Michelle Lofwall, MD, MS, professor of psychiatry and behavioral science, received the prestigious 2022 Dole/Nyswander (Marie) Award from the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence. Dr. Lofwall was one of nine expert physicians and scientists across the country recognized at the organization’s conference on Nov. 2.
The Dole/Nyswander Award honors individuals who have completed extraordinary service in opioid treatment and have committed to improving lives of patients in the treatment system. The award was named after Vincent Dole, MD, and Marie Nyswander, MD, pioneers of opioid treatment and research and the first award recipients in 1983.
Dr. Lofwall joined the faculty at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in 2006, with primary focuses in research, teaching, clinical care, and advocacy for patients with substance use disorders. Along with serving on the faculty, she is the Bell Alcohol and Addictions Endowed Chair. In this role, she oversees the Bell Scholar Program working to advance addiction medicine physician education and clinical care to improve treatment of patients with substance use disorders.
Dr. Lofwall’s research on opioid use disorder has been nationally recognized. She is one of the lead investigators on the opioid use disorder treatment team in UK’s National Institutes of Health-funded HEALing Communities Study. She was the principal investigator on clinical trials of long-acting buprenorphine implants and injectables, an expert panelist on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s recently published Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP 63) for Medication Treatment of opioid use disorder, as well as a board member of the American Society of Addiction Medicine.
Dr. Lofwall is also medical director of the Robert Straus Clinic and UK Center on Drug and Alcohol Research’s First Bridge Clinic, which provides low-barrier access to comprehensive opioid use disorder treatment for patients often with serious medical complications and other conditions.