Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly articles from December 2005

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly archives from December 2005

Level funding may be the best news FY 2006 can offer.(Budget watch)
December 5, 2005... To those of you watching Washington to find out what will be in the budget for the field next year, this month will be a lesson in civics. The Senate and the House of Representatives can't agree on how to finalize the budget. But keep in mind...

Alcohol and tobacco marketing targets Hispanic youth.
December 5, 2005... In the world of advertising, selling alcohol and tobacco to minors is taboo; the full wrath of state attorneys general would be upon any company engaging in such tactics. But recently, two groups reported that both industries are targeting...

Many good reasons for providing a drug-free workplace.(From the Fields ...)
December 5, 2005... For large and small businesses, in prosperous or dire economic times, it all comes down to the bottom line. Companies want to make a profit. Conscientious CEOs do careful market studies and cost-benefit analyses to determine what makes the best...

Soccer player dies at 59 of alcoholism.
December 5, 2005... George Best drank heavily his entire adult life--and tried to stop drinking for most of it. But the 59-year-old world-famous soccer player from Belfast in Northern Ireland died November 25 at Cromwell Hospital from alcoholism; his body systems...

Cancer doesn't deter all smokers.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... A study published online last week in the journal Cancer suggests that up to half of smokers diagnosed with any form of cancer continue to smoke, despite being warned that the habit could dramatically increase their risk of death, reported USA...

NYC coalition distributes drug to reverse overdoses.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... The Harm Reduction Coalition, an advocacy group in New York City, is supplying heroind users with the antidote drug naloxone, known by its trade name, Narcan, Newsday reported on November 21. Focusing its efforts at needle exchanges around the...

Sun-Times columnist writes of battle with alcoholism.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... The Associated Press reported on November 28 that a Cook County judge has dropped domestic battery charges against well-known Chicago Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg, after Steinberg complied with a court order to participate in an alcohol...

Radio talk show to focus on addiction.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... Although there are a handful of radio shows around the nation that focus on addiction issues, reported the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) on November 17, the Seattle-based Alliance for Recovery recently launched one of the...

Elderly less likely to receive long-term treatment.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... A study published recently in the current issue of the journal Addictive Behaviors suggests that older patients with alcohol dependence are about half as likely to receive continued care a month after completing treatment. In this study of a...

Correction ...(Correction Notice)
December 5, 2005... On page 4 of the November 21, 2005, issue of ADAW, there was an incorrect attribution. The correct source for "Steps to becoming a tobacco-free facility" is "Drug Free Is Nicotine Free: A Manual for Chemical Dependency Treatment Programs." We...

Two NIH grants for addiction research.(Resources)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... The National Institutes on Health (NIH) has announced the Developmental Centers for Translational Research on the Clinical Neurobiology of Drug Addiction grants, totaling about $2 million for programs exploring the neurobiological foundations...

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).(Names in the News)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced that Beverly Watts Davis has accepted the position of senior advisor for substance abuse policy in the office of Administrator Charles G. Curie. In this post,...

The Phoenix House.(Names in the News)(Brief Article)
December 5, 2005... The Phoenix House announced that Tessa Vining has joined the organization as director of the IMPACT program, following posts as a senior clinical social worker at the Educational Alliance and an assistant director for Project T.R.Y. (Treatment...

Call for applications.(Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association)
December 5, 2005... The Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association (FADAA) announced on November 23 that it is seeking a new Executive Director. Beginning in January 2006 the organization will accept applications from candidates "with strong substance abuse public...

Coming up ...(Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco)(American Association for the Advancement of Science)(National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
December 5, 2005... The Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) will hold its 12th Annual Meeting on February 15-18 in Orlando, Fla. The meeting program seeks to provide the healthcare professional with the knowledge regarding the most recent trends...

In case you haven't heard ...
December 5, 2005... The $500,000 Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania recently received for a drug court came too late for Bradley John Butler, who said he made a "bad decision" when heroin addiction forced him into robbing a bank for $1,422 last year. Arrested for the...

Teens caught in the middle: Juvenile justice system and treatment.
December 12, 2005... Substance abuse treatment for adults in the criminal justice system is seriously inadequate, causing recidivism and other problems. But the situation is even worse in the juvenile system, according to a new report from Drug Strategies, a...

On tap for SAMHSA: Reauthorization expectations, underage drinking efforts.(Washington news)(The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)
December 12, 2005... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is gearing up for Congressional reauthorization next year of the legislation that underlies the agency and all its programs. As a part of the discussion, people in Congress...

Moreno Tuohy assumes permanent position of NAADAC executive director: Merger vote coming up.(Association for Addiction Professionals)(Brief Article)
December 12, 2005... After a year as acting executive director, Cynthia Moreno Tuohy, NCAC II, CCDC III, is now executive director of NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC). She starts her tenure as permanent executive director in the midst of...

NIDA starts special funding focus on African-Americans, HIV and incarceration.(National Institute on Drug Abuse)
December 12, 2005... When Nora D. Volkow, Ph.D., became director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in May, 2003, her review of some of the data caused her alarm at the greatly disproportionate numbers of African Americans infected with HIV and as well...

New HIV campaign aimed at teens.(Brief Article)
December 12, 2005... The National Institute on Drug Abuse released a new campaign November 29 aimed at educating adolescents on the link between HIV and drug abuse. "Drug abuse prevention is HIV prevention," said NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, Ph.D., in announcing...

Cannabinoid may make new brain cells grow, reduce depression in rats.
December 12, 2005... A synthetic product similar to marijuana actually seems to cause the growth of new cells in the hippocampus in rats and by doing so, to reduce anxiety- and depression-like behavior in the animals, according to researchers at the University of...

Mass. drug monitoring under scrutiny.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 12, 2005... Michael Brown, M.D., an independent internist in Sandwich, Mass. has pleaded not guilty to charges of possession with intent to sell the painkiller Norco, as well as 12 counts of illegal drug possession, reported the Boston Globe on December 5....

Study suggests genetic roots in caffeine addiction.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 12, 2005... Caffeine consumption during pregnancy can lead to a number of undesirable consequences, such as reduced fetal growth and spontaneous abortion, reported Ascribe Newswire on December 2. The U.S., Canada and the U.K. have all issued related health...

Grants link substance abuse and criminal justice.(Resources)(Brief Article)
December 12, 2005... The Bureau of Justice Affairs has announced its Fiscal Year 2006 Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program. The grant announcement describes the program as such: "The program enhances tribal criminal-justice system operations and helps...

Coming up ...(Calendar)
December 12, 2005... The American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics will hold its 2006 Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Md., on March 7-11, to include lectures, symposia, poster presentations, award and exhibits. The focus is on spanning the continuum...

In case you haven't heard ...(overusing tooth whitening products )(Brief Article)
December 12, 2005... Okay, it's a stretch to say that tooth whitening products like trays and strips are addictive. But some dentists are concerned that people are overusing them, getting so involved with the process that they don't notice their teeth are already...

Pennsylvania's access to treatment law facing Supreme Court challenge.(Impact of Denied Treatment)
December 19, 2005... Pennsylvania's treatment providers are getting intense support from state agencies in enforcement of a 16-year-old law that is supposed to guarantee minimum levels of care for substance abuse treatment. But managed care is challenging this...

NAADAC, ASAM to help educate counselors on medication treatment for alcoholism.(Association for Addiction Professionals)(American Society of Addiction Medicine)
December 19, 2005... In at attempt to break down some barriers to pharmaceutical treatments for alcohol dependence, both NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC) and the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) have accepted grants from...

A harm reduction approach to alcohol and drug education.(From the Field ...)(Panel Discussion)
December 19, 2005... The 2005 International Drug Policy Reform conference held in Long Beach, California in November included a variety of provocative presentations and workshops on hot button issues. The conference was convened by the Drug Policy Alliance, a...

Maine lobbies to lift buprenorphine cap.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... Although Maine has the one of the highest rates of opioid addiction in the country, reported the Portland Press Herald on December 10, only around 3,000 addicts receive medication, of an estimated 12,000 to 30,000 in need. A bipartisan...

Poll indicates Americans support alcohol tax hike.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... The nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) reported on December 7 the results of its November telephone poll of 512 adults, the results of which, the center claims, clearly indicate that Americans would support an increase...

Center for non-violent drug offenders.(Mayor Peter Corroon, Salt Lake City)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... With a $1 million budget and the support of Mayor Peter Corroon, Salt Lake City has recently launched its first effort to divert non-violent drug offenders from jail into treatment and employment, reported the Salt Lake Tribune on December 9....

Maine top spender on antismoking.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... A national report indicates that Maine directs $14.2 million per year to direct anti-smoking initiatives, spending more per resident than any other state. Although the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) makes state-specific spending...

Teens affected by mother's depression, drinking.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... The results of a long-term Australian health study suggest that those adolescents whose mothers suffer from depression and drink regularly are at increased risk of developing an alcohol problem in adulthood, reported ABC News Online on November...

State programs help physicians recover.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... Although the substance abuse rate among physicians is the same as that among the general public, around 10 to 15 percent, their recovery rate is nearly 4 times higher, at about 90 percent. Boston.com reported on December 3 that this impressive...

The National Institutes of Health.(Resources)
December 19, 2005... The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced $5.7 million in grants for programs that "provide a scientific foundation that can help inform healthcare providers on how to treat pain successfully while minimizing the risks of abuse and...

The Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.(Resources)
December 19, 2005... The Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced the "National Programs to Build the Capacity for Societal Institutions that Influence Youth Behavior" grants, totaling $8 million. Roughly 30 grants will be awarded to...

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse.(appoints Rush L. Russell as senior vice president and chief operating officer)(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University has appointed Rush L. Russell senior vice president and chief operating officer. Rush will also run CASA's Program Demonstration Division. Since 1999, Rush has...

Coming up ...(Calendar)
December 19, 2005... The Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) will hold its 12th Annual Meeting on February 15-18 in Orlando, Fla. The meeting program seeks to provide the healthcare professional with the knowledge regarding the most recent trends...

In case you haven't heard.(Brief Article)
December 19, 2005... Just in time for the holiday season: The "designated driver" technique may actually backfire, because to many young adults, it means the "least drunk" driver, according to a new study from the Alberta Centre for Injury Control and Research of...