Events

Panelists experienced in receiving MOUD & Providers will discuss Long-Term Opioid Use Disorder Care.

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 Panel Discussion 
70 minutes
Panelists discuss prepared questions & take audience questions about:

Medication Issues

• MOUD retention
• Reasons for MOUD discontinuation
• Dose changes & tapering (buprenorphine & methadone)
• Changing medication type

Substance Use during Treatment

• Use of non-prescribed substances while in MOUD
• Use of buprenorphine not as prescribed & diversion
• Changes to type and level of care

Quality of Life

• Patient family functioning
• Basic needs (housing, finances, legal)
• Stigmas

 Case Study Discussions 
 50 minute break-out case discussions
 led by a clinical team member and
a person with lived experience 

Presenter Biographies

Julie Cermola has turned her own recovery from opioid addiction into a journey of helping others in her leadership role at Parks Place Community Resource Center.  A Certified Recovery Coach through Springfield Turning Point Recovery Center, Julie graduated from Bellows Falls Union High School in 2010 and continued her education at Vermont Technical College majoring in Veterinary Technology. Julie has recently completed planned MAT discontinuation after a couple years of recovery and hopes to continue helping the community and individuals through her experience and compassion.

Stephanie Gauvin is in long term recovery from substances which to her means that she hasn’t used a mind or mood altering drug in 10 years. Her history includes the misuse of various opiates along with cocaine dependency.  She’s utilized various treatments in her recovery including inpatient, intensive outpatient, individual counseling with a LADC, and maintenance-assisted treatment with buprenorphine.  She’s remained active in her recovery through 12 step programs, served as a board member of the Turning Point of Central Vermont, and was included in the award winning film The Hungry Heart.

C. Frederick Lord, MD, FASAM is a fellowship trained addictionologist, certified by the American Board of Preventive Medicine, subspecialty addiction medicine. He is a fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine and an at-large board member of the Northern New England Society of Addiction Medicine. He has 13 years’ experience in developing and administering treatment programs for individuals with substance use disorders as well as providing treatment including medication and 12-step-facilitated counseling. He also provides peer support informed and supported by his own personal 28-year experience with involvement in 12-step recovery. He is the medical director of the Connecticut Valley Addiction Recovery “super-spoke” and of the Habit Opco, West Lebanon hub and is the project director for the Windsor County-based Rural Communities Opioid Response grant awarded by HRSA in September 2020.

Ellen Munger, BSN, RN started her career in mental health where she was steeped in the philosophy of client self-determination and the concept of intra-dependence. These ideas have served her well as she transitioned to the world of nursing and even more specifically to working with people struggling with substance abuse disorders.  She has been a MAT RN working in a “super-spoke” for over 2 years serving primarily people with opiate use disorder receiving buprenorphine medications.

Jedediah Popp is a co-director for the Windham County Consortium on Substance Use. He has over 14 years of personal lived experience with active substance-use and IV drug use (Opioid Use Disorder). His professional career in providing addiction services began in 2013 and first started in peer recovery as a recovery coach. He since has worked for the Vermont Recovery Network and Health Care and Rehabilitation Services, providing mental health and substance-use services to Windham County residents in Vermont. Jedediah has served on multiple committees and boards that require the voices of those with lived experience to design and implement substance-use services to those in need. He has organized community events to help elevate the voices of those most impacted by substance-use to help educate community members and create dignity and respect for those who live with the disease. In Jedediah’s current role, he co-manages a county-wide collaborative that partners with agencies & organizations, as well as people who live substance-use. He has been receiving MAT services since 2012.