Our understanding of the brain has exponentially expanded over the past few decades. This extraordinary growth in knowledge has led to research illuminating specific brain areas involved in addiction with the hope that novel medications and targeted neurologic interventions can treat substance use disorders. Expansion of life-saving medications to treat Opioid Use Disorder has been a necessary public health priority. As important as these efforts have been, people are more than their brains and addiction is a multifaceted disorder. The biopsychosocial model is a framework that considers the important biological, psychological, and social factors that contribute to addiction. This talk will review the biopsychosocial model and address the critical domains necessary for comprehensive recovery.
Presenter
James H. Berry, DO is Professor and Chair of the Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry at West Virginia University School of Medicine and Director of Addictions. He and his colleagues at WVU have developed innovative community-based treatment models in response to the addiction epidemic in Appalachia and are actively engaged in groundbreaking neuroscience research through the WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute.
