Division of Addictions

Division faculty provide excellent behavioral health care and engage in innovative research and education. We have expertise across the entire age spectrum and in all areas, including alcohol and opioid addiction. Our faculty publish in leading journals, serve on key editorial boards and research committees, and edit leading addictions reference texts in the field.


Main Challenge

Addiction to alcohol and prescription and non-prescription drugs robs millions of individuals and their families of their most productive years. Increased access to effective behavioral health care leads to earlier diagnosis, improved adherence to evidenced-based treatment, better patient outcomes and increased productivity.

Our Approach

  • We create new, more effective treatments and interventions. Areas of excellence include college and early age drinking, treatment trials for substance use disorders, integrated models of addiction and co-occurring mental illnesses, opioid and other medication-assisted treatment, and studies in the neuroscience of addictions.
  • We offer excellent training opportunities and foster a pipeline of top-notch fellows. Our addictions program is consistently ranked among the top 10 in the country.
  • We contribute to state and national issues related to opioid addiction and overdoses.

Sample Projects

Collaborating to Heal Addiction and Mental Health in Primary Care (CHAMP)

Developing measurement-based care tools for addiction treatment clinics

Feasibility of mHealth technology-enabled service for remote observed therapy of methadone and COVID-19 screening for patients in an opioid treatment program

Guiding opioid therapy University of Southern California (USC) / National Institute on Aging (NIA)

Implementing Contingency Management in Oregon-based Health Settings to Address Stimulant Misuse

Improving opioid use disorder treatment using contingency management via mHealth

Innovative training for suicide prevention in addiction treatment settings

Machine learning methods for identifying person-level mechanisms of alcohol use among sexual and gender minority intersections

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Outreach Communications Support

Parent-Child Assistance Program – Oklahoma

Parent-Child Assistance Program – Washington

Patient-centered team-based primary care to treat opioid use disorder, depression, and other conditions (PC2Too)

Peer Engagement in Methamphetamine Harm Reduction with Contingency Management

Project ACE

Project AMPS

Project SAM Transitions

Project SELF

State Opioid Response/Tribal Opioid Response Technical Assistance

The Life Enhancing Alcohol-management Program 2.0 (LEAP 2.0)

The UW Medical Student Addiction Research (MedStAR) program to address substance use disorders in urban and rural communities in five western states

Understanding practical alcohol measures in primary care to prepare for measurement-based care

Validating a DSM-5 Substance Use Disorder (SUD) symptom checklist