Recent News

Black youth suicide rates have been on the rise over the past two decades. SAMHSA’s Issue Brief, Black Youth Suicide Prevention, highlights the pressing concern of Black youth suicide and the role state leaders can play to address Black youth suicide in their communities.

August 6-8, 2025 UW–Madison Pyle Center Madison, Wisconsin Motivational interviewing (MI) is a highly flexible and powerful approach to helping practitioners address behavioral change and growth for their clients and patients. MI is particularly useful because it can be applied to a variety of situations and settings, including behavioral health, human services, health care, education, […]

Contingency management (CM) is a proven healthcare intervention with demonstrated effectiveness in treating a variety of substance use disorders (SUDs) among diverse populations. To advance the provision of evidence-based CM services that promote abstinence from a specific substance, or encourage treatment attendance or medication adherence, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) now […]

In January, the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) will be kicking off the first national Substance Use Disorder Treatment Month – a time to raise awareness of the benefits and availability of evidence-based treatments for people with a substance use disorder. We know so many […]

One World Recovery Network, in collaboration with SAMHSA’s Office of Recovery, launched the new Center for Addiction Recovery Support (CARS) on January 6, 2025! CARS provides tailored training, technical assistance (TA), and resources to advance and strengthen the nation’s recovery support services.  A dedicated team at UW–Madison has been selected to serve as a supporting organization […]

Burnout has an impact on work culture. Behavioral healthcare professionals may face higher risks of burnout compared to other professions. This blog post will discuss factors that may contribute to burnout in substance use and mental health treatment service providers and strategies to manage burnout in the workplace. Burnout is observed in service-oriented vocations and […]

Author: Amy Shanahan, MS, CADC  Evidence-based practices (EBPs) are critical in addiction treatment, using scientific research to guide clinical decisions and improve patient outcomes. Despite their effectiveness, widespread adoption of EBPs is hindered by challenges such as limited resources, lack of training, provider resistance, and systemic barriers1. To address these issues, targeted strategies like increased […]

A new study of nearly 10,000 adolescents has identified distinct differences in the brain structures of those who used substances before age 15 compared to those who did not. The journal JAMA Network Open  published the National Institutes of Health-funded study on December 30, 2024. Learn more.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is launching a working group to the National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse (NACDA) consisting of people with lived or living experience (PWLLE) with drug use. Primary purpose of the group: to advise on strategies for enhancing and increasing meaningful engagement of PWLLE with drug use in NIDA-funded […]

Addiction and behavioral health professionals who have repeated contact with trauma survivors can themselves experience vicarious trauma. Vicarious trauma is “second hand” trauma that is passed on to workers when they interact with individuals who experienced trauma “firsthand” or encounter information about the trauma1. The VOTE Index is an instrument developed to identify: Although measuring […]

SAMHSA has released two recovery fact sheets designed to empower individuals navigating mental health and substance use services and expand the adoption of recovery-oriented services and supports in state, local, and community behavioral health settings. Housing Supports Recovery and Well-Being: Definitions and Shared Values summarizes the role that housing plays in supporting recovery for recovery […]

Join us for a series of 8 immersive small group coaching sessions for leaders, where you'll dive deep into the Workplace Well-Being Guidebook, gaining valuable insights, and practical tools to transform your workplace culture and boost employee well-being. These groups will meet on Zoom every other week on Fridays from 11:30-12:30 Central time, beginning February […]

Working in mental health and recovery can be incredibly rewarding but also emotionally difficult. In their work, providers often deal with structural obstacles, stressful circumstances, and emotional burdens that can impact their personal and professional well-being. These aspects of clinical practice can result in the behavioral health workforce experiencing burnout, compassion fatigue, and/or moral injury. […]

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SAMHSA has issued a new Practical Guide: Advising People on Using 988 Versus 911: Practical Approaches for Healthcare Providers. People, including healthcare providers, have experienced confusion in deciding whether 988 or 911 is appropriate across a range of situations. Understanding the differences between 988 and 911 and being able to communicate these differences to people […]

SAMHSA has released a toolkit for the first Substance Use Disorder Treatment Month, to be observed January 2025. Treatment Month raises awareness of the benefits and availability of evidence-based treatments for people with a substance use disorder; addresses barriers to treatment, including stigma; and normalizes seeking help. The toolkit includes information about weekly themes, social […]

NOTE: THE CLAS TRAINING FOR PEERS HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY 18. Register for the new date here! (If you had registered for the original date, please forward your registration confirmation email to [email protected] to reserve a seat in the new class!) Join us this winter to learn about CLAS (Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services)! […]

The Northwest ATTC's monthly webinar series is returning on January 22, 2025 after a brief hiatus! Join us that Wednesday to hear from the Executive Director of the Hepatitis Education Project (HEP), Apoorva Mallya! Mallya will be talking about the prevalence of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the U.S., a disease that has devastating impacts […]

SAMHSA has released the Suicide Prevention Strategies for Underserved Youth, an evidence-based guide that provides strategies and insights specific to at-risk groups. The guide highlights existing research, discusses barriers that hinder youth’s access to prevention and intervention services, and offers guidance on selecting, implementing, and evaluating evidence-based prevention programs. It also highlights programs that are […]

By: Lucy Roberts, Ph.D., Public Health Advisor, CMHS Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression associated with seasonal changes. Although it’s often referred to as “winter blues,” SAD is more than just feeling “down.” In fact, SAD can be debilitating. Symptoms can interfere with an individual’s daily functioning and cause changes in mood, […]

Join the Northwest ATTC, Pacific Southwest ATTC, and the Western States Node of the NIDA Clinical Trials Network for our next joint webinar! Cannabis Use During Pregnancy: Research from Policy to PracticeFebruary 12, 2025 | 11am-12:30pm PTRegister here! About the webinarIn this webinar, Kelly Young-Wolff, PhD, MPH (a licensed clinical psychologist and research scientist at […]

In November and December, the New England ATTC had one-on-one meetingswith all 6 SSA offices to conduct a needs assessment of training and technical assistancepriorities. These meetings were led by Rosemarie Martin, Project Director, and Kelli Scott,Evaluation Director, and consisted of a discussion of each state’s priorities and identification ofspecific initiatives that the New England ATTC […]

The New England ATTC is delighted to announce that our regional TTC nowrepresents a strategic partnership among UMass Chan Medical School, Brown University Schoolof Public Health, and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Our ProjectDirector, Dr. Rosemarie Martin, is now a Professor of Population Quantitative and HealthSciences at UMass, which inspired the addition of UMass […]

The New England ATTC is hosting its 2nd Annual Leadership Development Alumni Conference titled "Leaders in Action" to be held in Nashua, New Hampshire on December 18th and 19th, 2024, in collaboration with the AdCare Educational Institute of New England and the New England PTTC. This annual conference brings together past participants of the LDP […]