Philadelphia Chapter of PaPS Annual Addiction Symposium Highlights
The Philadelphia Chapter of the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society’s annual Addiction Symposium was a hybrid event consisting of virtual and in-person expert speakers on a range of topics related to addiction psychiatry. The symposium was hosted by the Sydney Kimmel Medical College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was sponsored by AliveCor.
The morning opened with a fascinating presentation on toxicology testing by Dr. Carl Selavka, PhD, D-ABFT-FT, ABC-GKE, who is the Forensic Director for the Atlantic Diagnostic Laboratories Headquarters Labs and Director of the ADL-Milford Satellite Lab. Dr. Selavka spoke on the details and specifics behind substance use testing and recent updates in the world of toxicology. The second talk of the morning was given by Dr. Kelly O’Donnell, a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the NYU School of Medicine and Director of Clinical Training at the NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine. Dr. O’Donnell offered insights into the prospective developments of psilocybin as a potential treatment for alcohol use disorder and where the current research stands regarding its practice. The final talk of the morning was given by Dr. Kyle Kampman, an addiction psychiatry trained psychiatrist and Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Kampman spoke on the potential role of GLP-1 receptor agonists in substance use disorders.
The first talk of the afternoon focused on the impact of substance use disorders on sleep and was given by Dr. Marina Goldman, MD, and Dr. Dmitri Markov, MD. Dr. Goldman is a clinical Assistant Professor and Faculty at the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, and Dr. Markov is an attending physician in the Thomas Jefferson Sleep Disorders Center. Their presentation was followed by an engaging talk given by Dr. Christopher Blazes, MD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at OHSU, on the neurobiology of addiction and recovery. The final presentation of the symposium was given by Daniel (Danny) Teixeira da Silva, MD, MSHP, who is the Director of the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. He provided a highlight on Philadelphia with recent updates on substance use trends and treatment within the region. The symposium concluded with closing remarks made by Addiction Committee Co-Chairs and Event Organizers, Dr. William Jangro, DO, and Dr. Keriann Shalvoy, MD, MPH.
Dustin Heller, DO
PGY2 Psychiatry Resident at the Jefferson Einstein Philadelphia Hospital Psychiatry Residency
Special thanks to Chapter President, Heather V. John, MD, PhD, FAPA, and members of the planning committee: Sarah Tabi, MD, addiction psychiatrist at Temple Health, Dustin Heller, DO Psychiatry Resident at Jefferson Einstein, and Roy Harker, Eastern Region Director, Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society (PaPS).
