Speaker Name: Dr. Paul Farnan
Session Description:
Primary care has become the default, but under-prepared, front line for addiction care. Most clinicians were never taught about recovery, recovery capital, or how to cultivate long-term restoration of health rather than short-term episodic interventions.
Drawing on decades in full-spectrum family medicine, occupational medicine, addiction medicine, and lived recovery, this presentation offers reflective wisdom and practical clinical strategies that re-humanize addiction care in the office. Participants will be invited into a reflective and powerful reframing: from deficit-based crisis management to recovery-oriented continuity of care that restores function, purpose, and belonging.
Blending personal reflection, professional insight, and evidence-informed tools, the session introduces recovery as a concept, recovery-oriented language, recovery capital assessment, recovery office check-ups, and community linkage strategies that can be embedded into routine primary care workflows. The goal is not only to inform—but to renew hope, professional meaning, and clinical confidence in a busy office setting.
Learning Objectives:
1. Describe key lessons from decades of addiction and occupational medicine that support recovery-oriented primary care.
2. Recognize how recovery and recovery capital reframe addiction as a treatable and hopeful condition.
3. Apply recovery-oriented language and recovery check-ups in routine patient visits.
4. Identify how important resources such as community, workplace, and peer-based activities can be mobilized to support long-term recovery.
References:
Day, E., Pechey, L. C., Roscoe, S., & Kelly, J. F. (2025). Recovery support services as part of the continuum of care for alcohol or drug use disorders. Addiction, 120(8), 1497–1520.
Bliuc AM, Best D, Hennessy EA, Belanger M, Benwell C. Measuring recovery capital for people recovering from alcohol and drug addiction: A systematic review. Addict Res Theory. 2024;32(3):225-236. doi: 10.1080/16066359.2023.2245323. Epub 2023 Aug 18. PMID: 39045096; PMCID: PMC11262562.
Els, C., Durnin-Goodman, M., Farnan, P. et al. Recovery-Friendly Workplaces: Recommendations for Employers, Employees, and the Occupational Medicine Community. SN Compr. Clin. Med. 7, 252 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42399-025-01966-5
BIO
Experienced consultant with over 30 years of practice at the interface of occupational and addiction medicine. Expertise in disability management, substance use disorders, and recovery science, especially relating to safety-sensitive and safety-critical industries. Extensive experience providing independent medical evaluations (IMEs) for health professionals, the aviation industry, disability insurance companies, employers, and unions. Recognized as a proficient presenter and facilitator with a particular interest in educator and trainer on Recovery and Recovery Inclusive Workplace initiatives.