Addiction Medicine Made Easy | Fighting back against addiction

Casey Grover, MD, FACEP, FASAM•www.addictionmedicinemadeeasy.com

Addiction is killing us. Over 100,000 Americans died of drug overdose in the last year, and over 100,000 Americans died from alcohol use in the last year. We need to include addiction medicine as a part of everyone's practice! We take topics in addiction medicine and break them down into digestible nuggets and clinical pearls that you can use at the bedside. We are trying to create an army of health care providers all over the world who want to fight back against addiction - and we hope you will join us.*This podcast was previously the Addiction in Emergency Medicine and Acute Care podcast*

Last refreshed: July 9th, 2025 at 5:00 AM ⓘ

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Episodes

Episode 10 - Gabapentin as a treatment for Cannabis Dependence and Withdrawal

Finally! A medication option for the treatment of Cannabis Dependence and Cannabis Withdrawal. Dr. Grover shares a case from his practice in the Emergency Department and does a deep dive into the literature supporting gabapentin as a treatment for Cannabis Dependence and Cannabis Withdrawal.

Sep 08, 2021•23 min

Episode 9 - Harm Reduction and how using it in your practice improves your patient care

On this episode we'll be covering the topic of harm reduction. Most people know a little bit about it, but in this episode we dive deep into harm reduction, and why it is extremely important for patients with an active substance use disorder. Dr. Grover reviews a brief history of harm reduction, how it helps people get into long term recovery, key concepts of harm reduction, how to incorporate it into your practice, and why it can be controversial - including a discussion of syringe exchange pro...

Aug 24, 2021•22 min

Episode 8.5 - Lit Review - What is the 1 year mortality for patients after an ED visit for a non-fatal opioid overdose?

We all know how devastating opioid overdose deaths are in the United States and around the world. However we don't know as much about non-fatal opioid overdoses, including how likely they are to lead to fatal opioid overdoses. In this episode we review the 2020 Annals of Emergency Medicine paper "One Year Mortality of Patients After Emergency Department Treatment for Nonfatal Opioid Overdose".

Aug 10, 2021•15 min

Episode 8 - The Neurobiology of the "Addict Brain" (aka why addiction makes people do crazy things)

Have you ever taken care of a patient with a substance use disorder and wondered "what made you think THAT was a good idea??!?!". In Episode 8 - we go through the neurobiology of how substance use affects the brain and how disordered brain function in patients with substance use disorder leads to erratic behavior and an inability to weigh the risks and benefits when making decisions about substance use. Spoiler alert - it's all about dopamine!

Jul 25, 2021•20 min

Episode 7 - Carisoprodol (Soma) Abuse and Withdrawal

Dr. Grover reviews 2 papers on carisoprodol - looking at abuse of, dependence on, and withdrawal from carisoprodol. From Brave New World to treating carisoprodol dependence with a taper, this episode is a deep dive into the sparse literature on the topic of carisoprodol - aka Soma.

Jul 13, 2021•28 min

Episode 6.5 - Lit Review - How Iceland Got Teens to Say No to Drugs

If you've ever wondered how we can prevent our youth from developing substance use disorders, Iceland already figured this out in the 1990s. Iceland dropped alcohol use in teens by 90% between 1998 and 2016. How did they do it? We review a magazine article that covers this incredibly effective effort in Iceland to reduce substance use in teens, and how Iceland accomplished it.

Jul 06, 2021•15 min

Episode 6 - How to assess the severity of a substance use disorder

Do you know how to determine if an alcohol use disorder is mild, moderate, or severe? Does your patient who is using cocaine have a mild cocaine use disorder, a moderate cocaine use disorder, or a severe cocaine use disorder? In this episode we walk through the DSM-V criteria for substance use disorder and how to assess if your patient has a mild, moderate, or severe substance use disorder

Jun 23, 2021•13 min

Episode 5 - Medications for Smoking Cessation 101

How familiar are you with pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation? Turns out medications for smoking cessation are relatively simple, and easy to prescribe. Dr. Grover gives a concise review of medications for smoking cessation. Considering that cigarette smoking causes about 1 out of every 5 deaths in America - we as acute care providers can make a big different for our patients by helping them quit smoking with medications.

Jun 09, 2021•24 min

Episode 4.5 - Lit Review - What are patients thinking about after an opioid overdose?

Have you ever sat down with someone after an opioid overdose? Ever wondered what people are worried about after they have an overdose and end up in an Emergency Department? In this episode, we review this paper from Academic Emergency Medicine in 2021: "A qualitative study of Emergency Department patients who survived an opioid overdose: Perspectives on treatment and unmet needs." The authors interviewed patients in the ED after an opioid overdose to hear their perspectives. You'll may be surpri...

Jun 02, 2021•16 min

Episode 4 - How to handle benzodiazepine dependence

Benzodiazepines are often mis-managed by physicians. Benzodiazepine dependence develops within weeks of use, with 50% of people using them for > 1 month becoming dependent. 5% of patients with new benzodiazepine prescriptions will continue to use it after 8 years. So what do we do with these patients in the acute care setting when they want to taper off of them? Dr. Grover provides an evidence-based overview of benzodiazepine dependence, how to start people on benzodiazepine tapers, and what ...

May 26, 2021•33 min

Episode 3 - What is Cannabis Withdrawal Syndrome?

How much do you know about Cannabis Withdrawal Syndrome? I didn't know anything until I researched and recorded this episode. Turns out it's way more common than you think, and may be the cause of your patients' worsening anxiety and depression. This episode is an evidence based review of Cannabis Withdrawal Syndrome: What is it? How common is it? And what symptoms does it present with?

May 23, 2021•22 min

Episode 2 - Buprenorphine Basics

Taking on a huge topic in Emergency Medicine and Acute Care - Buprenorphine! A medication that saves lives but can be very intimidating when you first start using it due to how it works in the body. Dr. Casey Grover breaks down the basics so that you can be ready to use buprenorphine successfully on your next shift.

May 18, 2021•37 min

Episode 1.5 - Lit Review - Will this hospitalized patient develop severe alcohol withdrawal?

A review of the paper by Evan Wood et al in JAMA 2018: "Will this hospitalized patient develop severe alcohol withdrawal" We discuss a brief overview of alcohol withdrawal, and what a JAMA Rational Clinical Examination Systematic Review says on which hospitalized patients will develop severe alcohol withdrawal. We also talk about trying to predict which patients who present to the hospital in alcohol withdrawal will go on to develop severe alcohol withdrawal vs mild or moderate withdrawal....

May 10, 2021•20 min

Episode 1 - Why Care About Addiction?

How big of a problem is substance use? Is substance use a problem for patients in the acute care setting? Is treatment for substance use effective in the acute care setting, particularly the Emergency Department? Dr. Casey Grover provides an evidence-based overview of why we should - as healthcare providers - all care about substance use disorders.

May 04, 2021•18 min

Episode 0 - Introduction

An introduction to the Addiction in Emergency Medicine and Acute Care Podcast Who am I? Why does this topic matter? How is this podcast going to work?

May 04, 2021•5 min

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