This is very welcome news: Frustrated that medication-assisted treatment is coming across as the addiction field’s standard of care simply because drug company studies are dominating the research landscape, a group of some of the most prominent leaders in treatment administration is vowing to fight back. These leaders have enlisted the help of another heavy … Continue reading NAATP launches counteroffensive to medication push
Author: Jason Schwartz
I have been an addiction professional and social worker since 1994. I started blogging in 2005 as the Clinical Director at Dawn Farm. I currently serve as the Director of Social Work and Spiritual Care for a healthcare system. I've also served as the Director of Behavioral Health at another hospital. I'm also a lecturer at Eastern Michigan University’s School of Social Work.
Views expressed here are my own.
Keep in mind that the field, the contexts in which the field operates, and my views have changed over time.
Hazelden to start opioid maintenance
This has gotten a lot of attention [emphasis mine]: ...for the first time, Hazelden will begin providing medication-assisted treatment for people hooked on heroin or opioid painkillers, starting at its Center City, Minnesota facility and expanding across its treatment network in five states in 2013. This so-called maintenance therapy differs from simply detoxifying addicts until … Continue reading Hazelden to start opioid maintenance
Addiction 101
From the Dawn Farm Education Series: Addiction 101 from Dawn Farm on Vimeo.
Sentences to ponder
...I do throw up my hands some when people say, oh, you know, this is just what the data says, this is what the model says, when it's some human being or some set of human beings who designed the model, and if they make bad assumptions, they'll be reflected in the model. Nate Silver … Continue reading Sentences to ponder
Detroit, Booze and Temperance
The Detroit News offers a little history lesson on alcohol and temperance in Detroit. I guess we've always been a In 1834 — with a population under 5,000 — 100 people were licensed dealers selling liquor in Detroit; there was no estimate of the unlicensed. It was said there was a bar for every 13 … Continue reading Detroit, Booze and Temperance
Job Opportunities
Dawn Farm has 4 positions open, check them out. We were a Top Workplace in 2009, 2010 & 2011. (2012's Top Workplaces haven't been announced yet, but my money's on Dawn Farm.)
Pot barons?
On the business interests involved in the push to legalize marijuana in Colorado. He’s not just blowing smoke when he talks about selling out to the highest bidder. It’s already widely rumored that Philip Morris has leased warehouse space in the area. The company denies it, as do its top-tier competitors, but “I’ve heard a … Continue reading Pot barons?
Mark and Ryan’s story
UPDATE: Mark pulled the video. Hopefully it's only temporary. My job allows me to meet some really wonderful people. Sadly, I meet some of them under really terrible circumstances. Mark Rudolph is one of those people. He lost his son to opiate addiction 5 years ago and has chosen to make meaning of it by … Continue reading Mark and Ryan’s story
Sentences to ponder
From the ASAM blog: ...is there any evidence that the general public requires less treatment than do healthcare professionals and pilots? I would further ask, given the excellent outcomes generally obtained by PHPs and pilot recovery programs, why there have been no studies in which members of the lay public go through identical programs to … Continue reading Sentences to ponder
Collecting Opium Paraphernalia
An antique collector has a new book about collecting opium smoking paraphernalia. Collector's Weekly has an interview with the author: What drew you to antique opium paraphernalia? Steven Martin: There was something dark about it. People collect all sorts of weird things, like old torture mechanisms, just bizarre stuff. I think this falls into the same … Continue reading Collecting Opium Paraphernalia
Recovery Review 