Hello and welcome to A Path Forward a podcast that discusses the substance use crisis and the work being conducted in Otero, Crowley, Bent and Conejos counties. The funding for this podcast is provided by the Health Resources and Services Administration or HRSA, a Department of Health and Human Services as part of a Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) Implementation grant. 

In this podcast, Dr. Steve Wright and Dr. Heidi McNeely discuss the history of substance use, stigma, and society's role in shaping perceptions about people who use drugs. 

Dr. Steve Wright is a residency trained family physician board certified over 40 years ago. He has been practicing addiction medicine for 34 years and medical pain management for 20 years. His interests include opioid prescribing, opioid use disorder (OUD), policy and systems of care related to addiction treatment and the prescribing of benzodiazepines. 

Dr. Heidi McNeely is a nurse researcher with over 23 years of experience. She has been focusing on the opioid crisis for the past 5 years. She has been a pedicatric clinical nurse specialist who worked on drug diversion prevention in healthcare settings. 

Terri Schreiber is your host. She is the CEO and founder of The Schreiber Research Group (TSRG), a Colorado-based nonprofit. They are a team of experts  who evaluate interventions to improve outcomes and fill knowledge gaps concerning public health policy and management through community outreach, consulting and research.