PORTLAND— MaineHealth will bring together health care professionals, behavioral health clinicians, advocates and people with lived experience on Wednesday, Oct. 21, for its annual substance use treatment conference, Break the Stigma: Build the Bridge. 

The daylong conference will explore approaches to preventing and treating substance use disorders, reducing stigma and strengthening connections among health care providers, community partners and people affected by substance use. 

The conference will feature keynote speaker Nzinga Harrison, MD, co-founder and chief medical officer of Eleanor Health and co-author of Un-Addiction: 6 Mind-Changing Conversations That Could Change a Life. Harrison is double-board certified in adult psychiatry and addiction medicine and is a nationally recognized advocate for changing the way substance use disorders are understood and treated, according to a MaineHealth news release.

Joji Suzuki, MD, an addiction psychiatrist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, will lead a plenary session on the Efficacy of GLP-1 Agonists in Treating Substance Use Disorder. 

Additional sessions throughout the day will give participants opportunities to learn about emerging issues and evidence-based approaches in substance use prevention, treatment and recovery while exchanging ideas and strategies with colleagues from across disciplines. 

Break the Stigma: Build the Bridge will be held Wednesday, Oct. 21, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., at 110 Free Street, Portland, ME or online via Zoom. Participants may earn up to 5.75 CMEcredits for attending. The cost is $75 to attend in person and includes lunch or $50 to attend virtually.

Learn more and register. 

MaineHealth is a not-for-profit, integrated health system whose vision is, “Working together so our communities are the healthiest in America,” and is committed to a mission of providing high-quality affordable care, educating tomorrow's caregivers and researching better ways to provide care. MaineHealth includes a Level 1 trauma medical center, eight additional licensed hospitals, comprehensive pediatric care services, an extensive behavioral health care network, diagnostic services as well as home health, hospice and senior care services. With more than 2,000 employed providers and approximately 23,000 care team members, MaineHealth provides preventive care, diagnosis and treatment to 1.1 million residents in Maine and New Hampshire. MaineHealth hospitals include MaineHealth Behavioral Health at Spring Harbor in Westbrook, MaineHealth Franklin Hospital in Farmington, MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital in Damariscotta, MaineHealth Maine Medical Center in Portland, Biddeford and Sanford, MaineHealth Memorial Hospital in North Conway, N.H., MaineHealth Mid Coast Hospital in Brunswick, MaineHealth Pen Bay Hospital in Rockport, MaineHealth Stephens Hospital in Norway and MaineHealth Waldo Hospital in Belfast. MaineHealth also includes the MaineHealth Barbara Bush Children’s, MaineHealth Behavioral Health in Westbrook, MaineHealth Home Health and Hospice in Saco, the MaineHealth Institute for Research in Scarborough, the MaineHealth Medical Group and MaineHealth NorDx in Scarborough. MaineHealth affiliates include MaineGeneral Health in Augusta and Waterville. It is also a significant stakeholder in the MaineHealth Accountable Care Organization in Portland and a joint venture partner in the New England Rehabilitation Hospital in Portland.