The West Virginia Department of Health
and Human Resources (DHHR) will host a workshop on substance use detoxification
for crisis stabilization and residential treatment providers who provide
detoxification services.
The workshop, Detox and Withdrawal
Management Workshop: Clinical Pathways and Practical Applications, will be held
on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 at Lakeview Resort in Morgantown. The keynote
speaker will be Dr. Louis Baxter, Past President of the American Society of
Addiction Medicine, and a nationally recognized addiction medicine expert. Dr.
Baxter currently serves as the Executive Medical Director of the New Jersey
Physicians’ Professional Assistance Health Program. He was honored in June 2019
by the Office of National Drug Control Policy as an “Innovator in Addiction
Medicine.”
The event will also feature presentations by providers from
Pennsylvania discussing their real-life experiences and innovations related to
detox and withdrawal management. Jeff Thomas is the Chief Executive Officer for
White Deer Run Allenwood, and he will be joined by Kami Anderson, Executive
Director for the Armstrong-Indiana-Clarion Drug and Alcohol Commission, and
Vincent Mercuri, Executive Director of The Open Door, to talk about their
day-to-day work.
Also presenting are Bob Hansen, Director of DHHR’s Office
of Drug Control Policy and Christina Mullins, Commissioner of DHHR’s Bureau for
Behavioral Health.
“DHHR has identified an immediate need to increase the
capacity of West Virginia’s behavioral health workforce,” said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR
Cabinet Secretary. “We are committed to supporting the treatment and recovery
of individuals with substance use disorder and welcome both the opportunity to
host these experts recognized nationally in their field, and for our busy
providers to engage them in dialogue here in West Virginia.”
The event is at full capacity for in-person attendance
but will be accessible via Zoom. For more information, visit https://dev-dhhrtwo.wv.gov/bhhf/jobsworkforcetraining/Pages/Other-Information.aspx.