A central mission of this P50 Center of Excellence is to provide infrastructure and expertise to 1) attract, train, and foster development of careers in drug abuse research, and 2) promote widespread dissemination of research findings and to train providers to improve quality of care for individuals with Drug Use Disorders. The Training and Education Core provides support for all training and educational activities related to the Center to ensure the integrity, impact and relevance of the training and educational missions of the Center. The Division on Substance Abuse has a long tradition of developing and promoting various educational programs including medical education, research fellowship training, training of medical practitioners, outreach to community programs to promote research and practice improvement, public health advocacy, and contribution to international efforts in drug use prevention, treatment and care. The creation of this P50 Center of Excellence will foster integration and enhancement of all these activities through shared resources and expertise. The Training and Education Core will not only support and aim to increase the quality of current educational endeavors, but will foster collaboration between those educational programs to enrich them and create opportunities to develop new integrative educational programs and missions.
The Aims of the Training and Education Core are to provide: 1) Education in the area of substance abuse treatment at the level of medical school, residency training, and continued training of medical professionals;2) Recruitment and training of future generations of investigators focused on the development of treatments for drug use disorders through support of the activities of T32-funded Addiction Research Fellowship;3) Widespread dissemination of research findings and best clinical practices in the area of substance abuse research and treatment through a wide range of educational activities including symposia, grand rounds, lectures, and seminars. Center's faculty will contribute to a national educational initiative funded by SAMHSA, the Physician Clinical Support System for Medication Assisted Treatment (PCSS-MAT). The faculty will also reach out to grassroots patient organizations, governmental agencies, and national and international professional organizations. Efforts at dissemination of evidence-based practices will be directed at community treatment programs locally through a New York Node of Clinical Trials Network, as well as internationally through United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime;and 4) Training to faculty to enhance their skills in teaching, communication, and research mentoring. Consolidation of the above functions within the Training and Education Core will assure that the resources of the Center and its Projects and other Cores are maximally utilized to promote clinical and research training locally, nationally, and internationally.
