+ Dr. Barbara Andraka-Christou | BALM International Overdose Awareness Day

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Dr. Barbara Andraka-Christou to Speak at the BALM International Overdose Awareness Day

Addiction Recovery for Families, BALM, Family Recovery, IOAD | August 25, 2020
Dr. Barbara Andraka-Christou To Speak at the BALM International Overdose Awareness Day

When Dr. Andraka-Christou’s longtime friend was impacted by an opioid addiction,  the doctor began to do her research. Already involved in public health research, she was devastated to see how differently Substance Use Disorder (SUD) was seen and handled in the field and in society and decided to learn more.

Today, she is an expert on the topic of SUD and overdose and will be the Keynote Speaker at the BALM’s upcoming International Overdose Awareness Day event to discuss the topic of her new book “The Opioid Fix: America’s Addiction Crisis and the Solution They Don’t Want You to Have” published by Johns Hopkins University Press.  

This event will take place on August 31, 2020, as the world commemorates International Overdose Awareness Day. This annual event’s goal is to spread the message that death from overdose is preventable. It aims to raise awareness of overdose and reduce the stigma of drug-related deaths. This also acknowledges the grief that family members and friends of those who died or had a permanent injury from drug overdose feel.

Dr. Andraka- Christou, Ph.D., J.D., B.A. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Management & Informatics, with a Joint Secondary Appointment in the College of Medicine, at the University of Central Florida. Basia, as she is known by her colleagues, her research explores substance use disorder treatment from health services and health policy perspectives, including medication-assisted treatment barriers, person-centered care, and mobile health delivery.

Her work has been published in elite substance use journals, including the International Journal of Drug Policy, the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, Drug & Alcohol Review, and the American Journal of Drug & Alcohol Abuse. She has appeared on National Public Radio’s All Things Considered and Morning Edition.

Her book The Opioid Fix: America’s Opioid Crisis and the Solution They Don’t Want You to Have (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020) is about the legal, health service, and cultural barriers to medication-assisted treatment. She has also published an interactive electronic textbook, Health Law & Ethics, with Cognella Academic Press.

The online IOAD 2020 event will also include:

* Naloxone training

* An interview with a BALM family member in long-term family recovery

* An interview with a parent who lost their child to an opioid overdose

* An interview with a parent whose child survived multiple meth overdoses

* A moment of silence to honor those who have lost their lives to an overdose and their families

This is an event that you don’t want to miss,  an evening of awareness, education, and inspiration. Invite your family, friends, and co-workers,  as everyone will benefit from this event.

Please share on your social media, in your church, in civic organizations, etc.

Click the link below to register or call 1-888-998-2256 with any questions.

We look forward to seeing you on August 31 at 8:00 pm Eastern!

JOIN US AT OUR FREE EVENT.

Please click here to register now.