Argentine Society of Addiction Medicine
WHY JOIN ARSAM?
Are you interested in being part of a network for the exchange of high-quality information on addiction medicine between colleagues in our country and others from the rest of the world?
Do you want to participate in the creation of standards to improve education, promote adequate certification and improve the quality of medical treatment for addictions?
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Advice on public policies
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Access to travel grants for ISAM world congresses
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Access to the newsletter
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Organization of addiction medicine events and much more
UPCOMING EVENTS
mission
Perfect, expand and disseminate the specialty of addiction medicine in Argentina.
vision
A highly recognized society in Argentina and Latin America that has a great leadership to promote the education and growth of addiction medicine with an integrative look to the rest of the countries through the affiliation with the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM).
values
Quality, respect, excellence, cooperation, diversity.
foundation
On November 11, 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, a former ISAM President in charge of the Regions, Dr. Greg Bunt in the framework of the ISAM Annual Meeting in Victoria, Canada, proposes that the group of addiction doctors from Argentina have representation in ISAM as an affiliated company. This generous and unexpected invitation to such an important institution of world renown could not be ignored, that is why this proposal is raised to those who are interested in forming an Argentine Society of Addiction Medicine, to continue the legacy of pioneers in the dissemination and development of addiction medicine in our country.
A short time later, they communicate from the executive office of ISAM to propose that Argentina have the possibility of an exclusive award for doctors from our country so that they can attend the annual ISAM meeting in Malta, in September 2021, in honor of the Argentinean addiction doctor María Cristina Delgado, who died in February 2011 after extensive and intensive professional activity, being a leader and pioneer in the field.
Thus, 15 doctors accept the initial challenge of developing this association with a vision for the future by forming a founding group with representatives from Córdoba, Capital Federal, Santa Fe, Mendoza and Río Negro and whose first meeting was held on February 5, 2021 .
objectives
At that meeting, the objectives of the work to be carried out collaboratively, the effort that it would require, were discussed and all the organizational and legal aspects that would be required for the future of the Company's actions were considered. Inspired by the trajectory and leadership of ISAM; We also proposed the discussion of the guiding principles that will be the mission of our association, which can only be achieved through a regional, national and international collaboration of doctors with a career and vocation for the practice of addiction medicine to achieve recognition and dissemination of this specialty, with the unique opportunity to have the support of ISAM to achieve these objectives that are listed below:
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CREDIBILITY AND RELEVANCE OF THE DOCTOR'S ROLE IN THE FIELD OF ADDICTIONS
It is essential that sufficient credence be given to the perspective of addiction physicians in addressing addictive disorders from a perspective based on ongoing care as well as the highest care and knowledge of chronic health care.
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MEDICAL EDUCATION
Each of the participants in this effort has important educational roles to play in the training of physicians already in the addiction field as well as general practitioners.
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NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL CONSENSUS
There needs to be a credible group that speaks for addiction physicians in all provinces and the country and promotes the recruitment of physicians in the field to strengthen their efforts in their respective regions.
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INVESTIGATION
A great collaboration is required to generate and disseminate new research findings in the etiology and treatment of addictions in our country.
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PUBLIC POLITICS
Physicians who practice addiction medicine will jointly formulate empirically-based public policies to address this disease at the national and international level, which will be proposed to decision-making bodies.
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HEALTH PROFESSIONALS WITH ADDICTIVE DISORDERS
It is important that physicians trained in addiction medicine work together to effectively address the problem of addictive disorders in physicians and other healthcare professionals.
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PREVENTION
Thanks to our collaboration, we will be able to play a stronger and more effective role in the prevention of addictive diseases and their health and social consequences.
founding
members
Dario Gigena Parker
Cordova
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Axel Padinger
Santa Fe
Oscar Ramirez
Federal capital
Mabel Dell'Orfano
Black river
Romina Capellino
Black river
Federico Silvestrini
Cordova
Juan Gustavo Marin
Missions
John Joseph Villaprino
mendoza
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Claudia Chacon Oberti
Córdoba
Miracle Hernandez
Cordova
Mariela Roldan
Cordova
Cesar Gustavo de Vega
Santa Fe
Analia Oviedo
Cordova
Geraldine Peronace
Federal capital
Santos Garcia Ferreira
Cordova
historical antecedents
María Cristina Delgado was an Argentine doctor born in the city of Salta. She was always an innovator and promoter of new specialties, this was the case of Microbiology and Bacteriology, a specialty that she contributed to developing. At the beginning of the 90s, She traveled to the United States, where her sister lived, and began to train and work in the field of addiction medicine and drug and alcohol counselling. Discover that there were extraordinary advances, both in knowledge and in the quality of the institutions and networks for the prevention and treatment of addictive disorders that were not known in Argentina.
She quickly became well known and appreciated in the addiction environment of the United States. She was actively involved in the development of ISAM from the first planning meeting in New Orleans in 1998 and was the forerunner of the first ISAM annual meeting in Palm Springs in 1999. María Cristina Delgado saw the need to expand the new field of medicine in addictions around the world. She was secretary, treasurer and the first female member of the ISAM Board of Directors. María Cristina Delgado assumed the major responsibility of organizing the first ISAM Annual Congress in Latin America, held in Mar del Plata in 2005. This was a unique opportunity for all of us, for which we are grateful.
With her leadership and perseverance, she founded in Córdoba, Argentina, a specialized clinic: Gaia Nova. From there, together with her team, she began to promote activities and networks in Latin America.
Eradicciones is the name of a magazine and later an Ibero-American group of professionals specialized in addictions that emerged in Chile at the hands of the psychiatrist Daniel Martínez Aldunate in 1997.
In January 1999 an International Symposium on Relapse Prevention was held organized by the Alfa Center, led by Dr. Rolando Chandia in the Acúleo Lagoon (Chile) and thanks to the generous vision of María Cristina Delgado, it allowed the presence of guests from Argentina , such as Darío Gigena Parker, Carolina Bergoglio and the presence of a friend and mentor who developed his career in the United States, Dr. Anatolio Muñoz.
In this meeting the possibility arises of extending the dissemination of Eradicciones magazine to Argentina and ISAM in South America.
In 1999, the First International Addiction Conference was held in Córdoba, Argentina, which hosted an ISAM stand and a regional meeting with the presence of many renowned experts from Latin America.
In 2003 the III Eradicciones 2003 International Seminar and the 1st. Regional Conference of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) in Santiago de Chile. The international leap of this South American group is made, achieving the designation of 2 of its members on the Board of this prestigious world-class institution, such as Dr. Daniel Martínez Aldunate (Chile) and Dr. Alfredo Saavedra Castillo (Peru). Its president is attended by Dr. Nady El-Guebaly (Canada) and Dr. Greg Bunt (USA). The award is given to María Cristina Delgado called "Let’ live life in life."
In 2005, María Cristina Delgado and the Argentine group, among whom we highlight Graciela Lucatelli, the first female president of the Association of Argentine Psychiatrists (APSA), promoted the holding of the first annual ISAM meeting in Latin America. That meeting, in Mar del Plata, where more than 5000 participants from all over the world attended, brought to Argentina, the most renowned world specialists on the subject and institutions such as NIDA (National Institute of Drug Abuse) among many others. It was an unprecedented organizational and logistical challenge.
In 2006, our group managed to form a work team that achieved the presidency of the Chapter on Smoking, Drug Dependence and Alcoholism of the Argentine Association of Psychiatrists, whose successive presidents who are part of this group, we mention Gustavo De Vega (Rosario) , Juan José Vilapriño (Mendoza) and Mabel Dellorfano (Río Negro), who is currently the president, together with Dr. Geraldine Peronace, secretary of the DAT Chapter. This group has about 60 members.
In 2008, the Argentine psychiatrist Dr. Darío Gigena Parker was appointed member of the ISAM steering committee, participating in several ISAM conferences. In November 2020, he participated in last year's virtual meeting in Victoria (Canada). From these encounters, ties and experiences were established that are part of the origins of ARSAM-SAMA and lay the foundations for its future.