The AmerisourceBergen Foundation Partners with Jefferson to Address Opioid Crisis

Philadelphia, Pa. – The AmerisourceBergen Foundation and Thomas Jefferson University today announced a partnership that aims to combat opioid abuse and misuse in the Greater Philadelphia region.

The AmerisourceBergen Foundation, a not-for-profit charitable organization focused on supporting health-related causes that enrich the global community, awarded Jefferson a $50,000 grant to sponsor the organization’s second annual Substance Use Disorders Symposium. The multidisciplinary, full-day event, which is scheduled for May 29, 2018 at Jefferson’s Center City campus, will bring together healthcare providers, community representatives and lawmakers to discuss the creation of a citywide, coordinated approach to the opioid crisis.

“As leaders in this region and across the nation organize efforts to combat opioid abuse, we – at AmerisourceBergen – aim to provide them with the resources needed to prevent misuse and drive sustained change,” said Gina Clark, President of the AmerisourceBergen Foundation who is also Executive Vice President and Chief Communications & Administration Officer at AmerisourceBergen. “At AmerisourceBergen, we are united in our responsibility to create healthier futures. Through our work with Thomas Jefferson University, we hope to convene leaders within the healthcare industry and community to identify best practices and develop action plans to combat opioid abuse.”

The symposium is designed to increase the knowledge and skills needed to develop strategies to fight the epidemic and assist those suffering from substance use disorders. Local and national speakers will focus on topics such as medication-assisted treatment, pain management in the recovering addict, management of the opioid overdose, and the patient perspective of addiction and recovery.

“We are delighted that the AmerisourceBergen Foundation has offered to support Jefferson’s opioid crisis educational conference, which will shed light on this devastating public health emergency,” says Theodore A. Christopher, MD, FACEP, the Green Family Foundation and John and Patricia Walsh Professor and Chair of Jefferson’s Department of Emergency Medicine.

Dr. Christopher, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, adds, “In addition to prescribing less opioid medication to all patients, physicians need to learn about the processes and logistics around treating opioid addicted patients, and referring them to appropriate facilities and providers in the city.”

The AmerisourceBergen Foundation has a history of collaboration and partnership with Jefferson to meet the needs of the greater Philadelphia community. In 2015, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation donated $250,000 to build a pharmacy at Project HOME’s Stephen Klein Wellness Center in North Philadelphia to bring health services to underserved neighborhoods. In 2017, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation gave Thomas Jefferson University and its Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center (SKCC) $50,000 to support the SKCC Cancer Support and Welcome Center, which helps ensure that patients, particularly those in poverty-stricken communities, have safety net cancer care.

The AmerisourceBergen Foundation is committed to positively affecting the lives of people in the communities that AmerisourceBergen serves. As part of its multi-pronged approach to combat opioid abuse, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation in December launched a municipal support program that aims to promote the safe disposal of opioids. Through the program, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation will provide municipalities across the country with resources, like drug deactivation pouches and products, to deactivate expired or unused prescription medications.

For more information about the symposium, visit www.Jefferson.edu/SubstanceAbuseSymposium.

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About the AmerisourceBergen Foundation
Established in 2014, the AmerisourceBergen Foundation focuses on health and wellbeing initiatives that improve patient outcomes including pharmaceutical accessibility programs, pharmaceutical adherence programs and health improvement research. The Foundation aims to enhance healthcare delivery and improve access. The AmerisourceBergen Foundation is a separate not-for-profit charitable organization distinct from AmerisourceBergen Corporation. For more information on the AmerisourceBergen Foundation, visit: http://www.amerisourcebergenfoundation.org.