February 7, 2003

Dr. John T. Pichot, board member of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP), testified at the February 3 Quality Treatment Policy Panel Hearing, held in conjunction with the Demand Treatment Conference in Houston, TX. AAAP strongly supports the leadership of the Quality Treatment Policy Panel and its efforts to broaden the public’s understanding of severe alcohol and drug abuse problems and ways to overcome them.

Consistent with the Panel’s stated mission for quality substance disorder treatment and the training of treatment providers, AAAP hopes that the Panel will seek to collaborate with the AAAP to find creative ways to support expansion of addiction training for healthcare providers in the United States. In addition, the AAAP would like the Panel to consider sponsorship of a national meeting, including AAAP and the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), along with other organizations, to review the planning process and implementation of strategies for a revised version of the Health Professionals Substance Abuse Act, which proposed funding a multi-million dollar addiction education program, independent and specifically exclusionary of existing training programs. The AAAP also hopes that the Panel will look to the Academy as a resource in future efforts to develop and implement addiction clinical education projects and public policy efforts.

AAAP is a leading force in medical education regarding addiction-related disorders. Despite recent successes in developing educational programs, there are substantial problems related to addiction education that must be collaboratively addressed: developing more training programs for specialists; funding faculty and physician trainee salaries to sustain and build addiction programs; funding training of primary care physicians, non-psychiatry specialty physicians and other healthcare providers within existing programs; reducing the stigma associated with addiction-related disorders; passing the Health Professionals Substance Abuse Act.

AAAP has an active Public Policy Committee of over 50 physician members. The AAAP Board of Directors has approved 15 policy statements on specific topics related to addiction psychiatry. The Academy also seeks to increase collaboration and expand its national profile as an addiction policy organization. To review a complete copy of the testimony given by AAAP, please visit AAAP’s Web site at www.aaap.org/news/newsroom.html. AAAP policy statements can be found at www.aaap.org/policies/policystatements.html.

AAAP is a professional membership organization with approximately 1,000 members in the United States and around the world. The membership consists of psychiatrists who work with addiction in their practices, faculty at academic institutions, non-psychiatrist professionals who are making a contribution to the field of addiction psychiatry, residents and medical students. AAAP publishes The American Journal on Addictions, a leading clinical journal in the field of addictions, and the AAAP News, its newsletter. Other activities include sponsorship of an Annual Scientific Meeting and Symposium and addiction psychiatry review courses.

Click here to access Dr. Pichot's testimony.

American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry

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