UC HEALTH LINE: Conference Addresses Addiction Science and Treatment

CINCINNATI—Registration is now open for a conference aimed at making new substance abuse treatments available to those who need them.

“Blending Addiction Science and Treatment: The Impact of Evidence-Based Practices on Individuals, Families and Communities,” set for June 2–3, 2008, at Cincinnati’s Duke Energy Center, is sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and is being hosted by the University of Cincinnati in conjunction with the University of Pittsburgh.

“There is often a gap between addiction research and treatment,” says Eugene Somoza, MD, PhD, UC adjunct professor of psychiatry and director of the Cincinnati Addiction Research Center. “It’s important that researchers and clinicians communicate with each other about new treatments so that these treatments can be made available to patients who need them.”

Practitioners, health care providers, criminal justice professionals, researchers and policymakers are invited to attend to learn more about new advances in drug abuse treatment.

The conference will feature a variety of session topics including, but not limited to:

• addiction and the brain
• helping substance abusers stop smoking
• managing substance abuse in primary care settings
• pain management for substance abusing clients
• motivational incentives and interventions

Early-bird registration, which costs $79, ends April 15. After April 15, registration is $99. Student registration is $49. The final registration deadline is May 21. For detailed program information or to register, visit www.nidablendingconference.info.

A 1992 study commissioned by NIDA and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism estimated the total economic cost of alcohol and drug abuse to be $245.7 billion. More than $97 billion of that was credited to drug abuse.

More information on addiction and substance abuse is available at www.netwellness.org, a collaborative health-information Web site run by UC, Case Western Reserve University and Ohio State University and staffed by Ohio physicians, nurses and allied health professionals.