Addictions Medicine

You will learn to manage patients with alcohol and other substance use disorders, including prescribed medications and other non-proprietary drug use.

You will learn to recognize addiction problems, perform referrals appropriately and effectively, manage patients who refuse referral, work in conjunction with addiction medicine specialists for patients who accept referral and integrate addiction medicine with management of the numerous comorbid medical and psychiatric disorders these patients often exhibit.

We have a nationally accredited addiction medicine fellowship. A number of physicians in our department are board certified or eligible in addiction medicine, and several of our physicians run an office-based opioid maintenance program.

Techniques Learned

You can expect to gain skills in:

using the appropriate screening tools to diagnose alcohol and other substance abuse disorders
eliciting, via relationship-centered interviewing, the essential details of the patient’s addiction problem
performing relevant physical examinations and identifying evidence, for example, of cirrhosis of the liver, withdrawal manifestations and organic mental symptoms
succinctly summarizing and synthesizing in the patient’s chart the biopsychosocial aspects of the patient’s addiction problem
identifying a management plan for those who are pre-contemplative, contemplative, or wish to take action
involving families and significant others in the patient’s care and decision-making

You will also gain experience helping patients identify resources in the community that are often needed and used by addiction medicine patients.