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The European Addiction Training Institute (EATI) was created to extend and exchange the expertise generated in all areas of treatment, care, prevention and research through training and education across Europe. Substance use problems exist in all the member states of  the European Union and each country has developed its own network of services to address these problems. EATI ensures that this collective expertise is shared in the widest possible way.

EATI was founded in 1994 by the Jellinek, Amsterdam, an initiative supported by an international network of twelve other major institutions for addiction treatment and research.

What are the main aims of EATI?

• To exchange expertise, experience and scientific knowledge about substance abuse between professionals through training and education on a European level
• To improve quality and effectiveness in the fields of treatment, prevention, policy and research.

What are the key areas of EATI activity?

• Developing, planning, implementing and evaluating training courses, seminars and workshops for professionals in the European Union. Training courses can be tailor-made for specific countries, organizations and networks. Example: training in relapse prevention in Greece
• Developing training materials: training syllabuses, handbooks, manuals, video tapes and more. EATI has created its own series of publications. Example: the preparation and production of training materials (handbook local drug policy, manual on new approaches in drug care, guide for medical students)
• Providing support, advice and assistance in training needs assessment and in developing national training materials. Example: textbook and treatment guide in the Czech Republic and Romania

The main target groups for training courses and workshops are:

• Multidisciplinary treatment staff
• Prevention staff
• Researchers
• Managers and directors of organizations
• Drug policy advisers

The majority of participants for EATI training courses are recruited from EU member states: in the period 1998-2000, 85% of all participants came from fourteen member states. The remaining 15% of participants came from pre-accession countries such as Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Estonia, Slovakia and Romania. Training courses are delivered by (24) European trainers, specialized in a specific area in the field of substance abuse.

Are the training courses expensive?

Thanks to the grants received from the European Commission and the Dutch Ministry of Health, EATI is able to offer high quality courses at a low cost for participants.

Under the slogan "training professionals, crossing borders", EATI is today a leading, well-respected institute in the European field of substance abuse treatment, prevention and research. EATI is a truly European organization: all trainers and participants come from European Union member states. The locations for EATI training courses have included Helsinki, Porto, Vienna, Amsterdam, Athens, Paris and many others.

Since 2000 EATI has obtained the ISO 9001 Quality Certificate for its training work.

EATI is affiliated to the Jellinek in Amsterdam, one of the largest institutes for the treatment and prevention of substance abuse in Europe. The EATI-office is responsible for the general management of the Institute. Working together with a number of European Union Focal Training Points, EATI staff plan, organize and co-ordinate the annual package of training courses. EATI has an international Advisory Board, with representatives from organizations such as the World Health Organization, EASAR and other partner organizations. EATI publishes a periodical Newsletter and maintains a website (http://www.eati.org).

The EATI Advisory Board now consists of experts from six different renowned institutions:

• Prof. Dr. M. Gossop, National Addiction Centre, London, United Kingdom
• Dr. G. Bühringer, Institut für Therapieforschung (IFT) , Munich, Germany
• Mr C. Goos, World Health Organization (WHO), Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
• Prof. Dr. A. Kokkevi, University Mental Health Research Institute, Athens, Greece
• Prof. Dr. J. Walburg, Jellinek/Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research (AIAR), Amsterdam, the Netherlands

EATI has established four so-called Focal Training Points (FTPs), and is currently preparing FTPs in two other countries. The objective of these FTPs is to provide training support in specialized fields of treatment, prevention and research. 

The four Focal Training Points are:

• Institut für Therapieforschung (IFT), Munich, Germany
• University Mental Health Research Institute , Athens, Greece
• Finnish Focal Training Point, Helsinki, Finland
• Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research (AIAR), Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Wim R. Buisman
Head of EATI