Division of  General Internal Medicine

Addiction Medicine Fellowship

Research Training

The UPMC Addiction Medicine Fellowship integrates robust academic and research training into every aspect of the program. Fellows gain experience in evidence-based practice, scholarly communication, and quality improvement while engaging with faculty and peers across clinical, educational, and research settings.

Formal Teaching

Fellows participate in a structured series of conferences and didactics designed to build knowledge, critical thinking, and presentation skills, including:

  • A one-week orientation boot camp during the first week of fellowship
  • A weekly Chief’s Conference covering key addiction-related topics
  • A monthly Journal Club shared with the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship
  • A monthly Case Conference or Didactic Session with Addiction Medicine and Psychiatry fellows
  • Weekly national virtual didactics hosted by the American College of Academic Addiction Medicine (ACAAM)

Each fellow presents at least once at both a Journal Club and Case Conference and completes a faculty-mentored quality improvement (QI) project. Recent QI projects have addressed topics such as:

  • Universal naloxone prescribing on discharge
  • Implementation of harm reduction services in primary care
  • STARS recovery support groups
  • Creation of a database to track outcomes for hospitalized patients with substance use disorders

 

Scholarly Engagement

Fellows are encouraged to share their work locally and nationally through conferences and community events, such as:

Through these academic and scholarly experiences, fellows strengthen their skills as clinician-educators and researchers, preparing them to advance the field of addiction medicine through innovation, advocacy, and leadership.

For more information, please contact: 

Tiffany Thomas
Addiction Medicine Program Coordinator
dixont2@upmc.edu