ABOUT FIGHTING OPIOID MISUSE

Our Mission

  • Educate the public to recognize opioid misuse, particularly its dangers and its relationship to suicide risk.
  • Learn about current evidence-based treatments and the life-saving use of naloxone (Narcan).
  • Provide free screening tools and diagnostic criteria for opioid disorder and suicide risk.
  • Connect those who are concerned about opioid misuse in themselves or others with treatment resources and emergency services.
  • Publicize educational resources for individuals, families, and healthcare professionals.
  • Regularly update the website with the most recent information and research findings regarding the opioid epidemic.

Leadership

Douglas Jacobs, M.D.

Dr. Jacobs has been on the Harvard faculty for over 40 years and is a recognized expert in suicide assessment and intervention. In the early 90s, he initiated the concept of large-scale mental health screening for mental disorders. He has combined both of these professional interests to address the current epidemic involving opioid disorders, thus combining screening for opioid disorder and suicide risk. He is the founder of Fighting Opioid Misuse.

Marci Klein Benheim, Ph.D. 

Dr. Klein Benheim is a psychologist and researcher in Fairfax, Virginia. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan. She has collaborated with Dr. Jacobs for over 30 years on research on a variety of psychiatric topics, including suicide, depression, and addiction.

Edwin Boudreaux, Ph.D.

Dr. Boudreaux is Professor and Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Dr. Boudreaux is a clinical psychologist with a subspecialty in the treatment of substance use disorders. He has experience integrating substance abuse identification and management across a variety of medical settings, including emergency departments, inpatient settings, and outpatient settings. He has served on expert consensus panels for national organizations, including NIMH, NIDA, and SAMHSA. As a leading innovator in screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for substance use disorders, he has designed and evaluated traditional and technology-facilitated interventions for alcohol and illicit drug abuse.

Kelly Posner Gerstenhaber, Ph.D.

Dr. Posner Gerstenhaber is a professor of psychiatry in the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University and founder and director of the Columbia Lighthouse Project. Dr. Posner Gerstenhaber has spearheaded the development of the Columbia Protocol (C-SSRS) which is used nationally and internationally to assess for suicide risk in various treatment settings including healthcare, schools, the military, states and countries. The Columbia Protocol has been recommended or adopted by the CDC, FDA, DoD, and NIMH and has become the gold standard for suicide monitoring across the US and many international agencies.

Janice F. Kaufman, R.N., M.P.H., C.A.S., LADC1

Ms. Kaufman is Vice President, Addiction Treatment Services for North Charles Foundation, Inc, Director of Addictions Consultation for the Department of Psychiatry at Cambridge Health Alliance, and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She has worked with persons who have addictive disorders for over 45 years in direct treatment, program development and management, and national policy initiatives. She is the First Vice President of the Board of Directors for the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD).

Scott Weiner, M.D.

Dr. Weiner is an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. He is also an emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Director of the Brigham Comprehensive Opioid Response and Education (B-CORE) Program, a health system-wide stewardship program dedicated to reducing opioid-related morbidity and mortality. 

Advisors

Jhilam Biswas, M.D.

Dr. Biswas is the Director of Psychiatry, Law & Society at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a program that drives research and education to improve the lives of those with legal problems, destigmatize mental illness and substance use, and enhance the way communities manage access to continuous quality treatment.

Hilary A. Novak, Psy.D.

Hilary Novak, Psy.D., is a licensed psychologist with 14 years of experience working with individuals with mental health and substance use disorders. She currently works in the Court Clinics of the Massachusetts Trial Courts where she routinely provides expert testimony on involuntary commitments for individuals struggling with substance use disorders.

Administrative Partner

North Charles, Inc. provides services to people at a point in their lives when they need it most, and empowers those same people to regain control over their own lives and reenter the community as productive and fully realized citizens. North Charles, a 501(C) (3), was founded in 1971 as an independent nonprofit partner in the Department of Psychiatry at the Cambridge City Hospital. Donations to National Opioid Screening Day can be made to this nonprofit.

Donate

North Charles, Inc. – 54 Washburn Ave. Cambridge, MA. 02140
Attn. Donations- FOM | tax ID # — 23-7157222