$37 million treatment push
Do Utah drug courts tame meth monkey?
For single moms, failure and relapse rates are high; for the state, kids are safe and it's cheaper than jail
By Elizabeth Neff
and Kirsten Stewart
The Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated: 01/21/2007 04:27:16 AM MST
TOOELE - As 28-year-old Tori Curran walks down a narrow hallway in the county courthouse, portraits of smiling Miss Tooele pageant princesses gaze down at her.
She steps into Judge Mike Kouris' courtroom, where the young women inside have led less than picture-perfect lives. Like Curran, many are single mothers who want to raise happy children but who struggle with addiction and relationships.
After working 18 months to beat a methamphetamine addiction and stay clean during her fourth pregnancy, Curran was graduating from a drug court, which gave her treatment rather than prison.
Only time will tell whether the skills Curran has learned will last a lifetime.
Despite efforts to combat it, Utah's meth problem continues to grow - especially for women. For five years, meth has been the top illegal drug of choice for Utahns entering public treatment. For women it surpasses even alcohol, the traditional front-runner, making it the only drug in history to have its female users outnumber males. Nearly half the women in treatment statewide have children.
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. has proposed investing $2 million in Utah's drug courts and $2.5 million to build two residential clinics in northern and southern Utah to treat 600 women, giving priority to those involved with the child welfare system. But Huntsman will have to convince lawmakers it's a wise investment, no easy task considering the stigma attached to addiction and a dearth of data on treatment, including how patients and drug court graduates fare over the longer term.
Helping Utah's women poses another challenge: transforming a system that wasn't built for them.
"Substance abuse treatment has been historically geared for white, middle-aged male alcoholics," said Salt Lake County substance abuse Director Patrick Fleming. "We're a
hell of a lot better at treating women than 10 years ago, but there's room for improvement."
A review by The Salt Lake Tribune of Salt Lake County data shows men are more likely to complete therapy than women; a difference of 10 percentage points. A second Tribune analysis of drug-court graduation numbers found the lowest success rate in family drug courts, which cater mostly to women with children.
Brent Kelsey, assistant state substance abuse and mental health director, disputes any gender gap in treatment success. He insists treatment works: "It has to. What choice do we have?"
read the rest...
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Drug Truce
Salt Lake City’s Harm Reduction Project finds success where the War on Drugs has failed.
by Ted McDonough
The phone rings at the end of the day at Harm Reduction Project’s offices on 100 South and 300 West. The project’s last client—either a drug user or sex worker—has just left with a bus token. Project Executive Director Luciano Colonna excuses himself to take the call.
“We’re putting you on the agenda for the first day. You’re speaking on a panel called ‘Your Kid’s on Meth,’” Colonna tells the woman on the end, a scheduled speaker for the project’s upcoming methamphetamine conference.
She’ll speak on a panel alongside the author of a book for parents with children on drugs that emphasizes safe drug use over “just say no” lecturing. That makes the caller nervous. The caller wants to know what the conference’s bias is. No bias, Colonna says, but, “You might hear things you might object to.”
Salt Lake City’s Harm Reduction Project expects to bring 1,000 people to the Hilton City Center Hotel Feb. 1-3 for a repeat of a National Conference on Methamphetamine, HIV and Hepatitis first held in 2005. The focus of this year’s event on the public health aspects of meth use will be the latest science surrounding the drug. Conference participants are coming from England, Indonesia, New Zealand and Africa.
Salt Lake City’s Harm Reduction Project has been around since 1998 serving intravenous drug users, prisoners and prostitutes with nonjudgmental counseling and education aimed at keeping them as healthy as possible. But the project only recently came to wide public attention after hosting the first meth conference two years ago. The gathering brought condemnation from an Indiana congressman who took exception to lecture topics such as “We Don’t Need a War on Meth” and suggested the federally funded event was a front for drug legalization.
The Harm Reduction Project made another splash last year with a billboard campaign aimed at getting drug users to call 911 in case of an overdose. Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson jumped onto the campaign.
The spotlight hasn’t slowed the project’s momentum. In addition to many private foundations, the Harm Reduction Project receives funding from the state of Utah, Salt Lake County and the federal Centers for Disease Control. With an annual budget of $750,000, it now operates an office and drop-in center in Denver. It has contracted work with Montana, New Mexico and Arizona. Last year, the project opened a lobbying office in Washington, D.C.
Colonna currently hopes to open a law office for the project in New York City that will train public defenders to represent clients charged with drug crimes and change how the law deals with pregnant drug addicts. Colonna wants to avoid what he believes are unproductive prosecutions, like that of Melissa Rowland, charged in Utah in 2004 with murder after her stillborn babies tested positive for cocaine.
The Harm Reduction Project’s success has been propelled by the increasing frustration of government officials with what Colonna calls “the failed drug war.” Colonna also maintains a strong local presence, sitting on Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.’s meth task force.
In the upcoming legislative session, Hunstman proposes an anti-meth initiative that will include a publicity campaign and funding for treatment, plus an expansion of the state’s drug-court program. Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, will once again be pushing for a larger effort, named the Drug Offender Reform Act, that would attempt to divert drug-addicted criminals from prison into treatment.
“People used to call us the ‘fallback strategy,’” Colonna said. “We’ve changed that. The fallback strategy is the police. If we do our jobs right, if social-service agencies have enough money, we don’t need the police to arrest people left and right.”
Salt Lake City might seem an unlikely place to find a national conference on meth, let alone national headquarters of an organization that provides condoms to prostitutes. But Colonna said Salt Lake County has for years looked to the larger public-health community in dealing with drugs, including the Harm Reduction Program. Mayor Anderson has furthered a compassionate view of drug use. Now, with Huntsman, the state has a governor embracing drug treatment over harsh penalties.
The meth conference has its roots in the AIDS crisis. Experts had known for years that rates of HIV infection among heroin users were lower west of the Ohio River, where black tar heroin required frequent syringe cleaning to prevent needle blockage. Meth doesn’t have the same gooey properties requiring needle cleansing, however, and as users turn more and more to injecting the drug, the chance of an AIDS outbreak increases, said Colonna. The meth conference was born to stave off such a catastrophe.
New Zealand is trying to reduce meth harm by selling amphetamine over-the-counter as a substitute, much as clinics provide methadone to heroin users.
Colonna said other harm-reduction approaches with meth might include condom education, since users often become promiscuous, or convincing users to smoke the drug instead of injecting it.
“To some people, that might seem outrageous but it doesn’t seem outrageous to me,” he said. “To get them to eat; to get them to take breaks. Harm reduction is getting people to get in contact with their families. Often, that’s the biggest hurdle to get clean.”
But even if the Harm Reduction Program had funding for such programs, Colonna isn’t certain how well they would work. Ultimately, any program must refer users to treatment, where the current waiting time is five months.
“There is no answer to meth,” he said. “There is no answer to any of these drugs. But there is a great element of support that we could give our children and our family members and our friends, and that is access to treatment. That is where the problem really lies.”
Salt Lake City’s Harm Reduction Project finds success where the War on Drugs has failed.
by Ted McDonough
The phone rings at the end of the day at Harm Reduction Project’s offices on 100 South and 300 West. The project’s last client—either a drug user or sex worker—has just left with a bus token. Project Executive Director Luciano Colonna excuses himself to take the call.
“We’re putting you on the agenda for the first day. You’re speaking on a panel called ‘Your Kid’s on Meth,’” Colonna tells the woman on the end, a scheduled speaker for the project’s upcoming methamphetamine conference.
She’ll speak on a panel alongside the author of a book for parents with children on drugs that emphasizes safe drug use over “just say no” lecturing. That makes the caller nervous. The caller wants to know what the conference’s bias is. No bias, Colonna says, but, “You might hear things you might object to.”
Salt Lake City’s Harm Reduction Project expects to bring 1,000 people to the Hilton City Center Hotel Feb. 1-3 for a repeat of a National Conference on Methamphetamine, HIV and Hepatitis first held in 2005. The focus of this year’s event on the public health aspects of meth use will be the latest science surrounding the drug. Conference participants are coming from England, Indonesia, New Zealand and Africa.
Salt Lake City’s Harm Reduction Project has been around since 1998 serving intravenous drug users, prisoners and prostitutes with nonjudgmental counseling and education aimed at keeping them as healthy as possible. But the project only recently came to wide public attention after hosting the first meth conference two years ago. The gathering brought condemnation from an Indiana congressman who took exception to lecture topics such as “We Don’t Need a War on Meth” and suggested the federally funded event was a front for drug legalization.
The Harm Reduction Project made another splash last year with a billboard campaign aimed at getting drug users to call 911 in case of an overdose. Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson jumped onto the campaign.
The spotlight hasn’t slowed the project’s momentum. In addition to many private foundations, the Harm Reduction Project receives funding from the state of Utah, Salt Lake County and the federal Centers for Disease Control. With an annual budget of $750,000, it now operates an office and drop-in center in Denver. It has contracted work with Montana, New Mexico and Arizona. Last year, the project opened a lobbying office in Washington, D.C.
Colonna currently hopes to open a law office for the project in New York City that will train public defenders to represent clients charged with drug crimes and change how the law deals with pregnant drug addicts. Colonna wants to avoid what he believes are unproductive prosecutions, like that of Melissa Rowland, charged in Utah in 2004 with murder after her stillborn babies tested positive for cocaine.
The Harm Reduction Project’s success has been propelled by the increasing frustration of government officials with what Colonna calls “the failed drug war.” Colonna also maintains a strong local presence, sitting on Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.’s meth task force.
In the upcoming legislative session, Hunstman proposes an anti-meth initiative that will include a publicity campaign and funding for treatment, plus an expansion of the state’s drug-court program. Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, will once again be pushing for a larger effort, named the Drug Offender Reform Act, that would attempt to divert drug-addicted criminals from prison into treatment.
“People used to call us the ‘fallback strategy,’” Colonna said. “We’ve changed that. The fallback strategy is the police. If we do our jobs right, if social-service agencies have enough money, we don’t need the police to arrest people left and right.”
Salt Lake City might seem an unlikely place to find a national conference on meth, let alone national headquarters of an organization that provides condoms to prostitutes. But Colonna said Salt Lake County has for years looked to the larger public-health community in dealing with drugs, including the Harm Reduction Program. Mayor Anderson has furthered a compassionate view of drug use. Now, with Huntsman, the state has a governor embracing drug treatment over harsh penalties.
The meth conference has its roots in the AIDS crisis. Experts had known for years that rates of HIV infection among heroin users were lower west of the Ohio River, where black tar heroin required frequent syringe cleaning to prevent needle blockage. Meth doesn’t have the same gooey properties requiring needle cleansing, however, and as users turn more and more to injecting the drug, the chance of an AIDS outbreak increases, said Colonna. The meth conference was born to stave off such a catastrophe.
New Zealand is trying to reduce meth harm by selling amphetamine over-the-counter as a substitute, much as clinics provide methadone to heroin users.
Colonna said other harm-reduction approaches with meth might include condom education, since users often become promiscuous, or convincing users to smoke the drug instead of injecting it.
“To some people, that might seem outrageous but it doesn’t seem outrageous to me,” he said. “To get them to eat; to get them to take breaks. Harm reduction is getting people to get in contact with their families. Often, that’s the biggest hurdle to get clean.”
But even if the Harm Reduction Program had funding for such programs, Colonna isn’t certain how well they would work. Ultimately, any program must refer users to treatment, where the current waiting time is five months.
“There is no answer to meth,” he said. “There is no answer to any of these drugs. But there is a great element of support that we could give our children and our family members and our friends, and that is access to treatment. That is where the problem really lies.”
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Porn actors set to star in meth campaign
Published 01/11/2007
Bay Area Reporter Online
by Heather Cassell, h.cassell@ebar.com
Crystal methamphetamine might not be so sexy any more. There have been reported decreases in crystal meth use and HIV infection rates among gay and bi men, but community service providers aren't convinced the message equals a trend.
That is why starting this week the Stonewall Project is launching the "Hot Sex Without Crystal? Hell Yes!" campaign featuring eight gay male porn stars who volunteered their time for the project to promote the message that hot sex on a natural high is not only possible but sexy as well.
"Meth has been a huge issue in the gay community for decades. It's not something that's new and it's not something that's ever going away," Michael Siever, Ph.D., director of the Stonewall Project, told the Bay Area Reporter. "One of the biggest issues for so many guys is that their sexuality gets hijacked by crystal meth."
read the rest...
Note: Michael Siever will be presenting at the conference
Published 01/11/2007
Bay Area Reporter Online
by Heather Cassell, h.cassell@ebar.com
Crystal methamphetamine might not be so sexy any more. There have been reported decreases in crystal meth use and HIV infection rates among gay and bi men, but community service providers aren't convinced the message equals a trend.
That is why starting this week the Stonewall Project is launching the "Hot Sex Without Crystal? Hell Yes!" campaign featuring eight gay male porn stars who volunteered their time for the project to promote the message that hot sex on a natural high is not only possible but sexy as well.
"Meth has been a huge issue in the gay community for decades. It's not something that's new and it's not something that's ever going away," Michael Siever, Ph.D., director of the Stonewall Project, told the Bay Area Reporter. "One of the biggest issues for so many guys is that their sexuality gets hijacked by crystal meth."
read the rest...
Note: Michael Siever will be presenting at the conference
Friday, January 12, 2007
Hazelden Report: Indicators Of Methamphetamine Abuse Fall In Metro Area,
Reversing Previous Upward Trends
MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Admissions to addiction
treatment programs for methamphetamine declined in 2006, as did hospital
emergency room cases and meth labs, reversing prior upward trends,
according to a report on drug abuse trends released today by the Hazelden
Foundation.
In the first half of 2006, a total of 806 patients at metro area
addiction treatment programs reported meth as the primary substance problem
(representing 8.2 percent of total treatment admissions). This compares
with 2,465 meth patients in 2005 (12 percent of total treatment admissions
that year).
Methamphetamine-related hospital emergency department (ED) episodes in
the Twin Cities also dropped markedly, to 251 in 2006 (first half) compared
with 1,402 in 2005 (full year). The number of deaths remained stable; both
Hennepin County and Ramsey County reported five accidental deaths involving
methamphetamine in 2006 (through September) compared with seven in 2005
(entire year). Statewide the number of meth labs also declined in 2006.
"Collectively, these new findings suggest that the growth in
methamphetamine abuse is slowing down, possibly reversing itself in the
Twin Cities area," said Carol Falkowski, Hazelden's director of research
communications and report author. "Whether this downward trend continues
long- term remains to be seen, but these figures are very encouraging."
Concerning other drugs, in hospital emergency departments,
cocaine-related visits outnumbered those involving any other illicit drug
in 2006 (first half), continuing a long-standing trend. There were 1,311
reports of cocaine, 1,265 reports of marijuana, 936 reports of prescription
opiates, 401 reports of heroin, and 251 reports of meth.
This report prepared as part of an epidemiological drug
abuse-monitoring network comprised of drug abuse researchers in twenty U.S.
cities. Falkowski has written a report on Twin Cities drug abuse trends
twice annually since 1986.
Hazelden Foundation, a national nonprofit organization founded in 1949,
helps people reclaim their lives from the disease of addiction. Hazelden's
comprehensive approach to addiction addresses the full range of patient,
family, and professional needs, including treatment and continuing care,
research, higher learning, public education and advocacy, and publishing.
It has facilities in Minnesota, Oregon, Illinois, and New York.
Full report is available online at http://www.hazelden.org/research
SOURCE Hazelden Foundation
Related links:
http://www.hazelden.org
Reversing Previous Upward Trends
MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Admissions to addiction
treatment programs for methamphetamine declined in 2006, as did hospital
emergency room cases and meth labs, reversing prior upward trends,
according to a report on drug abuse trends released today by the Hazelden
Foundation.
In the first half of 2006, a total of 806 patients at metro area
addiction treatment programs reported meth as the primary substance problem
(representing 8.2 percent of total treatment admissions). This compares
with 2,465 meth patients in 2005 (12 percent of total treatment admissions
that year).
Methamphetamine-related hospital emergency department (ED) episodes in
the Twin Cities also dropped markedly, to 251 in 2006 (first half) compared
with 1,402 in 2005 (full year). The number of deaths remained stable; both
Hennepin County and Ramsey County reported five accidental deaths involving
methamphetamine in 2006 (through September) compared with seven in 2005
(entire year). Statewide the number of meth labs also declined in 2006.
"Collectively, these new findings suggest that the growth in
methamphetamine abuse is slowing down, possibly reversing itself in the
Twin Cities area," said Carol Falkowski, Hazelden's director of research
communications and report author. "Whether this downward trend continues
long- term remains to be seen, but these figures are very encouraging."
Concerning other drugs, in hospital emergency departments,
cocaine-related visits outnumbered those involving any other illicit drug
in 2006 (first half), continuing a long-standing trend. There were 1,311
reports of cocaine, 1,265 reports of marijuana, 936 reports of prescription
opiates, 401 reports of heroin, and 251 reports of meth.
This report prepared as part of an epidemiological drug
abuse-monitoring network comprised of drug abuse researchers in twenty U.S.
cities. Falkowski has written a report on Twin Cities drug abuse trends
twice annually since 1986.
Hazelden Foundation, a national nonprofit organization founded in 1949,
helps people reclaim their lives from the disease of addiction. Hazelden's
comprehensive approach to addiction addresses the full range of patient,
family, and professional needs, including treatment and continuing care,
research, higher learning, public education and advocacy, and publishing.
It has facilities in Minnesota, Oregon, Illinois, and New York.
Full report is available online at http://www.hazelden.org/research
SOURCE Hazelden Foundation
Related links:
http://www.hazelden.org
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Guv wants to tweak anti-meth efforts
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. unveils a $10.2 million campaign focusing on prevention and rehab
By Kirsten Stewart
The Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated: 01/11/2007 01:01:46 AM MST
Wendy Ahlgren grew up in a middle-class, Mormon family of seven where drugs and alcohol were considered taboo, but rarely discussed. The 47-year-old, who describes herself as "naive," has struggled with depression for as long as she can remember.
For Jodi, flirting with drugs and alcohol was a teenage "rite of passage." Her grandfather was a bootlegger during the Prohibition era, several of her uncles dealt drugs and her father was an alcoholic. They considered it a lifestyle filled with romance, not danger.
The two are among the tens of thousands of Utah women who have fallen victim to methamphetamine over the past decade - many of them young mothers. Both women say they had "no idea" meth would ravage their lives, that their addictions would rob them of their children, jobs and dignity.
"That's the constant refrain" of women seeking help at public treatment clinics, said Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. at a Wednesday unveiling of his $10.2 million anti-meth campaign. The plan focuses on treatment and prevention - a departure from law enforcement-driven strategies of the past.
read the rest...
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. unveils a $10.2 million campaign focusing on prevention and rehab
By Kirsten Stewart
The Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated: 01/11/2007 01:01:46 AM MST
Wendy Ahlgren grew up in a middle-class, Mormon family of seven where drugs and alcohol were considered taboo, but rarely discussed. The 47-year-old, who describes herself as "naive," has struggled with depression for as long as she can remember.
For Jodi, flirting with drugs and alcohol was a teenage "rite of passage." Her grandfather was a bootlegger during the Prohibition era, several of her uncles dealt drugs and her father was an alcoholic. They considered it a lifestyle filled with romance, not danger.
The two are among the tens of thousands of Utah women who have fallen victim to methamphetamine over the past decade - many of them young mothers. Both women say they had "no idea" meth would ravage their lives, that their addictions would rob them of their children, jobs and dignity.
"That's the constant refrain" of women seeking help at public treatment clinics, said Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. at a Wednesday unveiling of his $10.2 million anti-meth campaign. The plan focuses on treatment and prevention - a departure from law enforcement-driven strategies of the past.
read the rest...
Sunday, January 7, 2007
National Conference on Methamphetamine, HIV and Hepatitis - Day One Agenda February 1, 2007 (final)
www.methconfernece.org
Time Title of Presentation Presenter Position and Organization Room Type of Session
7:00 AM Yoga with John Cottrell Director of Program Services, Harm Reduction Project, Salt Lake City Topaz
7:00 AM Acupuncture with Jennifer Gross Acupuncturist, Harm Reduction Project, Denver Executive Boardroom
7:00 AM Registration Opens
Unpaid Registrations: Coat Room
Prepaid Registrations: Alpine Foyer
8:00 AM Breakfast Grand Ballroom Foyer
9:00 AM Welcome and Keynote Grand Ballroom
* Angela Baca, Policy Analysis, Harm Reduction Project, Washington D.C.
* Luciano Colonna, Executive Director, Harm Reduction Project
* Mayor Anderson, Mayor, Salt Lake City
* Patricia Case, Senior Scientist, Fen way Institute, Boston
* Caitlin Padgett, Youth Organizer, Vancouver, Canada
10:15 AM Break Break
10:30 AM Plenary I (CME) Grand Ballroom
* Steve Shoptaw, PhD Research Psychologist, UCLA
* Yves-Michel Fontaine, EdM, CASAC Crystal Clear Project Director, Addiction Institute of NY
* Barbara Sullivan, PhD Associate Director, Utah Addiction Center
* Allan Clear, HRC Executive Director, Harm Reduction Coalition
* Cathy Reback, PhD Behavioral Research Sociologist, UCLA
* Richard Curtis, PhD Chair of Anthropology Dept., John Jay College of CJ
* Moderator: Robert Heimer, PhD Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale
12:30 PM Lunch on your own
1:45 PM Major Session A: Women and Meth (CME)
* Deborah Small, JD Break The Chains, NY
* Patricia Case, Sc.D Fenway Institute, Boston
* Sheigla Murphy, PhD Institute for Scientific Analysis, San Francisco
* Wyndi Anderson Harm Reduction Project, Washington D.C.
* Corrine Carey, JD Break The Chains, NY
* Moderator: Kathy Bray Volunteers of America, Salt Lake City
Major Session B: Interventions with MSM Grand Ballroom B
* Adapting Gay-Affirmative, Evidence-Based Interventions for Use in a Community Based Drug Treatment Clinic - Peter Theodore, PhD Friends Research Institute, Los Angeles
* Community Education, Dialogue and Support in NYC - The GMHC Experience - Bill Stackhouse Gay Men's Health Crisis,, NY
* Stonewall and Beyond - Michael Siever Stonewall Project, San Francisco
* Positive Reinforcement Opportunity Project: Looking at New Treatment Concepts for MSM Who Use Meth - Frank Stona & Brandon Ivory Dept. of Public Health, San Francisco
* Moderator: David Ferguson - Utah AIDS Foundation, Salt Lake City
Major Session C: Syringe Exchange (Part One) Alpine East Panel
* Do methamphetamine injectors use syringe exchange programs differently that other injectors? Evidence from CalSEP - Ricky Bluthenthal, PhD, Rand Researcher, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA
* Syringe Access for Meth Users: The California Policy Environment - Alessandra Ross CA Dept. of Health Services, Office of AIDS
* TBA
* Moderator: Nikos A. Leverenz
Faith and Spirituality Salon I Breakout
* 12 Step Support Groups and Reducing HIV Risk Among Meth Users - Thomas Lyons, PhD University of Illinois
* You Are Called: A Faith-Based Initiative - Pearl Whitehurst, RN Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene, Maryland
* Spirituality in Communities of Color - Johanna Koskinen, Hepatitis C Multicultural Outreach, Kansas City, MO
* The Work of LDS Family Services - Doug LeChiminant, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Utah (Invited)
* Moderator: Paul Simons Yale University
Law Enforcement Panel Alpine West Breakout
* Restorative Justice - Sim Gill, J.D. Chief City Prosecutor, Salt Lake City
* Interdiction on the Rez - Vicki Peterson Salish Kootenai College-Nursing Dept., Pablo, MT
* TBA Invited - Eric Luna
* Does Incarceration Prevent Drug Abuse? The Prisoners' Perspectives - Paul Gahlinger, M.D., PhD, M.P.H. Davis County Correctional Facility, Utah
* Moderator: Gabriel Sayegh Drug Policy Alliance, NY
Working with Active Users Canyon C Breakout
* Supervising Active Drug Users - Peter Silva Life Foundation, Honolulu
* Men of Color Outreach Project - Jason Farrell & Terry Evans Posive Health Project, NY
* Project NEON: Peer Support Programs - DL Scott Seattle Counseling Services
* Moderator: Mary Howe San Francisco Needle Exchange
Drug Policy: A Primer Topaz Breakout
* How States are Dealing With Meth Offenders - Politics Driven by Fear Rather Than Reason - Tamar Todd Drug Policy Alliance, Berkeley
* Responding to Meth: California's Proposition 36 Demonstrates the Promise of Treatment Instead of Incarceration - Theshia Naidoo Drug Policy Alliance, Berkeley
* Meth and the Brain: Three Biological Motifs to Consider When Implementing Drug Policy - Harry Hughes, PhD Salt Lake Community College
* Moderator: Gabriel Sayegh State Organizing and Poicy Project, Drug Policy Alliance
Is La TINA Latina? Canyon B Workshop
An Intervention for Concerned Partners and
Friends of Methamphetamine Users
* Rafael Diaz, PhD Cesar E. Chavez Institute, San Francisco
* J. Antionio Aguilar-Karyianni Cesar E. Chavez Institute, San Francisco
* Jaime Gutierrez, MPH AIDS Project of Los Angeles
* George Ayala, PsyD AIDS Project of Los Angeles
Designing a Community MAP Canyon A Workshop
A Workshop on Strategies for Conducting a Community Meth Assessment Project
* P.Allison Minugh Datacorp, Providence, RI
* Susan Janke Datacorp, Providence, RI
Research: From Utah to the Ukraine Salon II Breakout
* A Review of Deaths Involving Methamphetamine in Utah, 1995-2005 - Gambrelli Layco Utah Public Health Laboratories
* Substance Use Patters and Meth Use in a Nationally Representative Sample - Brain Flaherty, PhD University of Washington
* Stimulant Injectors From Three Ukraine Cities - Robert Booth, PhD University of Colorado
* The Impact of Meth Use on Inpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities for Youth in Canada - Russ Callaghan, PhD Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Vancouver
* History of Methamphetamine - Tilmann Holzer University of Mannheim, Germany
* Moderator: Marla Corwin University of Colorado Health Sciences Center
Reaching the Active Gay/Bisexual User: Social Seminar Theater Workshop Marketing with Unique Marketing Strategies
* David Contios HIV Funding Collaborative, San Diego
3:30 PM Break
3:45 PM Crystal Meth and HIV (CME) Salon III Workshop
* Kevin Kapila, MD Fenway Community Health Center, Boston
Online Interventions Seminar Theater Breakout
* What's Love Got To Do With It? Sex, Addiction and the Internet - Clint Ibele Northern Kentucky Health Department
* The Clean, Sober and Sexy Campaign - David Barrett Desert AIDS Project, Palm Springs, CA
* Hi! My Name is Tina - Nick Boyce AIDS Committee of Toronto
* Moderator: Don McVinney, MSSW Harm Reduction Coalition, NY
HIV and Meth Prevention in the Transgender Community Canyon C Workshop
* Billie-Jean Kanios Walden House, Inc., San Francisco
Men and Skillful Means: Salon II Workshop
A Therapy for MSM Speed Users
* Paul Simons Yale University
* Yves-Michel Fontaine, EdM, CASAC (trainee) "Crystal Clear Project", Addiction Institute of NY
Understanding MSM and Meth Today Canyon A Panel
* Crystal Meth: Underlying Issues Motivating Use for Gay, Bisexual and MSM of Color - Norman Candelario Community Based Research Coordinator, NY
* Crystal: It's Not Just For White Boys Anymore - Alex Barrios, Charles Martin South Beach AIDS Project, FL
* Struggling with Meth Use HIV+ MSM in a San Francisco bay Area County - Maggie Chartier PGSP-Stanford Consortium
* Meth Use Among Gay Men: Findings From GLMA's 2006 "Breaking the Grip" Project - James Beaudreau Gay and Lesbian Medical Association, San Francisco
* Moderator: Mark Hammer New York State Dept. of Health
* Don't Lie To Me: Moving Beyond Scare Canyon B Panel
* Tactics and Surveillance Programs in Meth Prevention
* Caitlin Padgett Youth Organizer, Vancouver, CAN
* Jennifer Kern Drug Policy Alliance, San Francisco
* Camilla Field Drug Policy Alliance, San Francisco
* Moderator: Nicole Campolucci Homeless Youth Resource Center, Salt Lake City
Raising the Speed Limit Topaz Panel
* Panelists to be announced
* David Roach Health Promoter - Waihi Waikato District Health Board Hamilton, New Zealand
* Moderator: Bill Piper Drug Policy Alliance, Washington D.C.
Neighbors Building Community Salon I Workshop
* Javier Herrera Meth Free Alliance, Tuscon, AZ
Building Skills on Advocating for Research Alpine East Workshop
* Julie Davids Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP), Providence, RI
Curriculum aimed at HIV/STD Prevention for Women who are at High Risk due to Substance Abuse and Trauma Alpine West Workshop
* Germayne Tizzano Views From a Treehouse, Inc., Ohio
7:30 PM- 8:45 PM NCOMHH Film Festivla C Grand Ballroom A (popcorn will be provided)
Films
Opening - KUED New Documentary On Methamphetamine: 10 Minute Teaser
Feature Presentation
ROCK BOTTOM - Gay Men & Meth
Directed & Produced by Jay Corcoran
Produced by Colin A. Weil
"Cautionary...disturbing...remarkable candor. [director] Jay Corcoran has never shied away from...painful and politically touchy aspects of gay male sexuality." ??
- Stephen Holden, New York Times
"Terrific" - Bay Area Reporter
"Too alarming to be ignored" - Philadelphia City Paper
"A testament to how difficult addiction and recovery is, a message that bears repeating" - Philadelphia Gay New
Running Time: 61 mins
www.methconfernece.org
Time Title of Presentation Presenter Position and Organization Room Type of Session
7:00 AM Yoga with John Cottrell Director of Program Services, Harm Reduction Project, Salt Lake City Topaz
7:00 AM Acupuncture with Jennifer Gross Acupuncturist, Harm Reduction Project, Denver Executive Boardroom
7:00 AM Registration Opens
Unpaid Registrations: Coat Room
Prepaid Registrations: Alpine Foyer
8:00 AM Breakfast Grand Ballroom Foyer
9:00 AM Welcome and Keynote Grand Ballroom
* Angela Baca, Policy Analysis, Harm Reduction Project, Washington D.C.
* Luciano Colonna, Executive Director, Harm Reduction Project
* Mayor Anderson, Mayor, Salt Lake City
* Patricia Case, Senior Scientist, Fen way Institute, Boston
* Caitlin Padgett, Youth Organizer, Vancouver, Canada
10:15 AM Break Break
10:30 AM Plenary I (CME) Grand Ballroom
* Steve Shoptaw, PhD Research Psychologist, UCLA
* Yves-Michel Fontaine, EdM, CASAC Crystal Clear Project Director, Addiction Institute of NY
* Barbara Sullivan, PhD Associate Director, Utah Addiction Center
* Allan Clear, HRC Executive Director, Harm Reduction Coalition
* Cathy Reback, PhD Behavioral Research Sociologist, UCLA
* Richard Curtis, PhD Chair of Anthropology Dept., John Jay College of CJ
* Moderator: Robert Heimer, PhD Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale
12:30 PM Lunch on your own
1:45 PM Major Session A: Women and Meth (CME)
* Deborah Small, JD Break The Chains, NY
* Patricia Case, Sc.D Fenway Institute, Boston
* Sheigla Murphy, PhD Institute for Scientific Analysis, San Francisco
* Wyndi Anderson Harm Reduction Project, Washington D.C.
* Corrine Carey, JD Break The Chains, NY
* Moderator: Kathy Bray Volunteers of America, Salt Lake City
Major Session B: Interventions with MSM Grand Ballroom B
* Adapting Gay-Affirmative, Evidence-Based Interventions for Use in a Community Based Drug Treatment Clinic - Peter Theodore, PhD Friends Research Institute, Los Angeles
* Community Education, Dialogue and Support in NYC - The GMHC Experience - Bill Stackhouse Gay Men's Health Crisis,, NY
* Stonewall and Beyond - Michael Siever Stonewall Project, San Francisco
* Positive Reinforcement Opportunity Project: Looking at New Treatment Concepts for MSM Who Use Meth - Frank Stona & Brandon Ivory Dept. of Public Health, San Francisco
* Moderator: David Ferguson - Utah AIDS Foundation, Salt Lake City
Major Session C: Syringe Exchange (Part One) Alpine East Panel
* Do methamphetamine injectors use syringe exchange programs differently that other injectors? Evidence from CalSEP - Ricky Bluthenthal, PhD, Rand Researcher, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA
* Syringe Access for Meth Users: The California Policy Environment - Alessandra Ross CA Dept. of Health Services, Office of AIDS
* TBA
* Moderator: Nikos A. Leverenz
Faith and Spirituality Salon I Breakout
* 12 Step Support Groups and Reducing HIV Risk Among Meth Users - Thomas Lyons, PhD University of Illinois
* You Are Called: A Faith-Based Initiative - Pearl Whitehurst, RN Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene, Maryland
* Spirituality in Communities of Color - Johanna Koskinen, Hepatitis C Multicultural Outreach, Kansas City, MO
* The Work of LDS Family Services - Doug LeChiminant, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Utah (Invited)
* Moderator: Paul Simons Yale University
Law Enforcement Panel Alpine West Breakout
* Restorative Justice - Sim Gill, J.D. Chief City Prosecutor, Salt Lake City
* Interdiction on the Rez - Vicki Peterson Salish Kootenai College-Nursing Dept., Pablo, MT
* TBA Invited - Eric Luna
* Does Incarceration Prevent Drug Abuse? The Prisoners' Perspectives - Paul Gahlinger, M.D., PhD, M.P.H. Davis County Correctional Facility, Utah
* Moderator: Gabriel Sayegh Drug Policy Alliance, NY
Working with Active Users Canyon C Breakout
* Supervising Active Drug Users - Peter Silva Life Foundation, Honolulu
* Men of Color Outreach Project - Jason Farrell & Terry Evans Posive Health Project, NY
* Project NEON: Peer Support Programs - DL Scott Seattle Counseling Services
* Moderator: Mary Howe San Francisco Needle Exchange
Drug Policy: A Primer Topaz Breakout
* How States are Dealing With Meth Offenders - Politics Driven by Fear Rather Than Reason - Tamar Todd Drug Policy Alliance, Berkeley
* Responding to Meth: California's Proposition 36 Demonstrates the Promise of Treatment Instead of Incarceration - Theshia Naidoo Drug Policy Alliance, Berkeley
* Meth and the Brain: Three Biological Motifs to Consider When Implementing Drug Policy - Harry Hughes, PhD Salt Lake Community College
* Moderator: Gabriel Sayegh State Organizing and Poicy Project, Drug Policy Alliance
Is La TINA Latina? Canyon B Workshop
An Intervention for Concerned Partners and
Friends of Methamphetamine Users
* Rafael Diaz, PhD Cesar E. Chavez Institute, San Francisco
* J. Antionio Aguilar-Karyianni Cesar E. Chavez Institute, San Francisco
* Jaime Gutierrez, MPH AIDS Project of Los Angeles
* George Ayala, PsyD AIDS Project of Los Angeles
Designing a Community MAP Canyon A Workshop
A Workshop on Strategies for Conducting a Community Meth Assessment Project
* P.Allison Minugh Datacorp, Providence, RI
* Susan Janke Datacorp, Providence, RI
Research: From Utah to the Ukraine Salon II Breakout
* A Review of Deaths Involving Methamphetamine in Utah, 1995-2005 - Gambrelli Layco Utah Public Health Laboratories
* Substance Use Patters and Meth Use in a Nationally Representative Sample - Brain Flaherty, PhD University of Washington
* Stimulant Injectors From Three Ukraine Cities - Robert Booth, PhD University of Colorado
* The Impact of Meth Use on Inpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities for Youth in Canada - Russ Callaghan, PhD Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Vancouver
* History of Methamphetamine - Tilmann Holzer University of Mannheim, Germany
* Moderator: Marla Corwin University of Colorado Health Sciences Center
Reaching the Active Gay/Bisexual User: Social Seminar Theater Workshop Marketing with Unique Marketing Strategies
* David Contios HIV Funding Collaborative, San Diego
3:30 PM Break
3:45 PM Crystal Meth and HIV (CME) Salon III Workshop
* Kevin Kapila, MD Fenway Community Health Center, Boston
Online Interventions Seminar Theater Breakout
* What's Love Got To Do With It? Sex, Addiction and the Internet - Clint Ibele Northern Kentucky Health Department
* The Clean, Sober and Sexy Campaign - David Barrett Desert AIDS Project, Palm Springs, CA
* Hi! My Name is Tina - Nick Boyce AIDS Committee of Toronto
* Moderator: Don McVinney, MSSW Harm Reduction Coalition, NY
HIV and Meth Prevention in the Transgender Community Canyon C Workshop
* Billie-Jean Kanios Walden House, Inc., San Francisco
Men and Skillful Means: Salon II Workshop
A Therapy for MSM Speed Users
* Paul Simons Yale University
* Yves-Michel Fontaine, EdM, CASAC (trainee) "Crystal Clear Project", Addiction Institute of NY
Understanding MSM and Meth Today Canyon A Panel
* Crystal Meth: Underlying Issues Motivating Use for Gay, Bisexual and MSM of Color - Norman Candelario Community Based Research Coordinator, NY
* Crystal: It's Not Just For White Boys Anymore - Alex Barrios, Charles Martin South Beach AIDS Project, FL
* Struggling with Meth Use HIV+ MSM in a San Francisco bay Area County - Maggie Chartier PGSP-Stanford Consortium
* Meth Use Among Gay Men: Findings From GLMA's 2006 "Breaking the Grip" Project - James Beaudreau Gay and Lesbian Medical Association, San Francisco
* Moderator: Mark Hammer New York State Dept. of Health
* Don't Lie To Me: Moving Beyond Scare Canyon B Panel
* Tactics and Surveillance Programs in Meth Prevention
* Caitlin Padgett Youth Organizer, Vancouver, CAN
* Jennifer Kern Drug Policy Alliance, San Francisco
* Camilla Field Drug Policy Alliance, San Francisco
* Moderator: Nicole Campolucci Homeless Youth Resource Center, Salt Lake City
Raising the Speed Limit Topaz Panel
* Panelists to be announced
* David Roach Health Promoter - Waihi Waikato District Health Board Hamilton, New Zealand
* Moderator: Bill Piper Drug Policy Alliance, Washington D.C.
Neighbors Building Community Salon I Workshop
* Javier Herrera Meth Free Alliance, Tuscon, AZ
Building Skills on Advocating for Research Alpine East Workshop
* Julie Davids Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP), Providence, RI
Curriculum aimed at HIV/STD Prevention for Women who are at High Risk due to Substance Abuse and Trauma Alpine West Workshop
* Germayne Tizzano Views From a Treehouse, Inc., Ohio
7:30 PM- 8:45 PM NCOMHH Film Festivla C Grand Ballroom A (popcorn will be provided)
Films
Opening - KUED New Documentary On Methamphetamine: 10 Minute Teaser
Feature Presentation
ROCK BOTTOM - Gay Men & Meth
Directed & Produced by Jay Corcoran
Produced by Colin A. Weil
"Cautionary...disturbing...remarkable candor. [director] Jay Corcoran has never shied away from...painful and politically touchy aspects of gay male sexuality." ??
- Stephen Holden, New York Times
"Terrific" - Bay Area Reporter
"Too alarming to be ignored" - Philadelphia City Paper
"A testament to how difficult addiction and recovery is, a message that bears repeating" - Philadelphia Gay New
Running Time: 61 mins
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