Treatment of Stimulant Use Disorders
Our speaker is Richard Rawson, PhD, Research Professor, Vermont Center on Behavior and Health, University of Vermont in Burlington, VT and Professor Emeritus, UCLA Department of Psychiatry, Los Angeles, CA. The emergence of increased rates of cocaine and methamphetamine use and associated overdose deaths (with and without opioids) is being referred to as the “4th wave of the opioid crisis.” The presentation reviews new data on medical/psychiatric effects of stimulants and information on evidence-based treatment.
Learning Objectives:
- Explain the current epidemiology of cocaine and methamphetamine in the US
- Describe the most common clinical challenges in treating people with stimulant use disorder
- Review and discuss the current evidence-based practices for the treatment of individuals with stimulant use disorder
Speaker
Rick Rawson, PhD
Dr. Rawson is a Research Professor at the Vermont Center for Behavior and Health at UVM and a Professor Emeritus at the UCLA Department of Psychiatry. He received a PhD in experimental psychology from UVM in 1974. Dr. Rawson conducted numerous clinical trials on pharmacological and psychosocial/behavioral addiction treatments for the treatment of individuals with opioid, cocaine, and methamphetamine disorders. He led addiction research and training projects for the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and the U.S. State Department, exporting science-based knowledge to many parts of the world. He is a member of the Motivational Incentives Policy Group, a volunteer group that is working to reduce obstacles to the use of contingency management for treatment of stimulant use disorder. He currently provides technical assistance to 8 states on the development of treatment services for individuals with stimulant use disorder. Dr. Rawson has published 3 books, 40 book chapters, and over 250 peer-reviewed articles and has conducted many workshops, paper presentations, and training sessions.