is the focus of NAATP National 2019. We are pleased to release the Guidebook (in the Conference App) to our attendees as a guide throughout the conference. You will also find the new NAATP Outcomes Measurement Toolkit, a key component of the core competencies and a focus of the conference, in the App.
NAATP is excited to move forward with you as we release these resources to you in Washington, DC. Our 41st gathering begins Sunday night, with our annual banquet convening as a society of collaborative professionals to celebrate our best work and move forward together. I look forward to seeing you there!
View and Download Conference Program
The program includes the full agenda, session descriptions, award reciepents, speaker bios, exhibitor floor plan, and exhibitor listings.
