Greater Intermountain Node (GIN) Medical Clinician, Jasmin Charles, MPAS, PA-C, has been awarded the 2024 Physician Associate (PA) of the Year by the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA). Read the AAPA PA of the Year Award announcement about Jasmin here. The AAPA PA of the Year Award honors PA’s who demonstrate exemplary service to the community; exemplify the PA profession’s philosophy of providing accessible, quality healthcare to all; and furthers the image of the profession in a positive, meaningful way. Jasmin is the Clinical Director of the SUPeRAD (Substance Use & Pregnancy, Recovery, Addiction, Dependence) clinic, Co-Investigator for the ELEVATE Maternal Center of Excellence, a visiting lecturer and lead coordinator for Women’s Health rotations for the University of Utah Physician Assistant Program, and a Medical Clinician on several research projects with the Greater Intermountain Node, including CTN-0080 and CTN-0100. “If we, as providers, would treat individuals as people—not as a condition, status, disease, circumstance, race, religion, or gender—then individuals can start to see past their trauma, begin to see value in themselves. This is why I show up to work every day: so that one by one, voices can be found, and lives can be saved.” – Jasmin Charles Jasmin’s efforts with the GIN, the University of Utah, and our community are unmatched. We are thrilled to see her recognized for all of her stellar work – very well deserved!

On April 29, 2024, the Southern Consortium Node granted the inaugural Outstanding Public Leadership Award to Sara Goldsby, Director of the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services. (Pictured: Drs. Kelly Barth, Kathleen Brady, Connie Guille with Ms. Sara Goldsby.) The award was established to recognize state and local government officials who have made exceptional contributions to the advancement of policy and practice in the field of addiction. Ms. Goldsby has been a tireless advocate for South Carolinians struggling with addiction, leading the state’s response to the opioid crisis and serving as the President of the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors since 2021. She has also been at the forefront nationally in forging effective partnerships between our state’s government and local universities, most notably through the establishment of the South Carolina Center of Excellence in Addiction in 2022, which is leveraging the strengths of the state’s public universities to advance data-driven, evidence-based solutions to its most pressing needs. During her leadership in the state, Ms. Goldsby has been an important champion for research, engaging in numerous partnerships with the CTN to advance innovative science to treat addiction in South Carolina and beyond. · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · The South Carolina Governor’s Opioid and Addiction Summit was held in Columbia, SC on April 29-May 1 and provided an excellent forum for dissemination of Clinical Trials…

IMPROVE Studies in Progress!  In October 2023 the NIH IMPROVE initiative approved funds to conduct four projects under the overall leadership of Dr. John Winhusen, current Lead Investigator of the CTN 0080 MOMs study.  CTN investigators are preparing to conduct three research studies and one dissemination activity, described below:  CTN 0150: Personally-Tailored Opioid-overdose and Medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) Education (TOME; LI – Winhusen, OVN): This study is an intent-to-treat, open-label, randomized controlled trial planning to (1) evaluate the ability of TOME to increase MOUD and opioid-overdose knowledge in Pregnant and Post-partum (PP) persons; and (2) evaluate the ability of TOME to decrease MOUD-related internalized stigma and expected difficulty in avoiding drug use.  CTN 0080 A-1: Successful Recruitment And Retention In A Randomized Controlled Trial Of Pregnant and Post-Partum People With Opioid Use Disorder (SUCCESS Study; LI – Smid, GIN). This ancillary study plans to perform qualitative interviews to identify successful strategies, facilitators, and barriers to recruiting pregnant individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) and retaining them through the first year postpartum in the MOMs trial..  CTN 0080 A-2: Promoting Research with Mothers receiving OUD Treatment; a focus on Equity (PRoMOTE; LI – Schiff, NEC Node). This ancillary study plans to apply mixed-methods to investigate facilitators and barriers to treatment initiation of medications to treat opioid use disorder (MOUD), trial engagement, and study retention in CTN-0080, with a focus on race and equity.   CTN 0080 A-3: Improved Messaging Strategies for MOUD For Underserved Populations Of Pregnant And Postpartum…

Members of the Appalachian Node co-authored a manuscript with other CTN members that was published in the journal of Addiction Science & Clinical Practice. The title of the paper is “Characterization of Peer Support Services for Substance Use Disorders in 11 US Emergency Departments in 2020: Findings from a NIDA Clinical Trials Network Site Selection Process.” Authors are Lindsey Jennings; Laura Lander; Tricia Lawdahl; Erin McClure; Angela Moreland; Jenna McCauley; Louise Haynes; Timothy Matheson; Richard Jones; Thomas Robey; Sarah Kawasaki; Phillip Moschella; Amer Raheemullah; Suzette Miller; Gina Gregovich; Deborah Waltman; Kathleen Brady; Kelly Barth. This CTN collaboration looked at site surveys collected from 11 sites across the county with Emergency Department based Peer Support Services (PSS). There were important themes and similarities found among the 11 sites. First, at all but one site, PSSs remained available to patients in the ED, either in-person, virtually, or both, during the COVID-19 pandemic, suggesting their important integration as front-line health care workers, especially during the peak of the pandemic. PSSs were typically integrated into the medical care team, evidenced by a large majority of PSSs having access to the hospital EMR. These steps of integration of the PSS workflow into the medical team and medical record is an important step for efforts to advance PSS billing and reimbursement for services supported at the Federal level by the Medicaid 1115 Waiver. Secondly, PSSs at most ED sites initiated some contact with patients after ED discharge, suggesting that communication with patients outside of the…

2024 Emerging Leader Awards from the Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies The Health Systems Node is pleased to announce and congratulate Jennifer Bobb, PhD Associate Scientific Investigator in the Biostatistics Division at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, on receiving one of the 2024 Emerging Leader Awards from the Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies.  This award is given to up to 8 early career statisticians (international award eligible for all statisticians) who have demonstrated outstanding contributions to the field of statistical science.  Dr. Bobb was specifically recognized for her “significant methodological and applied contributions to the field of environmental biostatistics; for impactful research at the interface of cutting-edge statistical methods and real-world evidence to improve outcomes of people with substance use disorders; and for outstanding service to the profession.” Dr. Bobb leads the Methods Core of the Health Systems Node and was the lead statistician on the PROUD trial (CTN-0074), the Medical Cannabis study (CTN-0077), and several studies of substance use screening and assessment in primary care (CTN-0065 and CTN 00113).  The Health Systems Node is pleased to congratulate Dr. Bobb on this well-deserved honor.

The New York Node is pleased to welcome Ryan D. McDonald as their new Node Coordinator. Ryan has worked at New York University Grossman School of Medicine in the Department of Population Health for over 12 years under Joshua Lee, MD, MSc. He joined Dr. Lee’s research team in 2011 as a Research Coordinator and since then has moved his way up to Project Manager, Program Manager, and most recently Program Director of research for the Department of Population Health’s Lee Lab. Most recently, Ryan managed a large multisite trial of the NIDA Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network (JCOIN) titled Long-acting Buprenorphine vs. Naltrexone Opioid Treatments in CJS-involved Adults (NCT04219540) study that seeks to compare the effectiveness of extended-release buprenorphine to extended-release naltrexone among criminal justice system -involved adults.

Did you miss this week’s CTN Western States Node webinar presented with the Northwest and Pacific Southwest ATTCs: Cannabis and Mental Health with Natania Crane, PhD? In this webinar, Dr. Crane, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Associate Director of the UIC Recovery Clinic, provided current information on research and treatment related to cannabis use and mental health, including recent changes in cannabis use, how the endocannabinoid system may regulate mental health symptoms, and what we currently know about cannabis use and mental health. The Western States Node had record turnout for this event (over 500 attendees!) and got tons of great questions for the Q&A at the end! One not to miss! Find the recording and slides here!