The current COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly affected various populations globally. The International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) believes that the impact of this pandemic on people struggling with Substance Use Disorders could not be overlooked and will be holding a series of webinars with partners from different parts of the world, discussing challenges and solutions regarding the current pandemic from the addiction medicine perspective. The objective of these webinars is to support colleagues in the field of addiction medicine to learn from peers who either have undergone profound changes in service delivery or are on the brink of doing so.

First Session: Mon, Mar 23, 2020 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM (ET) 

Attendees: Please register by sending an email to isam [dot] NIG [at] gmail [dot] com (isam[dot]NIG[at]gmail[dot]com)

Few Suggested Questions for Speakers (3 min, one slide) (Please send your slide for hekhtiari [at] laureateinstitute [dot] org and isam [dot] NIG [at] gmail [dot] com (isam[dot]NIG[at]gmail[dot]com) before Sunday 22nd March noon ET): 

1. What example of good practice can you share with us?
2. What were the items that were considered as non essential and might have unintended consequences to the substance using populations?
3. What training/research/policy would you like to see happen now and later to be better prepared in the future?

Agenda

8:00-8:05, Brief Overview on Webinar Agenda

8:05-8:15, Introduction Talk by Leaders of International Organizations (to be confirmed)

8:15-8:35, Harm Reduction Panel: Brian Conway, (Canada), Marica Ferri (EMCDDA), Ramin Radfar (Iran), Ryan McNeil (US), one other speaker from Australia (to be confirmed)

8:35-8:55, COVID19 and OST Panel: Alex Baldacchino (UK), Nico Clark (Australia and WHO), Ali Farhoudian (Iran), Giuseppe Carra (Italy), Igor Koutsenok (US)

8:55-9:15, Abstinence and Recovery Based Interventions, Psychosocial Support and COVID-19 Panel: Greg Bunt (US), Rick Rawson (US), Christos Koumstiditis (Greece), Azarakhsh Mokri (Iran), one speaker from US (to be confirmed)

9:15-9:30, Reporting National Experiences: 

Belgium Geert Dom (Antwerp University, European Federation of Addiction Societies (EUFAS))

Iran Gelareh Mostashari (UNODC, Iran Office)

New Zealand, Susanna Galea-Singer (Centre for Addictions Research, University of Auckland)

China (to be confirmed), Italy (to be confirmed), US (to be confirmed), Germany (to be confirmed), Greece (to be confirmed)

9:30-9:50, Group Discussions on Major Questions and Potential Answers

9:50-9:55, Meeting Conclusion: Challenges and Hope, Alex Baldachino (ISAM President Elect, University of St Andrews), Kathleen Brady (ISAM President, Medical University of South Carolina)

 9:55-10:00, Meeting Wrap Up and Next Steps, Hamed Ekhtiari (LIBR, US)