Introduction to the Addiction Blog with Dr. G

 Hello everyone, I am Dr. Nick Gallagher and welcome to my blog. I am a board certified emergency medicine physician and fellowship trained addiction medicine physician who practices in Maine. I am also someone with alcohol use disorder who has been in recovery for 12 years and through work, training, and personal experience, I feel I can provide a unique perspective on this disease. 

As most of you probably know, the need for substance use disorder treatment in this country is staggering and far outweighs the supply of facilities and practitioners who provide this service. This situation has left so many people to face this alone, to just "get better" or "stop using" without access to appropriate supports and medical treatment. Taking care of people with substance use disorder is not a big enough priority in this country and there is a misunderstandings about the people who are afflicted with it, how they become afflicted with it, and why it is so hard to stop. I feel this is a product of biases (both conscious and unconscious), prejudice, mistrust, and also, lack of education about substance use disorder in general. 

I am not far removed from the grind of medical school and training, having graduated from medical school in 2015, residency in 2019, fellowship in 2020. With the exception of my addiction medicine fellowship, the terms "addiction" and "substance use disorder" never entered the conversation. I don't recall having any discussions, lectures, or even a powerpoint about substance use disorder or addiction throughout medical school. I didn't get any specific training in this field with my emergency medicine residency although we are probably the first, and most likely, medical providers to interact with these patients as they entered the medical system. That doesn't seem right. 

 I treat many patients from my office each week but I still feel my reach is short and limited. It is my hope that this blog will be a way for me to connect with people struggling with substance use disorder, friends and families of those struggling, and to stay in touch with the recovery community at large. If you read these posts and they are helpful to you, please leave a comment, question, suggestion and I will do my best to respond to and address each one. 

 With this blog I plan to provide evidence based information about addiction, medications, recovery, and treatment. I would also like to connect with the community and answer questions about all things addiction. Please ask your questions or suggest topics that are of interest. It is my sincere hope that this blog will help someone. 

And now for the disclaimer: 

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