FEB/MAR 2008
Volume 14 - No. 1

SRNT Newsletter

February/March 2008, Volume 14, Number 1

In the Spotlight

Nicotine & Tobacco News & Updates

IARC has now published monograph 89, “Smokeless Tobacco and Some Tobacco-specific N-Nitrosamines.” ISBN 978 92 832 1289 8. See: http://monographs.iarc.fr/, where a PDF is posted (641 pages).

Honors, Awards, & Achievements

Cathy Backinger has been named chief of the Tobacco Control Research Branch (TCRB) of the Behavioral Research Program in NCI’s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS), effective December 9, 2007. “Dr. Backinger has played a critical role in expanding our collaborations with both governmental and non-governmental organizations,” said Dr. Robert Croyle, DCCPS director. “Given that tobacco use is still the leading cause of preventable deaths in the U.S., the NIH needs talented leaders like Cathy who understand the complex interface of science, practice and policy.” Backinger joined NCI in 1998 as a health scientist with TCRB. She has served as a scientific program director for the development and implementation of extramural behavioral and public health research programs in prevention and cessation of tobacco use by youth.Although tobacco use has declined over the past few decades, one in five adults and a similar proportion of high school students are smokers. Backinger has led efforts to coordinate NIH-supported research with health campaigns and programs to increase the use of science in national and local tobacco control efforts. She recently testified before Congress concerning the misleading labeling of “light” and “low tar” cigarettes. In 2006, she served as program chair for the NIH State-of-the-Science Conference on Tobacco Use: Prevention, Cessation and Control. Prior to joining NCI, Backinger was director of the issues management staff in the Office of Surveillance and Biometrics, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Food and Drug Administration. She has also worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio department of health. While at CDC, Backinger worked on smokeless tobacco issues and developed and evaluated a smokeless tobacco prevention curriculum for Alaska Native schoolchildren. She received a Ph.D. in health policy from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, an M.P.H. from the University of Michigan and a B.S. in health education from Ohio State University.

Belinda Borrelli has been appointed as Assistant Editor to the journal Addiction. She will remain the Associate Editor at the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

Thomas Brandon was elected to be the next President-Elect for the American Psychological Association Division 50 (Addiction).

Ellen Gritz was recently awarded membership to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in October 2007.

Noboru Hiroi, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and of neuroscience, has been invited to join the editorial board of Neuropsychopharmacology, which is the official journal of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. He has also been selected to serve on the Ziskind-Somerfeld Award selection committee for the Society for Biological Psychiatry. As a member of the committee, Dr. Hiroi will help select the award recipient in each of the next three years, chosen from among the 10 top-ranking articles published in Biological Psychiatry

Conference Updates & Upcoming Training Opportunities

Intensive Treatment of the Tobacco Dependent Patient: A Certification Program for Tobacco Treatment Specialists (CTTS). The ACT Center for Tobacco Treatment, Education & Research

The University of Mississippi Medical Center. TTS 4-Day Workshops: Spring 2008: February 18 – 21 and Fall 2008: October 13 – 16. Offered since 2000, this workshop provides the experiences and resources necessary for attendees to establish and deliver an evidence-based, cognitive-behavioral, high-intensity tobacco intervention program. The curriculum is designed to meet TTS Core Competency Standards set forth by Association for the Treatment of Tobacco Use and Dependence (ATTUD: www.attud.org). Features include: Learning modules that address tobacco products, their use and effects, clinical assessment and intervention strategies (including group treatment), pharmacotherapy, program implementation, outcomes evaluation, and administrative considerations, attendees receive the Workshop Manual; as well as important supplemental documents provided the on the Resource Disc., extensive practice in the delivery of the ACT Center’s standardized Tobacco Dependence Intervention program. Materials provided include the Therapist Treatment Guide, Client Workbook, and Clinic Chart, option to take the online examination for Certification as a Tobacco Treatment Specialist (CTTS), our On-Line Clinical Database is now available, permitting secure storage of all data, generation of clinical intake reports and progress notes, output of program outcome statistics, and capacity to export data to standard statistics package formats (set-up fee and small monthly charge for this service), trainings may be conducted at other institutions / locations, permitting greater convenience for trainees, often at a reduced cost (call for details). Registration: $500 (General), $300 (MS residents), $250 (students limited seating). Covers all materials, continental breakfast / lunch / snacks each day, and certification costs.

TTS 2-Day Upgrade Workshop: By request. For those already trained as a TTS, this workshop provides the experience and materials to deliver the ACT Center Tobacco Dependence Intervention program. Fee covers all materials, continental breakfast / lunch / snacks each day. Registration: $250. To register and for more information, please visit http://actcenter.umc.edu/specialist_goal.html or contact Sue Lane: 601.815.1912 slane@sod.umsmed.edu.

Richard D. Hurt, M.D. of the Mayo Clinic would like to announce the following upcoming educational events sponsored by the Mayo Clinic Nicotine Dependence Center, Rochester MN:

15th Annual Nicotine Dependence Conference - A Focus on Mental Illness and Substance Abuse – April 28-29, 2008
Tobacco Treatment Specialist Certification Trainings:
- June 23-27, 2008
- September 15-19, 2008
- November 3-7, 2008
Motivational Interviewing (Facilitating Behavior Change)Workshops:
- April 7, 2008
- August 18, 2008

All Courses are offered in Rochester, MN. Please call 507-266-1093 for more information, or see the Mayo Clinic’s website for more information: http://ndc.mayo.edu