STOP STIGMA NOW (SSN) is a group of professionals affiliated with opioid use disorder (OUD) research or treatment, and people with lived experience and their families, dedicated to ending the harmful stigma affecting medication treatment of people with OUD.
Some members of our Board of Directors are people who have worked with Dr’s Vincent Dole, Maria Nyswander and Mary Jeanne Kreek, the developers of the first effective OUD medication treatment in the late1960’s and early 1970’s.
Sy Demsky is also President of the Board of National Development Research Inc. (NDRI-USA.) He collaborated on eight grants and studies with NDRI. Sy was the Director of The Mount Sinai Hospital’s Narcotics Rehabilitation Center from 1970 to 2001 when he retired. From 1975 to 1999 he was the President and CEO of Auto Assess, Inc., a computerized testing company in the field of addiction.
He is the owner and President of Sy Demsky & Associates, a Health Care & Consulting Company. Sy was a member of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, and the founder and first President of the New York State Committee of Methadone Program Administrators (COMPA.) He has received many distinguished awards, including the Dole/Nyswander Award for outstanding lifetime service to the addiction field, and the Unsung Hero Award from the notable Carron Foundation.
John F. Phillips is the Co-Founder of Creative Socio-Medics Corp. (now Netsmart Technologies) the leading patient information company in Behavioral Health and Addictions. Started in 1968 it is one of the oldest software companies in the world. John was responsible for hundreds of information systems projects over the forty years before his retirement, and is now responsible for systems and automation in SSN.
Dr. Sage has worked in the field of chemical dependency since 1973. His work with the Addiction Research and Treatment Corporation (ARTC) included serving as a clinician, trainer, and researcher; Coordinator of Mental Health Services; Vice President of Treatment Services; and Senior Vice President. He was responsible for program development and implementation, clinic operations, treatment services, staff training, and compliance issues for ARTC’s seven methadone maintenance treatment programs and two medically supervised drug-free programs, serving more than 3,000 patients. Dr. Sage has also been responsible for facilitating the implementation of psychosocial research conducted by ARTC’s Research Division. In exercising similar administrative responsibilities for programs managed by ARTC’s affiliated agency, the Urban Resource Institute (URI), he also supervised research and evaluation studies for URI’s alcoholism treatment program and domestic violence shelters. Dr.Sage also served as a Program Surveyor for CARF, the agency that provides national accreditation for medication assisted treatment programs throughout the United States, and assisted with programs to meet optimal medication assisted treatment standards for opiate addiction treatment. Dr. Sage has presented at numerous local and national conferences and conducts, presented, and published research and evaluation studies.
Is a project director for the National Drug Court Institute (NDCI), a division of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP). The former executive director of NDRI-USA and deputy executive director for programs at ACRIA, Mr. Lunievicz specializes in the translation of research into practice. He has 30 years’ experience in technical assistance and training in drug treatment, including medication-assisted treatment (MAT), harm reduction, and HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention. Mr. Lunievicz was previously a consultant conducting capacity building with not-for-profits nationally, and he is co-vice president of the board of directors for the nonprofit Stop Stigma Now, focused on the social justice issues of the opioid epidemic and the stigma of both opioid use and the MATs used to treat opioid use disorders.
Walters joined LESC more than 22 years ago as the Vice President of Human Resources. During her tenure as VP she was responsible for all the human resources functions and serving as principal advisor to the CEO and leadership team on organization design and development, goal setting, policy development, risk management and strategic implementation in support of achieving corporate objectives and business growth.
In 2014 she became the President & CEO at LESC.
Under her leadership, permanent supportive housing provided by the agency has increased, providing additional housing for 98 homeless individuals. Organizational budget has increased over 16 million and six (6) programs were added to the LESC roster, to include early HIV intervention, a Women’s Wellness Program, expanded services to the population to include care coordination and affiliation with a FQHC to provide HIV testing and primary care services. More recently the state approved LESC as a lead for a Behavioral Health Care Collaborative (BHCC) to participate in the New York State Behavioral Health Value Based Payment Readiness Program (BH VBP).
Prior to joining LESC, she held positions at SCI Business School/WAE Corporation as Assistant Administrator and Director of Student Services and Director of Vocational Services at American Business Institute (ABI). Walters was a high school Mathematics teacher for 15 years.
Ms. Walters earned her M.B.A. in Organizational Behavior and Management at C.W. Post Long Island University, a B.A. in Business Management from Lehman College, and holds certifications in Human Resources, Executive Leadership Support for Nonprofit Management, and Methods of Occupational Instruction. B.A. in Education.
Joycelyn Sue Woods has a degree in neuroscience and did some of the early work on opiate receptor mapping. A methadone patient advocate for over thirty years working with the Committee of Concerned Methadone Patients (CCMP), she helped to establish the Association of ex-Drug Addicts for Prevention and Treatment (ADAPT) and the National Alliance for Medication Assisted Recovery (NAMA Recovery). She has served on policy making committees including patient representative for methadone and buprenorphine regulations. She is a recipient of the Richard Lane-William Holden Patient Advocacy Award, and the Drug Information Association (DIA) Fellowship. Joycelyn is the Project Coordinator for the MARS Project and Executive Director of NAMA Recovery where she serves as liaison to SSN.
Retired at the end of 2016 after 30 years of service at NY State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS), where he spent the last 12 years as the Director of Downstate Field Operations, and now works as Special Projects Coordinator for Argus Community, as well as an independent consultant in the addiction services field. Besides the Stop Stigma Now Board of Directors he also serves on the advisory groups for End Overdose NY and Our Jewish Recovery. He is a native of New York City.
SSN has representatives in the following states:
• Alabama• Arkansas• California• Georgia• Maryland• Massachusetts
Michigan• New Jersey • New York• North Carolina • Oregon• Pennsylvania • Virginia • Washington
And also, around the world in:
• Australia • Ireland • Italy • The Netherlands
If you would like to be a representative for SSN in your state or country, please let us know sending us an email with your intention. Click here
Stop Stigma Now was established to change stigma, negative attitudes and misunderstanding about the most effective treatments available for most people suffering from opioid use disorder (OUD). This misunderstanding, and the resulting discrimination against affected individuals, is perhaps the greatest barrier preventing progress in addressing the opioid crisis.
While many treatments for OUD exist, maintenance methadone, buprenorphine and extended-release naltrexone have been conclusively demonstrated as the most effective, and necessary in most cases. Compared to alternatives such as isolated in-patient and out-patient psychosocial treatments (without OUD medication), patients maintained on methadone or buprenorphine are much less likely to relapse, to acquire infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C, to die from an opioid overdose, and are much more likely to return to full functioning and a normal life. Unfortunately, these medications – especially the agonist medications methadone and buprenorphine – have been misunderstood as “substituting one addiction for another.”
Psychosocial counseling is an important treatment which should be offered, strongly encouraged, and provided whenever possible to those in need of treatment. However, isolated psychosocial treatment, i.e., without medication for OUD, even in the setting of inpatient rehabilitation, should not be considered as effective treatment for the great majority of those with moderate to severe OUD. Such treatments, when used alone, are often ultimately ineffective and often result in relapse, overdose or death.
SSN informs and works with people affected by OUD and their families, treatment and recovery professionals, the legal system, public officials, and the media about the overwhelming scientific evidence supporting the importance of encouraging maintenance treatment with methadone, buprenorphine or extended-release naltrexone for the great majority of people with moderate to severe OUD.
SSN develops and disseminates, print and electronic materials, including presentations and videos, to combat the widespread use of ineffective treatment for OUD in order to save countless lives and ultimately overcome the terrible scourge of opioid addiction.
All materials and services are free at SSN.
SSN is a 501c3 not for profit organization, and has no paid staff.
We are a public information group of dedicated drug treatment professionals determined to eliminate the stigma against medication treatment for opioid use disorder which negatively impacts anyone taking methadone and other medications used to treat opioid use disorder.
Our mission is to inform the general public, the court systems, medical, nursing and counseling professions, public officials and the media about the overwhelming scientific evidence supporting the success of medication treatment for opioid use disorder.
We must eliminate the stigma which undermines the efficacy of medication treatment for opioid use disorder.
(Stop Stigma Now is an independent 502(c)(3) non profit organization).
