Psychiatric comorbidity, such as addictive behavior, is common in a variety of treatment settings, and has far-reaching consequences. Complications from addictive behavior can impede treatment progress, lead to additional problems, and increase the chance of treatment failure. Consequently, there recently has been increased demand on medical care workers who do not specialize in addiction (e.g., nurse practitioners, general practitioners, obstetricians, trauma specialists, etc.) to assess, intervene, and provide referrals for their patients who demonstrate addictive behavior. However, research suggests that many medical care providers lack addiction-related training and resources. The goals of this online course are to improve participants’ understanding of addiction and its influence on medical care. We will discuss the theoretical and clinical aspects of addictive behavior, as well as strategies for dealing with patients who demonstrate addictive behavior.

NUMBER OF CREDIT HOURS: The Harvard Medical School designates this enduring material for a maximum of 3 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

This course should take approximately 3 hours to complete.

COST: $60.00 for the average learner. Participants living in emerging nations receive a 50% discount or can register for free. See our International Pricing Page for details.

OVERALL LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. Discuss available evidence-based strategies and resources for assessment, brief intervention, referral, and continuing care.
2. Improve participants’ understanding of contemporary theories of addiction.
3. Show the influence of addictive behavior on medical care practice.
4. Illustrate the effects of addiction on health and wellness.

CLINICAL LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. Provide information related to evidence-based treatment and referral options.
2. Provide information related to treating pain of addicted individuals.
3. Provide information related to prototypical recovery and relapse.
4. Provide information related to facilitating clinical discourse about addictive behavior.

METHOD OF PARTICIPATION:

Registrants participate in the learning process by answering interactive multiple choice questions that are dispersed throughout the case presentation. You must answer a question correctly in order to continue through the course. If you answer a question incorrectly, you will be prompted to try again.

In order to earn credit, physicians must complete the entire educational activity before the termination date (see above). Non-physicians may register for the course but are not eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Instead, non-physicians will earn a certificate of participation after successfully completing the course before its termination date.

COMBINATION OF MEDIA USED:

This internet enduring material is a case-based, interactive presentation comprised mainly of text, interactive questions, and images. A variety of media, including video clips, audio clips, and Flash animation, may be presented. Links to any necessary plugins are provided when necessary, but no plugins are required for general use of the CME website, and you may skip the multimedia presentation(s) within the course if you choose.

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DEBI A. LAPLANTE, PhD Course Co-Director

Debi LaPlante, Ph.D., is Associate Director of the Cambridge Health Alliance, Division on Addictions and an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. She graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a degree in psychology and completed her graduate education in social psychology at Harvard University. At the Division on Addictions, Dr. LaPlante is involved in research, teaching, and public outreach. Her research interests include, but are not limited to: (1) psychiatric comorbidity profiles and addictive behavior, such as DUI; (2) e-health; and (3) addiction in special populations, such as women and minorities. Currently, Dr. LaPlante is senior editor of the online research review, the Brief Addiction Science Information Source (The BASIS), which publishes weekly science reviews on the latest research studies of gambling, alcohol, tobacco, and drugs. She also played a lead role in the development of the Executive, Management and Employee Responsible Gaming Education (EMERGE) program for educating gaming industry employees about responsible gaming. Dr. LaPlante has written and lectured extensively about addiction and behavioral expressions of addiction, such as gambling. Through her work, her goal is to further the mission of the Division on Addictions by strengthening worldwide understanding of addiction through innovative research, education, and the global exchange of information. DISCLOSURE: Reported no relevant financial relationships with commercial entities.

HOWARD J. SHAFFER, PhD, C.A.S Course Co-Director

Currently, Dr. Shaffer is an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School; in addition, he is the Director of the Division on Addictions at the Cambridge Health Alliance, a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. He has served as principal or co-principal investigator on a variety of government, state, non-profit/foundation, and corporate sponsored research projects. Currently, he focuses his efforts on the research and educational activities associated with the Institute for Research on Pathological Gambling and Related Disorders, Internet Gambling and his ongoing federally funded research on the psychiatric co-morbidity among multiple DUI offenders. Dr. Shaffer is the past editor of the Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, the past editor of The Journal of Gambling Studies, and the past associate editor of The Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. Dr. Shaffer also is a member of numerous editorial boards. His newest books include the APA Addiction Syndrome Handbook (2012) and Change Your Gambling, Change Your Life (2012). Dr. Shaffer's major research interests include, the social perception of addiction and disease, the philosophy of science, impulse control regulation and compulsive behaviors, addiction treatment outcomes, psychiatric comorbidity, homelessness and addiction, and the natural history of addictive behaviors. Dr. Shaffer has written extensively about the treatment of addictive behaviors and the nature of addiction, including more than 250 chapters, journal articles, and reviews. He also has published more than 120 newspaper articles, and 22 books or monographs. His research, writing, and teaching have shaped how the health care field conceptualizes and treats the full range of addictive behaviors. DISCLOSURE: Company: Pioneer Behavioral Health Type of Relationship: Own stock

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MARK JOSEPH ALBANESE, MD Reviewer

Dr. Albanese was born in Boston, and graduated from Boston Latin School. He attended Harvard College and Cornell University Medical College. He did his internship in medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and his psychiatry residency at Massachusetts Mental Health Center. He is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in general psychiatry and addiction psychiatry. Dr. Albanese worked for the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health for over twelve years prior to coming to Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) in September 2002. Most of that time he was at Tewksbury Hospital, where he served as unit medical director, residency training director, director of medical education, and associate chief of psychiatry. He has also been a consultant to several addictions programs affiliated with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Dr. Albanese is on the faculty of Harvard Medical School’s (HMS) Division on Addictions, where he served as Advanced Fellow in Addiction Studies. At CHA, he is Director of Addictions Treatment Services. He is also Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at HMS. In addition to his clinical, administrative, and teaching work, Dr. Albanese has undertaken research, with a major focus on assessment and treatment of dual diagnosis patients. He has studied epidemiology, pharmacology, and group therapy. His most recent area of interest has been DUI. DISCLOSURE: Company: Reckitt Benckiser; Forest Type of Relationship: Speaker; Speaker Content Area: Addictions; Addictions

SANJIV CHOPRA, MD Reviewer

Dr. Sanjiv Chopra is Professor of Medicine and Faculty Dean for Continuing Medical Education at Harvard Medical School and Senior Consultant in Hepatology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston. In his role as Faculty Dean for Continuing Education, Dr. Chopra provides oversight and leadership of the Department and oversees the academic development of our programs. Dr. Chopra is an experienced clinician, researcher, and educator. In his research roles, he has served both as a principal investigator as well as co-investigator. He has more than 120 publications and five books to his credit, addressing topics in disease states, patient care, and leadership. Dr. Chopra’s teaching experience is extensive, and he has won numerous teaching awards for his work with medical students, residents and physicians. Currently, he directs and speaks at 10 multiday CME courses, nine of which are through HMS. For his full bio, please click here. DISCLOSURE: Reported no relevant financial relationships with commercial entities

JANICE FAY KAUFFMAN, MPH Reviewer

Janice F. Kauffman R.N., M.P.H., L.A.D.C.1, C.A.S. is The Director of the Addiction Psychiatry Service, Brigham and Women's Hospital, the Vice President of Addiction Treatment Services for North Charles Foundation, Inc., and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, the Cambridge Hospital. She has work with addictive disorders for the past 34 years in direct treatment, program development and management, teaching, and local and national policy initiatives. She is the founder and President of the Massachusetts Methadone Treatment Providers Association, and the Massachusetts delegate to the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence Board of Directors. She is on the Board of Directors for the Massachusetts Mental Health and Substance Abuse Association in Massachusetts and past Vice President and now Trustee of the Board of Directors for the American Academy of Health Care Providers in the Addictive Disorders. Areas of expertise include opioid dependence, addicted medical professors, dual diagnosis, pain and addiction, and addictions in general hospitals. DISCLOSURE: Reported no relevant financial relationships with commercial entities

JOHN RENNER, MD Reviewer

Dr. Renner is Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Associate Chief of Psychiatry for the VA Boston Healthcare System, and Chief of their Substance Abuse Treatment Program. He graduated from Yale University and Case University School of Medicine and completed his psychiatric residency at the Tufts-New England Medical Center. In addition to his clinical activities at the VA, he is Associate Director of the Boston University Medical Center General Psychiatry Residency Program and Director of their Addiction Psychiatry Residency. Since 1987, Dr. Renner has been a member of the faculty of the Harvard Medical School Division on Addictions. Dr. Renner has written and lectured extensively on the treatment of alcoholism and drug addiction. He is currently a member of the American Psychiatric Association Council on Addiction Psychiatry and is Chairman of the APA Corresponding Committee on Training and Education in Addiction Psychiatry. He is also a member of the Data Safety Monitoring Board for the Clinical Trials Network of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a member of the Clinical Advisory Committee of the Physician Health Service of the Massachusetts Medical Society, and a Consultant to the Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital. DISCLOSURE: Johnson & Johnson: stock holder

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ANDI LONG, EDM Planner

Andi Long directs the Department of Continuing Education’s Distance Learning group, which offers a variety of online continuing medical education programs to health care professionals around the world. Andi develops strategies for new pilot programs and systematically rolls out new distance learning initiatives and has a leadership role in IT planning and other online processes for HMS DCE. She oversees the day-to-day operations of each distance learning activity and ensures ACCME compliance across all enduring programs. She has had the privilege of working with hundreds of Harvard Medical School Faculty members to develop high-quality, engaging online programs that physicians in more than 170 countries have taken part in. Andi earned her Ed.M. in Technology, Innovation, and Education from Harvard Graduate School of Education and graduated from Bridgewater State College, summa cum laude, with a degree in English. Her professional interests focus on teaching and learning with new technologies and online course development. DISCLOSURE: Reported no relevant financial relationships with commercial entities.

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NUMBER OF CREDITS: 3 

The Harvard Medical School is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The Harvard Medical School designates this enduring material for a maximum of 3 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

This course should take approximately 3 hours to complete.

Within 2 weeks of completing the course, you will receive your certificate via email.

Click the image to view a sample of the certificate

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