WASHINGTON, Feb. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Missed Opportunity: Substance Abuse and Primary Care, the next in a series of compelling and provocative CASACONFERENCES(SM), will take an in-depth look at primary care physicians’ willingness and ability to recognize and diagnose substance abuse in their patients
The conference will be held on Thursday, April 21 in the Barbara Jordon Conference Center at the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation building, 1330 G Street, N.W., Washington D.C. from 8:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.
CASA research has found that more than nine of 10 adult primary care physicians failed to include substance abuse among the five diagnoses they offered when presented with early symptoms of alcohol abuse in an adult patient. Some of the reasons physicians miss or misdiagnose patients’ substance abuse include lack of adequate medical school training, skepticism about treatment effectiveness, patient resistance and fear of losing patients.
The conference will assist primary care practitioners and institutions by bringing together the leading researchers and practitioners in the areas of primary care and substance abuse to explore the disconnects between primary care and substance abuse prevention and treatment. It will, in part, build upon the findings of CASA’s report, Missed Opportunity: National Survey of Primary Care Physicians and Patients on Substance Abuse.
Nora D. Volkow, M.D., Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and Louis W. Sullivan, M.D., President Emeritus, Morehouse School of Medicine and former Secretary, U.S. Health and Human Services will present keynote addresses.
Jackie Judd, Vice President and Senior Advisor for Communications, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and former Special Assignment Correspondent, ABC News; Frank Sesno, Professor of Public Policy and Communication, George Mason University and former Anchor, White House Correspondent and Washington Bureau Chief, CNN; and Gordon Peterson, Senior Correspondent and Anchor, WJLA-TV, Washington, D.C., are among those who will moderate panel discussions entitled:
* Under the Rug: Substance Abuse and Medical Education * Missed Opportunity: Substance Abuse and Primary Care Detection and Treatment * Never Too Old: Primary Care, Substance Abuse and the Elderly * Minor Problem: Substance Abuse, Primary Care and the Adolescent
Panel participants include: David Satcher, M.D., Ph.D., Director, National Center for Primary Care; H. Westley Clark, M.D., J.D., M.P.H., CAS, FASAM, Director, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT)/Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA); June E. Osborn, M.D., President, Josiah Macy, Jr. Foundation; Jeffrey H. Samet, M.D., M.P.H., Professor of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine; Mark S. Gold, M.D., Distinguished Professor and Associate Chair for Education, and Director, McKnight Brain Institute, Division of Addiction Medicine, University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville; Glen R. Hanson, D.D.S, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Utah, and former Director, NIDA; Ralph I. Lopez, M.D., Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Associate Attending Physician, Weill Cornell Medical Center; Jason R. Kilmer, Ph.D., Addictive Behaviors Specialist and Adjunct Member of the Faculty, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA and Substance Abuse Prevention Program Coordinator, St. Martin’s College, Lacy, WA; Alison A. Moore, M.D., M.P.H., Practitioner of Geriatrics and Assistant Professor, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA; Barrett A. Toan, M.P.A., Chairman and CEO, Express Scripts, Inc.; and Brian Hurley, Medical Student, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California and Director of Curriculum, Health Professional Students for Substance Abuse.
Continuing Education credit is available to attendees. To register for the conference or for lodging information, visit http://www.casacolumbia.org/ and click CASACONFERENCES. Those interested in attending are advised to register early, as CASACONFERENCES sell out quickly.
The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University is the only national organization that brings together under one roof all the professional disciplines needed to study and combat all types of substance abuse as they affect all aspects of society. CASA’s missions are to: inform Americans of the economic and social costs of substance abuse and its impact on their lives; assess what works in prevention, treatment and law enforcement; encourage every individual and institution to take responsibility to combat substance abuse and addiction; provide those on the front lines with tools they need to succeed; and remove the stigma of substance abuse and replace shame and despair with hope.
Columbia University
The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at
CONTACT: Richard Mulieri, +1-212-841-5260, or rmulieri@casacolumbia.org
Web site: http://www.casacolumbia.org/