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July 08, 2019 (Cleveland)

Opioid Consortium Chair Discusses Reducing OUD-Related Stigma at Public Health Institute Summit

At the Public Health Institute’s National Leadership Summit, Randy Jernejcic, MD, vice president of clinical integration at University Hospitals and physician chair of the Northeast Ohio Hospital Opioid Consortium, discussed the importance of educating frontline staff about stigma related to opioid use disorder. His remarks were part of a panel presentation on cross-sector collaboration. Also on the panel were representatives of Trust for America’s Health, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Brown University and the Public Defender Association.

Panelists also touched on topics related to:

• Connecting patients in the criminal justice system with treatment after they have been released.
• Overcoming barriers to treatment and housing for people without legal identification. 

Monica Bharel, MD, MPH, commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, discussed the state’s achievement of being the first one to have a voluntary program on opioid education for students at their medical universities.

The Public Health Institute summit, which took place in June in Sacramento, California, was attended by practitioners, advocates and researchers in public health, healthcare and criminal justice and featured a keynote address by U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, MD, MPH, who visited the Opioid Consortium in May. Dr. Adams reiterated the importance of bringing together non-traditional partners to improve community health and economic prosperity and, as part of his ongoing efforts to alleviate stigma, shared the story of his brother’s struggle with addiction.

Dr. Jernejcic also spoke at the Behavioral Health Management Summit in Chicago earlier this month where he presented on University Hospitals’ approach to reducing overexposure to opioids. 

MORE: To learn more about Dr. Jernejcic's remarks at the Publlic Health Institute's National Leadership Summit, contact us.

TWEETABLE: At the recent @phidotorg summit, #OpioidConsortium Physician Chair Dr. Randy Jernejcic spoke about training frontline staff to alleviate stigma surrounding addiction.