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 BRONX TIMES R 32     EPORTER, JULY 17-23, 2020 BTR 
 Dr. Shadi Nahvi, director, Addiction Medicine Fellowship program at Montefi ore and Einstein,  
 and associate professor of medicine, psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Einstein.      
   Courtesy of Montefi ore 
 Montefi ore gets $4 million grant 
 To help with Substance Abuse 
 BY JASON COHEN 
 Studies show that every six hours,  
 a person dies from a drug overdose in  
 New York City, with more deaths in  
 the Bronx than any other borough. 
 COVID-19 has made the overdose  
 epidemic even more dangerous because  
 many people feel isolated and  
 uncomfortable going to hospitals to  
 get care. 
 To ensure people get the substance  
 use  disorder  treatment  they  
 need, Montefi ore Health System  
 and Albert Einstein College of Medicine  
 have been awarded a $4 million  
 grant from the United States Department  
 of Health and Human Services  
 (HHS) to train physicians in addiction  
 medicine and strengthen relationships  
 with community partners.  
 The  Montefi ore-Einstein  Addiction  
 Medicine Fellowship, started in 2019,  
 continues to expand its commitment  
 to advancing substance use disorder  
 treatment in the Bronx. 
 “We are proud of our long-established  
 programs, but now more than  
 ever, we need to increase the number  
 of physicians equipped to treat those  
 with substance use disorders and  
 our presence in community-based  
 settings,” said Dr. Shadi Nahvi, director  
 of the Addiction Medicine Fellowship  
 program  at Montefi ore  and  
 Einstein, and associate professor of  
 medicine, psychiatry and behavioral  
 sciences at Einstein. 
 The fi ve-year HHS grant will fund  
 an Accreditation Council for Graduate  
 Medical Education (ACGME)  
 addiction  medicine  fellowship  program  
 to train new doctors on a team  
 approach, which includes nurses,  
 counselors,  social workers,  nursing  
 homes, pharmacists and community 
 based  organizations  so  treatment  
 can start as early as possible,  
 regardless of where people are seeking  
 help. 
 Training  will  occur  at  clinical  
 settings like the Montefi ore Einstein  
 Division of Substance Abuse and the  
 Montefi ore Buprenorphine Treatment  
 Network. 
 The fellows will then complete  
 their  training  at  organizations  like  
 New York Harm Reduction Educators, 
  which provides safe syringes  
 and engages people who use drugs.  
 Additionally, the fellows will partner  
 with community groups, including  
 BronxWorks, the Harm Reduction  
 Coalition, the Osborne Association,  
 the Drug Policy Alliance and the  
 NYC Department of Health and Mental  
 Hygiene. 
 By  having  clinicians  in  community  
 locations that provide services  
 like food and shelter, Montefi ore doctors  
 can prescribe buprenorphine to  
 prevent withdrawal and block the  
 pleasurable effects of using opioids  
 and be primary care doctors when  
 needed,  treating  conditions  such  as  
 HIV and Hepatitis C. 
 “Our  hope  is  that  by  partnering  
 closely with our community, our addiction  
 medicine fellows can become  
 change agents and rethink how to  
 deliver the best care possible during  
 this pandemic and well into the future,” 
  Dr. Nahvi said.