Congratulations to the ACAAM 2024 Award Recipients

2024 ACAAM Award Recipients: James F. Callahan, DPA, and Richard Saitz, MD MPH FACP DFASM

Congratulations to the 2024 ACAAM Award Recipients, recognizing exemplary achievements in academic addiction medicine! Our appreciation goes out to James F. Callahan, DPA, for being selected as the recipient of the 2024 Kevin B. Kunz Award. Additionally, we extend our tribute to the late Richard Saitz, MD MPH FACP DFASAM, for being selected as the recipient of the 2024 Keeper of the Flame Award.

Mark your calendars for June 5 and join us at the Annual Addiction Medicine Fellow Virtual Graduation and ACAAM Awards Recognition Event. Let's come together to celebrate these remarkable individuals who have made significant contributions to our field. 

ACAAM Award Recipients

Upcoming ACAAM Early Career Education Series - Part 2

Join us on January 17 for Part 2 of the ACAAM Early Career Education Series About Disseminating Your Research

Part 2 of the ACAAM Early Career Education Series is coming up on Wednesday, January 17, from 3-4 pm ET. Join us for a presentation on "Dissemination of Your Work and Research Through Manuscripts and Conference Submissions." This is the second part of a three-part series for fellows, recent program graduates, and junior faculty.

The final session will be held on February 15 at 3 pm ET. 

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Thank You to Our ACAAM Volunteers!

Explore the Full List of ACAAM's Volunteer Community

In a year of gratitude, we want to thank our 2023 ACAAM Member Volunteers for their unwavering dedication to advancing addiction medicine. We are also thrilled to welcome new faces and names—Committee and Advisory Group Volunteers—who bring unique perspectives to our community.

Click below to view the full list of volunteers and see who's driving the future of addiction medicine.

View the List of ACAAM Volunteers

Upcoming ACAAM Virtual Learning Series - Part 2

Register for Part 2 of the ACAAM Virtual Learning Series on January 11

Join us for the second part of our ACAAM Virtual Learning Series, "Leveraging ACGME Requirements to Create a Community-Based Addiction Medicine Rotation to Educate and Mentor Internists in Harm Reduction," on Thursday, January 11, from 3-4 pm ETThis FREE session is the second part of a three-part series geared toward faculty in established and emerging fellowship programs, although all are welcome.

The final session will be held on April 18 at 3 pm ET. 

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Congratulations to Our ACAAM Board Member

Congratulations to Gail D'Onofrio on Her Achievement!

In October, the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) announced the election of 90 regular members during its annual meeting. Election to the Academy is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. 

Among the 90 new members was Gail D’Onofrio, MD MS, an ACAAM board member who serves as the Albert E. Kent Professor of Emergency Medicine, Professor of Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases) and Professor of Medicine, Core Addiction at Yale University. She earned this prestigious honor “For foreseeing the exploding opioid misuse epidemic, identifying the opportunity during emergency care, and developing knowledge and policy to change the practice. Her studies on alcohol-related seizures, alcohol interventions, and emergency department-initiated buprenorphine are transformative. Her implementation science studies enhanced the migration of research into practice".

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New Educational Offerings for ACAAM Members

Explore the ACAAM Virtual Learning Series and ACAAM Early Career Education Series

We are excited to announce two new series for ACAAM members that will provide valuable education and professional development – the ACAAM Virtual Learning Series and the ACAAM Early Career Education Series. Both series are free to attend, and registration links will be emailed to ACAAM members in advance of each session. Be sure to mark your calendars to join us!

ACAAM Virtual Learning Series

The ACAAM Virtual Learning Series is a three-part series offering content to ACAAM members covering topics related to teaching, education, curriculum development, leadership and administrative development, as well as competencies (including cultural humility, healthcare equity, AR-DEI, and lifelong learning).

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ACAAM President Jeanette Tetrault, MD, Honored by AMERSA

Jeanette Tetrault, MD, Awarded AMERSA's John P. McGovern Award

We are excited to announce that ACAAM President Jeanette Tetrault, MD, was awarded the Association for Multidisciplinary Education and Research in Substance use and Addiction (AMERSA) John P. McGovern Award for Excellence in Medical Education!

The AMERSA John P. McGovern Award is given to an individual who has made important contributions to substance use education and research. Previous recipients of this award include Ricky N. Bluthenthal, PhD; Marc N. Gourevitch, MD, MPH; and Julia H. Arnsten, MD, MPH, among others.

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ACAAM Board Member Dr. Gail D’Onofrio Honored with AWAEM Legacy Award

Gail D’Onofrio, MD, MS, Receives the AWAEM Legacy Award for Her Outstanding Work in the Field

Please join us in congratulating ACAAM Board Member Gail D’Onofrio, MD, MS, for being the inaugural winner of the Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM) Gloria Kuhn Legacy Award!

The AWAEM Legacy Award is given to a woman faculty member who has made outstanding contributions through clinical work, teaching, mentorship, role modeling, or administration. It is awarded to those who contribute significantly to the field of Emergency Medicine, which makes Dr. D'Onofrio the perfect recipient.

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May Event Recaps

ACAAM's Specialty Showcase and Virtual Convenings

In May, ACAAM hosted its first Specialty Showcase and three Virtual Convenings for member segments.

Specialty Showcase – May 9

As a part of ACAAM’s commitment to growing the pipeline of future fellows, earlier this month, we held our first Specialty Showcase event, which was an opportunity for residents, medical students, and others who were interested in learning more about addiction medicine fellowships to get the basics and ask their questions. More than 100 registered for the event, with approximately 45 participating live, and the event recording has been shared with all registrants.

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MERF Scholarships Available Through May 24

The Medical Education and Research Foundation for the Treatment of Addiction (MERF) is offering scholarship opportunities for residents, fellows, and faculty to attend the 2023 California Society of Addiction Medicine (CSAM) Review Course and the MERF 4-day Mentored Learning Experience, including a half-day preconference workshop: Motivational Interviewing for Busy Clinicians and Educators.

This year's CSAM-MERF Conferences will be held from August 30-September 2 at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina, San Diego CA.

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2023 Annual Meeting Recap

The Successes of the 2023 ACAAM Annual Meeting

More than 130 attendees took part in ACAAM’s first in-person Annual Meeting before 2020, and the event was outstanding!

Event Kickoff Draws Rave Reviews
Kicking off the event, Drs. Ekene Ojukwu from the University of California, San Francisco, and Kenny Morford from Yale University, led attendees on an exploration of Visual Thinking Strategies, a teaching approach using art and humanities to foster open discussions, enable individual reflection, share perspectives, and recognize and challenge biases. Attendees participated in small group exercises to discuss art and engaged in report-outs with their colleagues. Many attendees had never participated in an exercise like this and said they planned to take it back to their institutions.

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Annual Meeting: Know Before You Go

Important Reminders for Attending #ACAAM2023

Meeting Location:

Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center

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REGISTER TODAY: ACAAM Specialty Showcase for Residents and Students

ACAAM Hosts Open Event For Anyone Interested in Addiction Medicine

As part of our mission and dedication to help grow the addiction medicine workforce, ACAAM will be hosting a virtual Specialty Showcase for residents, medical students, practicing physicians, or anyone with general interest in learning more about the field of addiction medicine May 9 at 3 PM EDT.

This virtual informational session, led by ACAAM President Jeanette Tetrault, MD FACP FASAM, and Vice President for Medical and Academic Affairs, Tim Brennan, MD MPH, will provide an opportunity for anyone, no matter where they are in their career or decision-making process, to learn more about addiction medicine fellowships and the field as a potential career path.

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Annual Meeting Registration to Close March 31

#ACAAM2023's Registration Ends March 31

Get your tickets while they last! 

Starting the evening of Tuesday, April 11, plan to join us for an educational offering and Welcome Reception to kick start our meeting, networking opportunities, and so much more.

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AMERSA 2023 Call for Abstracts

AMERSA 2023 Call for Abstracts Now Open Through May 1

AMERSA is now accepting submissions for abstracts, workshops, conference awards, and award nominations.

IMPORTANT DEADLINES 

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NRMP Call for Public Comment

Consideration of a Voluntary Locking Functionality for Program Rank Order Lists

The National Resident Matching Program® (NRMP) is evaluating the utility of a proposed Rank Order List Lock functionality for programs and requests your input. The public comment period will be open through Wednesday, April 19, 2023. Read the call for public comment in its entirety and access the survey on the NRMP website.

We appreciate you taking time to review the proposal and provide your perspective so discussion about the proposed functionality, including community feedback, can be held at the May 2023 meeting of the NRMP Board of Directors.

ACAAM 4th Annual Graduation Event

ACAAM's 4th Annual Graduation Event

Congratulations to the graduating class of 2022-2023!

In celebration, we'd like to invite you to join us for ACAAM's 4th Annual Addiction Medicine Fellow Graduation.

Fellows, you are encouraged to share this invitation with your family, friends, and colleagues to support you.


When:
Thursday, June 8
6:00 pm EDT

Where:
Zoom link. No registration necessary.

What:

Brief live remarks will be given by George Koob, PhD, Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and recorded remarks will be provided by Admiral Rachel L. Levine, MD, Assistant Secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Nora Volkow, MD, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.










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Dr. Alex Walley Honored with 2023 Training Directors Award

ACAAM President-Elect, Dr. Walley, Receives 2023 Training Directors Award

We'd like to congratulate the American College of Academic Addiction Medicine's Board of Directors President-Elect, Alexander Walley, MD MSc, for being the recipient of the American Society of Addiction Medicine - ASAM 2023 Training Directors Award. Dr. Walley will be presented this award at ASAM's Annual Conference this April, the same week as the ACAAM Annual Meeting.  Congratulations!

About the 2023 ASAM Training Directors Award:
This award recognizes outstanding training in the evaluation, treatment, research and teaching of substance use disorders. Recipients of this award are training directors for accredited addiction medicine programs who have demonstrated leadership and vision in local program development, curriculum development and innovation in teaching and training methods. The recipients of this award must be noted to inspire trainees and colleagues alike with a passion for the practice of addiction medicine. 

About Dr. Walley:
Dr. Walley is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and a general internist and addiction medicine specialist at Boston Medical Center (BMC). He has been the director of the Boston Medical Center Addiction Medicine Fellowship program since 2011. His research focus is on the medical complications of substance use, specifically HIV and overdose. He provides primary care and office-based addiction treatment for patients with HIV at Boston Medical Center and on the inpatient Addiction Consult Service, which he founded in 2015. He is the medical director for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s Opioid Overdose Prevention Pilot Program. Since 2007, the MDPH program has trained over 80,000 people in Massachusetts’s communities, including people who use opioids, people in recovery, and their social networks. He graduated from Harvard College, and received his MD from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Masters of Science in epidemiology from Boston University School of Public Health.

Attend the ACAAM Annual Meeting: https://www.acaam.org/2023-annual-meeting 

Comment Period for New DEA Telehealth Rules Through March 31

As you may know, in late February, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced proposed permanent rules for the prescribing of controlled medications via telemedicine. Members can learn more about these general rules here, and review the formal proposed rules here

There is a 30-day public comment period which ends on March 31, 2023, so if you are interested in providing input, you may do so by clicking here and clicking on the Green “Submit a Formal Comment” button at the top of the screen. Please keep in mind that all comments received, including attachments and other supporting materials, are considered part of the public record and will be made available by DEA for public inspection online, here.

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#ACAAM2023: Opening and Closing Plenaries

Opening PlenaryEquity Matters: Integrating and Enhancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Graduate Medical Education
We are thrilled to announce Pilar Ortega, MD MGM, will present the Opening Plenary. Dr. Ortega, a nationally and internationally recognized expert in linguistically and culturally appropriate health care, recently joined the ACGME as Vice President, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. An emergency medicine-trained physician, she has more than 15 years' experience creating and evaluating innovative programs throughout the medical education continuum. Dr. Ortega will discuss DEI trends across the GME landscape, ACGME priorities related to creation of inclusive clinical learning environments, and share strategies for integrating and enhancing DEI efforts into a fellowship/GME program. 


Closing Plenary: Striving to Improve Addiction, Mental Health, and City Systems Through Inclusive Leadership
We are pleased to welcome Kevin M. Simon, MD, as our closing plenary speaker. Dr. Simon serves as the city of Boston’s first Chief Behavioral Health Officer and is also an attending psychiatrist at Boston Children's Hospital, an Instructor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, a Commonwealth Fund Fellow in Health Policy at Harvard University, and the Medical Director of Wayside Youth & Family Support Network. A former REACH Scholar and graduate of Boston Children’s Hospital’s Addiction Medicine Fellowship, Dr. Simon will provide an overview of the intersection of mental health and substance use and the importance of building inclusive systems of care to impact healthcare equity. He will discuss the significance of prevention, specifically among adolescents, and the importance of its inclusion in a fellowship’s curriculum. Additionally, Dr. Simon will share thoughts on the value of fellowship training, strategies for building the addiction medicine workforce pipeline, his career path, and the work he is doing for the City of Boston.

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