A LIBERTY CAP MUSHROOM (PSILOCYBE SEMILANCEATA), KNOWN FOR ITS HALLUCINOGENIC PROPERTIES, GROWS IN A GRASSY FIELD IN SHROPSHIRE, ENGLAND. PHOTOGRAPH: KEVIN WELLS/ALAMY
Exeter University in the U.K. has launched a postgraduate course in the clinical use of psychedelics to teach healthcare workers how to use psychoactive drugs in therapeutic work.
The course will cover teaching about existing therapies and research in psychology, psychiatry, and neuroscience, as well as modules on philosophy and discussions of decolonizing psychedelic research and practice.
- The certificate from Exeter University cements psychedelics as an area of scientific importance in the U.K. and could help pave the way for clinical therapies to become available within the next five years.
- Psychedelics have been shown to treat conditions such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, tobacco addiction, and substance and alcohol dependency.
- Australia was the first country to allow psychiatrists to prescribe psychedelics for treatment-resistant depression.
- The program targets healthcare workers, therapists, and anyone interested in the emerging potential of psychedelics, including those who wish to tap into a psychedelic healthcare market.
- In the U.S., MDMA may be licensed to treat post-traumatic stress disorder by the year's end, and Oregon and Colorado plan to legalize the regulated use of psilocybin.
