Category Archives: Research

Talking Point Free Seminar Series

Gender differences in substance use disorders:
Implications for treatment

presented by Dr Shelly Greenfield, MD, MPH

For details of presentation & to register click here

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Talking Point 30th April 2025

Drug use trajectories in Melbourne:
How longitudinal studies can help us better understand people who use drugs

presented by Peter Higgs (PhD, BSW) is a Burnet Principal Research Fellow and Honorary in the Department of Public Health at La Trobe University

For details of presentation & to register click here

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Talking Point Free Seminar Series

Gender differences in substance use disorders: Implications for treatment, presented by Dr Shelly Greenfield, MD, MPH.

This presentation will review trends in the epidemiology of gender differences in the prevalence of substance use and substance use disorders in the U.S. . New data from a community survey of women (18-70 years) and substance use patterns and potential correlates in the U.S. will be presented. There will then be presentation of the evidence for the telescoping course of alcohol use disorders in females and a brief review of the physiology contributing to this illness trajectory

There will be a brief overview of the risks for substance use disorders in women and the role of gender-specific therapies in treating women with substance use disorders. The presentation will then present the indications and evidence for the Women’s Recovery Group (WRG), an evidence-based manualized gender-specific group therapy for women with substance use disorders that is now disseminated into clinical practice. It will then present new research examining digital adaptations of the WRG.

Shelly F. Greenfield, MD, MPH is Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the Kristine M. Trustey Endowed Chair of Psychiatry at McLean Hospital where she also serves as the Chief Academic Officer. She is the Chief of the Division of Women’s Mental Health and the Director of Clinical and Health Services Research and Education in the Alcohol, Drug and Addiction Treatment Program at McLean Hospital. She is the Mary Beth and Chris Gordon Fellow at the Harvard Radcliffe Institute (2024-2025) where she is studying gender differences in substance use disorders.

Dr. Greenfield is an addiction psychiatrist, clinician and researcher. She has served as Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator on federally funded research focusing on treatment for substance use disorders, gender differences in substance disorders, and health services for substance disorders. She received a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded career award in substance use disorder patient oriented research (2005-2016). Funded by grants from NIH/NIDA, she developed and tested a new manual-based group therapy for women with substance use disorders, the Women’s Recovery Group (WRG). The WRG is an evidence-based treatment and the manual for dissemination was published in 2016, Treating Women with Substance Use Disorders: The Women’s Recovery Group Manual. She is Past President of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry and past chair of the American Psychiatric Association’s Council on Addiction Psychiatry. She served as Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Review of Psychiatry for 16 years (2002-2018).

Dr. Greenfield was a member of the Advisory Committee on Services for Women for the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2011-2017) and a member of the NIH/NIDA National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse (2021-2024). She has been elected to the American College of Psychiatrists and the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, and is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. She received the R. Brinkley Smithers Distinguished Scientist Award from the American Society of Addiction Medicine, Harvard Medical School’s A. Clifford Barger Award for Excellence in Mentoring, the Stuart A. Hauser Award for Mentoring from the Harvard Medical School Department of Psychiatry, and the 2022 Dean’s Award for Community Service for the Mass General Brigham/McLean Hospital Outreach Program with Indian Health Service for service to the Northern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock, New Mexico

Date: Friday 21st March 2025
VenueOnline
Time: 12:30pm – 1:30pm AEDT
Cost: Free
Register: click here to register

Turning Point Research Roundup Newsletter

 

Research Roundup

Welcome to the February edition
of Turning Point’s Research Roundup newsletter.

In this edition:
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Turning Point Free Seminar Series

 

Psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy has shown promising safety and efficacy in treating depression, substance use disorders, and end-of-life distress. Although many trials report reductions in anxiety symptoms, no study to date has directly tested psilocybin’s effectiveness in treating a primary anxiety disorder. Relatedly, while both psychedelic therapists often claim that prior personal experience with psychedelics is crucial for developing therapeutic competence, no study has assessed this before.
We conducted two world-first studies with psilocybin: one focused on therapist training and the other on treating Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). In the therapist training study, 14 therapist volunteers underwent a structured protocol involving preparation, psilocybin dosing (25 mg), and integration, with changes in self-reported professional competencies assessed. The GAD trial was a randomized active-placebo-controlled study with 73 participants, assessing the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of a brief treatment protocol involving nine psychotherapy sessions and two psilocybin sessions (25 mg and 30 mg). Additional measures included quality of life, depression, and substance use.
This talk will provide an overview of the rationale, design, key outcomes, and lessons learned from both studies, and flag new and innovative research on psilocybin from our group.
Dr Paul Liknaitzky is Head of the Clinical Psychedelic Lab, and Senior Research Fellow within the Dept of Psychiatry at Monash University. He has played a central role in establishing the field of clinical psychedelic research in Australia, and is the Principal Investigator on a program of psychedelic trials.
Liknaitzky leads the country’s largest and most experienced group of psychedelic researchers and clinicians, and collaborates with numerous psychedelic groups nationally and internationally. In Australia, Liknaitzky established the first psychedelic lab, coordinated the first applied psychedelic therapist training program, obtained the first industry funding for psychedelic research, and co-convenes the Australasian Research Group on Psychedelic Science. Liknaitzky’s work is focused on investigating novel applications for psychedelic therapies, translating evidence into best clinical practice, exploring under-examined risks, delivering next-generation therapist training, and improving access and affordability.
Date: Wednesday 26th February 2025
VenueOnline
Time: 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEST
Cost: Free
Register: click here to register
If you have enquiries regarding registration please call (03) 8413 8413.

theMHS Envisioning 2050

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

Submit an abstract for a chance to present at TheMHS Conference 2025 ‘Envisioning 2050: Towards a better Mental Health System’

What will the world be like in 2050 and what will the impact of these changes be on our mental health. This conference will explore how the world might evolve and what we need to do to consolidate the things we already do, and the new things we need to do to reach towards this utopian vision of an ideal mental health system. We invite you to consider this theme when submitting your abstract.

Click here to read the full vision statement for TheMHS Conference 2025.

The abstract submission process through our online portal is simple and easy. Please visit our website for more information about the abstract submission process and requirements or submit directly through the link below.

Abstract submissions close Friday February 28, 2025.

Let’s engage with the bold and improbable ideas needed to move us to action.

SUBMIT YOUR ABSTRACT HERE

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Extracts from Mental Health Australia CEO Weekly Update 13 November 2024

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Excerpts from Mental Health Foundation Weekly Update 30 October 2024

 

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