Addiction Medicine

[2ndyear]

For some reason, I've been seeing a lot of patients on Suboxone. This lead me to briefly research the field of addiction medicine, see who does it, etc. With Hospice and Palliative Medicine recently becoming within our reach as anesthesiologists, it makes sense that this field should open as well. Anesthesia/pain physicians are on the front lines of the battle of opiate addiction, and who better but an anesthesiologist to deal with opiate receptors and drugs that occupy them, and side effects? Apparently the field is in process of ACGME recognition. Any interest?
http://www.asam.org/

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[QofQuimica]

For some reason, I've been seeing a lot of patients on Suboxone. This lead me to briefly research the field of addiction medicine, see who does it, etc. With Hospice and Palliative Medicine recently becoming within our reach as anesthesiologists, it makes sense that this field should open as well. Anesthesia/pain physicians are on the front lines of the battle of opiate addiction, and who better but an anesthesiologist to deal with opiate receptors and drugs that occupy them, and side effects? Apparently the field is in process of ACGME recognition. Any interest?
http://www.asam.org/

I am. Before med school, I was a pharmaceutical chemist. It seems like addiction medicine would be a good field for someone with my background. I've been a little leery so far, mainly because it seems like the path to addiction medicine currently requires a psych residency. I'm not sure that three years of psych would be the most applicable training for an addiction researcher. But if addiction medicine became its own specialty and the residency was more interdisciplinary (including psych but not limited to psych), that would be a lot more appealing from my perspective. I'm currently in my third year, so hopefully this accreditation will happen sooner rather than later!

 

[pseudoknot]

I've been a little leery so far, mainly because it seems like the path to addiction medicine currently requires a psych residency.

You can do it from IM and other specialties, I believe. We have someone at MCV who did, and he's very enthusiastic about the field.

 

[QofQuimica]

You can do it from IM and other specialties, I believe. We have someone at MCV who did, and he's very enthusiastic about the field.

That may well be, but I'm not all that gung-ho about three years of medicine residency, either. You'll see what I mean once you go on your first set of multi-hour marathon rounds and have to spend the whole time trying to appear as interested and enthusiastic as possible.