Systemic Barriers, Generational Trauma, and Culturally Affirming Care; a Conversation About Race And Substance Use With Dr. Ayana Jordan

ABOUT THE EPISODE:
Dr. Ayana Jordan is a passionate advocate for racial and ethnic minority groups dealing with substance use. She's an MD/Ph.D. addiction medicine practitioner and associate professor at the Yale School of Medicine, but more importantly, she's someone who works tirelessly to bring culturally informed, gold-standard addiction treatment to racial and ethnic minority populations.

In this episode Dr. Jordan speaks about important topics that impact communities of color like;

• system barriers to highly effective treatments like buprenorphine for those in Black and Brown communities
• generational trauma stemming from the War on Drugs and its impact on minority populations today
• the new definition of MAT and why language is important in reducing stigma
• what culturally affirming care can and should look like
•  the negative cloud that surrounds methadone even though it's just as effective as other medications that treat addiction
• why she wants people to focus more on structural policies than the addicted population when it comes to improving treatment
• the role COVID-19 has played in expanding access to medication for addiction treatment 
• substance use and treatment disparities among Black and Latinx youth compared to white youth
• her research around integrating spirituality into evidence-based treatment modalities
• how current racial tensions are impacting minority individuals who want to seek care
• and her plea to the Black and Brown community to follow their dreams and join her in the field of addiction medicine

I learned so much from this conversation and I'm positive you will too. You'll come away with a greater understanding of what it means to experience substance use and to seek addiction treatment as a racial or ethnic minority, and learn what Dr. Jordan is doing to bring more equality and culturally relevant services to those in need.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• Dr. Ayana Jordan, MD, Ph.D.
• Yale School of Medicine
• REACH Program
• IMANI Breakthrough Recovery Program 
• The Audre Lorde Project 

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