Dr. Steven Shoptaw Presents This Year's Eric D. Hadar Distinguished Lecture

(New York, NY) - The annual Eric D. Hadar Distinguished Lecture at the Columbia University Department of Psychiatry will take place on Nov. 3. This year’s lecturer, Dr. Steven Shoptaw, will present his talk, “Medications as Foundation for Stimulant Use Disorder Treatment: Is it Time?,” at 11 a.m. in a virtual lecture. 

This event is a part of the annual lecture series on substance use disorders sponsored by the Eric D. Hadar Family Foundation. The Foundation’s generous commitment of $2 million was given to support the work of the Division on Substance Use Disorders. A portion of this gift included an endowed fund of $750,000 for the annual Hadar Distinguished Lecture. The remaining amount established the Eric D. Hadar Research Fund, which advances  research by providing resources for fellowship and faculty support, research projects, and laboratory infrastructure. 

As one of the leading addiction psychiatry programs in the nation, and routinely in the top five university drug and alcohol abuse programs as ranked by U.S. World and News Report, Columbia’s Division of Substance Use Disorders is at the forefront of addressing the critical addiction challenges facing New York City, New York state, and the nation.

The Division has had continuous NIH and industry funding for nearly 30 years, including 37 active federal grants and subawards, training awards, and industry contracts. The area is comprised of 30 faculty members.

Eric Hadar is Chairman and CEO of Allied Partners, the real estate investment, development, and asset management company he founded in 1993. He also is a member of the Samaritan Daytop Foundation Board of Trustees, which raises money to support Samaritan Daytop Village, a human services agency that provides addiction recovery and support. 

Since 2016, the Eric D. Hadar Distinguished Lecture series has expanded understanding of both substance use and the treatments available to those dealing with these disorders. Previous speakers include Dorothy K. Hatsukami, PhD, Forster Family Chair in Cancer Prevention and Associate Director of Cancer Prevention and Control of the Masonic Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota, who spoke about tobacco harm reduction; Markus Heilig, MD PhD, Director of the Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience at Linköping University, who spoke about the need to update how studies on alcohol addiction are conducted; Dr. Kathleen M. Carroll, Principal Investigator of the Center for Psychotherapy Development at Yale, who spoke on moving validated behavioral therapies from the research clinic to the real world via the Stage Model; Dr. Paula Riggs, the Director of the Division of Substance Dependence at the University of Colorado Denver, who spoke on the public health impact and clinical implications of marijuana legalization; and Professor Sir John Strang, the head of the National Addictions Centre at Kings College London, who spoke on preventing opiate overdose deaths. 

Steven Shoptaw, PhD, is a Professor in the Departments of Family Medicine, and Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Family Medicine and Director of the Center for Behavioral and Addiction Medicine at UCLA Health.  His research involves developing medication and behavior interventions for stimulant and opioid use disorder—especially in the context of HIV transmission. He directs two centers at UCLA-the Center for HIV Identification, Prevention and Treatment Services and the Center for Behavioral and Addiction Medicine and recently is Multiple PI for NIDA’s Clinical Trials Network Big South/West Node. He leads work with partners in Vietnam and South Africa studying treatments for addiction and HIV transmission. 

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Columbia University Department of Psychiatry 

Columbia Psychiatry is among the top ranked psychiatry departments in the nation and has contributed greatly to the understanding and treatment of brain disorders. Co-located at the New York State Psychiatric Institute on the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Irving Medical Center campus in Washington Heights, the department enjoys a rich and productive collaborative relationship with physicians in various disciplines at the Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. Columbia Psychiatry is home to distinguished clinicians and researchers noted for their clinical and research advances in the diagnosis and treatment of depression, suicide, schizophrenia, bipolar and anxiety disorders, eating disorders, substance use disorders, and childhood psychiatric disorders.