School of medicine

School Notes: School of Medicine
January/February 2018

Nancy J. Brown | http://medicine.yale.edu

Neuroscientist elected to the National Academy of Medicine

Yale neuroscientist Amy Arnsten has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM). Membership in the NAM is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievements and commitment to service. Arnsten’s lab discovered the molecular mechanisms that govern activity in the brain’s highest-order circuits and helped explain why neurons are vulnerable to disorders such as schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease. Her research has led to two treatments now in widespread clinical use. “It is a great honor and a personal pleasure to be elected to the National Academy of Medicine,” Arnsten said. “As my lab does research that is quite different from many neuroscientists, it is particularly moving to be recognized by one’s peers.”

Yale launches new program in addiction medicine

The School of Medicine Section of General Internal Medicine has established a new program called the Yale Program in Addiction Medicine. This project will further enhance Yale’s portfolio of state-of-the-art addiction research and patient care, while increasing the pipeline of physicians trained in evidence-based strategies to tackle the opioid crisis and other addiction-related health issues. It will be directed by Dr. David Fiellin, professor of medicine, emergency medicine, and public health. The program’s establishment comes at a critical time. From 2014 to 2015, the death rate from synthetic opioids increased by 72 percent, according to the Centers for Disease and Control.

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