Tuerk Conference on Mental Health and Addiction Treatment

The annual Tuerk conference, now in its 35th year, covers a wide range of topics including, the impact of COVID on the Maryland treatment system and communities of color, the effectiveness of AA, the use of telemedicine, the impact of generational trauma, research on the use of psychedelics in treatment, updates on the effectiveness of peer counselors, the resurgence of methamphetamines and other stimulants, underage drinking, and the impact of sports betting on problem gambling.

• Engaging Families in Treatment - Marc Fishman, MD and Kevin Wenzel, PhD
• Telemental Health Updates / DEA Rules - Eric Weintraub, MD
• New Street Drugs in 2023 - Chris Welsh, MD
• Plans for Addiction Treatment in 2024 - Laura Herrera Scott, MD, Maryland Secretary of Health
• Sports Gambling – Lessons Learned Around the Country - Lori Rugle, PhD
• EAP & Wellness Programs - Janice Zimmerman, LCSW-C, EAP
• Prevention with Teens - Nicole Dawsey, PreventEd, St. Louis, MO
• Nicotine Addiction - Marc Fishman, MD and George Kolodner, MD
• Overdose Prevention Centers - Kailin See, OnPoint, NYC
• Cannabis Education - Raimee Eck, PhD
• And More......

David Best is the world’s first Professor of Addiction Recovery. He has moved to Leeds Trinity University from Derby University, where he undertook research around addiction recovery and desistance from crime, to become the world’s 1st Professor of Addiction Recovery. He has an undergraduate degree in psychology with philosophy, a Master’s degree in criminology and a PhD in the psychology of addictions.

Recovery capital helps us better understand the process of recovering from a substance use disorder (SUD) and determine the success of recovery and treatment interventions, improve coping strategies, and enhance an individuals’ quality of life in recovery

 Dr. Aliya Jones recently chaired the Racial Disparities in Overdose Task Force for the State of Maryland Interagency Heroin and Opioid Coordinating Council. The task force was composed of state government representatives, non-profit organizations, and various advocacy groups. The Task Force was charged with identifying programs and policies that would eliminate the growing disparity in opioid deaths among the Black community. .

 Opioid overdose deaths have continued to increase disproportionately in the Black community in Maryland, as it has across the nation. Dr. Jones’ plenary will take a critical look at more targeted approaches to slow down the rate of increase in opioid overdos.

Maia Szalavitz is the author, most recently, of Undoing Drugs: The Untold Story of Harm Reduction and the Future of Addiction. Her previous New York Times bestseller, Unbroken Brain: A Revolutionary New Way of Understanding Addiction wove together neuroscience and social science with her personal experience of heroin addiction. It won the 2018 media award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Undoing Drugs is the first history of the harm reduction movement, which offers a fresh and compassionate alternative to the war on drugs. Developed and championed by an outcast group of people who use drugs, former users, researchers and public health geeks, harm reduction is a policy transformation that both saves lives and illustrates the enormous power of kindness.

 Keri Blakinger is a staff writer at the Los Angeles Times who covers the sheriff’s department and local jails. She previously covered incarceration and capital punishment for The Marshall Project, after several years spent covering criminal justice for the Houston Chronicle. Her work has appeared in the Washington Post Magazine, VICE,

Her memoir, Corrections in Ink, came out in June 2022. Keri will discuss her book, which has been described as an electric and unforgettable memoir about a young woman’s journey—from the ice rink, to addiction and a prison sentence, to the newsroom—emerging with a fierce determination to expose the broken system she experienced.