Dear Colleagues, Advocates, Stakeholders and Friends,

It is with the greatest pleasure that I invite all of you to attend our 2009 AATOD National Conference. Our hosts and sponsors, the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) and COMPA, New York State’s Medication Assisted Treatment Coalition as well as the conference planning committee are hard at work to make this conference one you will all remember. The conference not only provides five consecutive days of premier training on evidence based opioid dependence treatment but it marks the celebration of AATOD’s twenty-fifth anniversary as an organization – as we convene in New York, where methadone treatment was first developed and expanded.

I urge you to attend and focus on this Call for Presentations - an invitation to submit a workshop proposal or a poster to highlight the quality work you and your colleagues are providing to those in need. AATOD is dedicated to offering an outstanding conference experience full of opportunities to gain knowledge of successful, evidence based practices to improve the quality of patient care and to also provide a forum to develop consensus on the many issues that challenge programs, advocates and policy makers. The Call for Presentations seeks proposals for workshops and presentations that will highlight the broad range of innovative activities and programming that address the many diverse facets of our dynamic field. In attendance at the 2009 AATOD Conference will be counselors, nurses, physicians, social workers, psychologists and others, advocates for patient rights and dignity, research scientists, policy makers and other stakeholders who care deeply about our work. The conference theme focuses on Treatment and Recovery, the “people” we help and the “outcomes” we produce.

Over the past 25 years, AATOD has become the voice for building quality treatment programming for opioid dependent individuals, with a public policy mission to educate government agencies, programs, stakeholders and all concerned about the critical role of medication assisted treatment in treating opioid dependence and the science behind it. AATOD has been a leading force in promoting treatment with dignity and respect for those in need, combating the stigma and misunderstanding often associated with methadone maintenance treatment. AATOD Conferences are known worldwide for their ability to unite our field, foster communication and collegiality, train and inform. At the elegant Awards Banquet, AATOD recognizes those deserving individuals who have made significant contributions to our field and highlight why our work is so special.

Our conference hotel, the Hilton New York, is steps from the excitement of Times Square, the thrill of Broadway or a walk in Central Park. With the neon of New York just outside the hotel doors and the United Nations just across town, the 2009 Conference will focus us on AATOD’s policy efforts to make effective treatment accessible in this nation and around the world. You will debate the latest hot topics and learn about the issues confronting our programs and patients, and AATOD’s efforts to seek consensus and advocate for our field, as science informs policy and practice. Building on the success of AATOD Atlanta and San Diego, the New York conference will bring focus to rising prescription opioid addiction, induction and stabilization, risk management, cardiac conduction, co-occurring medical and mental health concerns and efforts to transform methadone treatment. AATOD will provide a forum for you to network, meet old friends and colleagues and advance our base of knowledge and awareness as we all celebrate treatment and recovery through medication assisted treatment.

On behalf of AATOD’s Board, our hosts and our top notch Planning Committee, I welcome you to the 2009 AATOD National Conference and urge you to collaborate with colleagues and submit presentations for consideration. Join us as we convene and celebrate at the Hilton New York in New York City April 25-29, 2009.

Warmest Regards,
Ira J. Marion, MA
2009 Conference Chair