High Truths on Drugs and Addiction

Connor Sheets' investigative stories have resulted in public health alerts, federal investigations, and international ramifications. His investigations included finding that Mexican pharmacies were selling counterfeit pain pills that contain fentanyl and smoke shops were selling chocolate magic mushrooms that contain THC or bath salts. Connor Sheets is an investigative and enterprise reporter for...

56% of drivers involved in serious injury and fatal crashes tested positive for a least one drug.  I talked to Ari Briskman to get boots on the ground law enforcement perspective of drugged driving. Sergeant Ari Briskman has served as a law enforcement officer since 2007. Ari is presently assigned full-time as the Commander of the Marine Unit for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. Ari also serves t...

Drug and Alcohol Policy dates to Talmudic times. Ancient Rabbis established rules, or policy for their village. They told their people to avoid crossing to the neighboring village on the Sabbath because those neighbors had a reputation for excessing drinking. Today drug policy can be extremely liberal - allowing free drug trade with no consequences, or very harsh - the death penalty for drug deali...

Fentanyl is the public health crisis of our times with 300 deaths a day from drugs, 60% driven by fentanyl. It is a humanitarian crisis. Fentanyl is a weapon of mass destruction. Quick fentanyl detection is important, and nanotechnology is playing a big role. Dr. Shalini Prasad’s research focuses on designing miniature cellular and molecular platforms, with the goal of creating faster and more aff...

College is a special time in a young person's life. It is a time of personal growth and learning. It is often the first time to live alone away from home. Freedom. Yet colleges pride themselves as being a top party school, like a badge of honor. Responsibility. While on spring break, 22 year old Riley Strain died because of such partying. His alcohol level was 0.228% and his THC level was over 50m...

They devil is in the details, or lack of details when in comes to Amendment 3, Florida's ballot initiative on legalizing marijuana. When California and other states legalized weed without including regulations and consumer protections, babies were poisoned, people were exposed to pesticides and contaminants, high potency products proliferated, emergency visits for cannabis poisoning skyrocketed, a...

In a study of 11,363 individuals with no psychotic disorder, cannabis use increased the risk of psychosis by 11 fold for ages 12 – 19.  I spoke with master behind the research. André McDonald, PhD, MPH, is an epidemiologist and postdoctoral fellow at McMaster University’s Peter Boris Centre for Addictions Research and Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Medicinal Cannabis Research. Dr. McDonald’s resea...

There is a lot to learn from the history of Big Tobacco, and we can get that history from Professor Richard Daynard, the man who went after Big Tobacco. Professor Daynard is at the forefront of an international movement to establish the legal responsibility of the tobacco industry for tobacco-induced death, disease and disability. He is president of the law school’s  Public Health Advocacy Institu...

What are the ethics in public health and addiction treatment? Is it for the better good of the public or the individual? Does the definition change when it comes to drugs? Nicholas B. King is an associate professor in the Biomedical Ethics Unit and Department of Social Studies of Medicine, and associate member of Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health at McGill Universi...

What happens if you take prescribed medications and are worried about doing an employee drug test?  The drug test is just one aspect of drug testing.  A physician will review a persons medical history and prescription when considering drug tests.  Dr. Kamer is such a physician.  Listen to our conver   Russell Kamer, MD Occupational Med/Primary Care New York, USA Russ Kamer, MD is a Clinical Associ...

Brooke Briggance comes from a multi-sector background in health, direct impact programming for children, youth and families, and non-profit work. She comes from lived experience, began her career in healthcare in the Department of Neurology at SUNY Stony Brook in New York, and has experience in administrative leadership and public education advocacy and reform. She served as the Executive Director...

What is compassion in drugs and addiction? Compassion that avoids consequences for committing a crime is not compassion, it is cruel.  Very Cruel – to the victim and the perpetrator. The Homeless, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act, YES on Prop 36 ,  will bring more compassion to Californians through deterrence and bringing back drug courts. Listen to someone who works with people who have ser...

Paul Martin For over two decades, Paul Martin has worked to ameliorate physical, emotional, and spiritual suffering. His work has focused largely around child welfare and child rights. He’s holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in philosophical ethics, is a former Anglican pastor, candidate for United States congress, and non profit CEO. In 2023 while on sabbatical in Northern New Mexico, Paul...

LA County California Gary Tsai, M.D . is a physician executive who is the Director of the Substance Abuse Prevention and Control, a division of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. In this role, he is responsible for leading nearly 500 staff with a budget of approximately $460M, overseeing a full spectrum of substance use prevention, harm reduction, and treatment services for the 10...

The gold standard for workplace drug testing is established by SAMHSA’s Division for Workplace Programs, DWP.  This affects 14 million employees.  DWP manages the National Laboratory Certification Program and oversees the Drug Testing Advisory Board.  Learn all a pl Ronald R. Flegel became the Director of the Division of Workplace Program in May of 2012.  He initially joined The Division of Workpl...

Matthew Maceira  is the Executive Director of Be Bold Street Ministries He uses his experience as a Dope Dealer to being a Hope Dealer Matthew survived many acts of brutality as a child and spent 27 years with active addiction, criminality, violence, and other drug world activities. He was wounded 14 times by knives and twice by gunshots. He received freedom and victory from all this through faith...

Amy Ronshausen is the Executive Director of both Drug Free America Foundation, Inc. and Save Our Society From Drugs (S.O.S.), national nonprofit organizations that work prevent substance abuse, increase access to evidence-based treatment, and promote sustained recovery. Mrs. Ronshausen has dedicated most of her adult life to the work of drug demand reduction. In her sixteen years with Drug Free Am...

  Thomas E. Freese, Ph. D., received his doctorate degree in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology in 1995. Dr. Freese is currently the Co-Director of UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs and Co-Director of the SAMHSA-funded Pacific Southwest Addiction Technology Transfer Center ( PSATTC, HHS Region 9 ). Dr. Freese has served as Principal Investigator on num...

Melissa Baldwin is a storyteller at heart.  She received her degree in theatre and spent over 20 years performing and teaching.  In addition, she immersed herself in various training opportunities around the topic of trauma informed care. Melissa currently oversees kNOw MORE!©, a drama based human trafficking prevention and awareness program developed by the Center for Justice and Reconciliation a...

CDC has several different units working on different diseases and injury prevention, even one dedicated to cannabis. To learn more about the CDC’s Cannabis Strategy Unit, I reached out to Douglas Roehler, PhD, MPH Health Scientist, Division of Overdose Prevention (DOP) Douglas Roehler, PhD, MPH, serves as a Health Scientist for the Cannabis Strategy Unit in the Division of Overdose Prevention at C...

Is it just pot and an inconsequential debate on changing the schedule of marijuana or is it much more? Are we talking about individual rights, marijuana as medicine, public health implications, the integrity of the FDA medication approval process , or the reliability of the USA in keeping international treaties. INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY ON THE SCIENCE AND IMPACT OF CANNABIS DOCTORS EDUCATING ON MARIJ...

Heather and Randy Bacchus   Heather Bacchus is a dedicated advocate and mother, whose life was forever changed by the tragic loss of her son, Randy Michael, to suicide as a result of Cannabis Induced Psychosis on July 17th, 2021. Randy’s struggles with marijuana use began at the tender age of 15, eventually leading to a diagnosis of cannabis use disorder by the time he was almost 17. Heather and h...

  Gerard Carroll, MD, is the Program Director for the EMS Fellowship at Cooper University Hospital. He is passionate about utilizing physician field response to translate the bedside, apprenticeship model of medical education into the field. His interests include addiction medicine and the role of urban EMS caring for underserved populations. As an undergraduate at Brandeis University, Dr. Carroll...