PRESS RELEASES
Physicians Certified By New Addiction Medicine Board
Beverly Hospital Physicians Certified By New Addiction Medicine Board
Dr. Medwid of Hamilton and Dr. McCullough of Beverly are among first in the United States
(Beverly, Mass.) – June 1, 2009 – Two Beverly Hospital Family Practice physicians, William J. Medwid, MD, and Daniel J. McCullough, MD, are among the first physicians in the United States to be certified by the American Board of Addiction Medicine (ABAM). ABAM is a new independent medical specialty board that sets standards for physician education, assesses physicians’ knowledge and requires and tracks life-long continuing education.
In addition to being members of the medical staff of Beverly Hospital, Drs. Medwid and McCullough are the Medical Directors of CAB Health & Recovery Services, Inc. (CAB). An affiliate of Northeast Health System—the parent company of Beverly Hospital--CAB is a leading substance-abuse agency serving communities across northeastern Massachusetts and greater Boston. From their outpatient, inpatient and residential sites, CAB works with men, women and their children, families, youth and special populations struggling with various addictions. In addition to their positions at CAB, Dr. Medwid is a family practice physician at Family Medicine Associates in Hamilton and Dr. McCullough is a family practice physician with Cummings Center Medical Associates in Beverly.
“Addiction and substance abuse are issues that can be encountered throughout our community,” said Kevin Norton, president of CAB Health & Recovery Services, Inc. “This new certification process is a significant step toward helping our physicians of all medical specialties better recognize when a patient is suffering with addiction and how to address it with the most appropriate treatment plan.”
Created in 2007, with the assistance and encouragement of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, ABAM offers a rigorous certifying examination that was developed by an expert panel and the National Board of Medical Examiners to ensure that physicians of several specialties are adequately prepared to diagnose alcoholism and other drug and substance abuse issues. There was previously only addiction-related board certification for psychiatrists. The certification also involves maintenance of the examination to ensure that ABAM-certified physicians maintain lifelong competence in Addiction Medicine.
“Physicians are often at a loss for what to do about substance use and addiction issues, and may even misdiagnose the problem,” said Kevin B. Kunz, MD, president of the American Board of Addiction Medicine. “We hope to change this by creating a cadre of thousands of specialized physicians across medical specialties.”
For more information about the American Board of Addiction Medicine, please visit www.ABAM.net .
Beverly Hospital
Beverly Hospital is a full service, community hospital providing quality, patient-centered care to North Shore and Cape Ann residents. Services include maternity, pediatrics, surgical, orthopedics, cardiology, as well as other specialties. The hospital boasts a medical staff of more than 600 physicians and its service area includes some 13 communities. Beverly Hospital has been nationally recognized by Solucient Institute as a 100 Top Hospital five times in the past eight years. Beverly Hospital is a member of Northeast Health System.
