University of Otago

BLOOMSBURG, Pa., Sept. 27, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Prominently featured in The Inner Circle, Barry L. Jackson, Ph.D. is acknowledged as a Pinnacle Professional Member for his contributions to Drug and Alcohol Prevention Methods. Dr. Barry L. Jackson, a distinguished figure in the field of drug and alcohol prevention, has dedicated much of his career to educating and implementing effective prevention methods nationwide and in several international locations. Continue Reading Barry L. Jackson With a rich academic background, Dr. Jackson holds a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy and Religion from Susquehanna University (1969), a Master's degree in Student Personnel Services in Higher Education (1972) and he completed advanced studies in Organization and Finance from Syracuse University in addition to graduate courses in Higher Education Law; Ethics; and Public Policy at Cortland State University. He completed his Ph.D. in Counseling and Human Development at the University of Georgia (1975). He furthered his expertise with post-doctoral studies in Higher Education Law from the University of Iowa (1982). In order to advance his expertise in the treatment of addictions, Dr. Jackson completed studies with the Addictions Training Academy, 2008-2010 through the American Counseling Association and the Gambling Addiction and Training Institute of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Programs from January- May of 2008. Doctor Jackson has been licensed and board certified in numerous areas, including as a Licensed Professional Counselor by the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Professional Counselors. He is certified by the National Board of Certified Counselors; the American Board of Professional Counselors; the North American Association of Masters in Psychology; the Professional Psychologist Board; and, the American Psychotherapy Association. As Director and Professor Emeritus of the Drug, Alcohol and Wellness Network at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Jackson's contributions have been widely recognized. He is a Fellow of the American Psychotherapy Association and a Diplomat with the North American Association of Masters in Psychology. His prolific career includes over 70 publications in journals, books, online publications, governmental reports, monographs, and book reviews. He has given 175 scientific papers, 117 workshops, dozens of keynote speeches, and 18 international webinars. Dr. Jackson is also a prolific grant writer and has been awarded more than 40 grants receiving more than $569,000 to pursue his work. His broad intellectual interests and research versatility are reflected by publications in higher education, law, counseling, addictions, philosophy, religion, sociology, and chiropractic medicine. Acknowledged for his outstanding service, Dr. Jackson has received awards from the United States Senate and the Pennsylvania State Senate and House of Representatives for his contributions to addictions and intervention services. He has been honored as a Fulbright Senior Scholar, Addictions Specialist and a Senior Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Otago in New Zealand. He was honored with the Pennsylvania Governor's Award for Community Service on two occasions. As further testament to his influence and prestige he has additional awards and recognitions including the William J. Schofield, III Award for Service to Addiction Prevention and Intervention Services presented by the Pennsylvania Department of Health; served as a Visiting Professor with the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board; served as an ambassador for psychology and counseling by prestigious organizations such as the Dwight D. Eisenhower Foundation and the American Counseling Association in Vietnam and Cambodia and by the National Board of Certified Counselors as a commission delegate to Malawi. He was appointed to the Alcohol Advisory Council to the New Zealand Parliament. His dedication to the field was further highlighted when he was included in the Oxford University Roundtable, United Kingdom in 2007 and 2008. His legacy includes countless professional community service positions, such as the founder of the Indiana County Suicide Prevention Network; serving as a Guest Expert Panelist, Craig County Drug Court, Vinita, Oklahoma, February 2019; Steering Committee Member, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Pennsylvania State Epidemiological Outcomes Work Group, Pennsylvania Department of Health, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Programs, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 2007-2009; Grant reviewer, Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, State Grants Review Panel, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 2008, 2007, 2006, 1999, 1998; and Task Force Member, Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education/Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board Task Force on Alcohol Intervention Programs at PASSHE Institutions, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 2003-2005. Dr. Jackson was most recently recognized by the Best in Pennsylvania Magazine, DOCTORS: Excellence in Addictions Medicine, 2024; Continental Who's Who Registry, Pinnacle Professional Member, 2024; Who's Who in America, Biographical Record, The Marquis Who's Who Publications Board, 2023-2024. On October 13, 2023, after five years, Dr. Jackson retired as the Vice President of the Osteo Re College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bucharest, Romania. He will continue to write, provide workshops and consult. Expressing gratitude to his mother, Edna Taylor Jackson, for teaching him the dignity inherent in people. Dr. Jackson looks forward to continued growth and success in his endeavors, aiming to further advance the field of drug and alcohol prevention. Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected] SOURCE The Inner Circle WANT YOUR COMPANY'S NEWS FEATURED ON PRNEWSWIRE.COM? 440k+ Newsrooms & Influencers 9k+ Digital Media Outlets 270k+ Journalists Opted In GET STARTED

WEDNESDAY, July 17, 2024 -- For patients with treatment-resistant depression , racemic ketamine , given as an extended-release tablet (R-107), administered orally, is effective, safe, and well tolerated, according to a study published online June 24 in Nature Medicine . Paul Glue, M.D., from the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand, and colleagues examined the safety and tolerability of racemic ketamine given orally compared with other routes of administration in a phase 2 multicenter clinical trial. A total of 231 male and female patients with treatment-resistant depression and Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) scores ≥20 received R-107 tablets (120 mg) for five days and were assessed on day 8. One hundred sixty-eight responders on day 8 were randomly assigned to receive double-blind R-107 doses of 30, 60, 120, or 180 mg or placebo, twice weekly for a further 12 weeks in a 1:1:1:1:1 ratio. The researchers found that the primary objective was met; at 13 weeks, the least-squares mean difference of the MADRS score for the 180-mg tablet group and placebo was −6.1 (95 percent confidence interval 1.0 to 11.16; P = 0.019). During double-blind treatment, relapse rates showed a dose response, from 70.6 percent for placebo to 42.9 percent for the 180-mg dose. There was excellent tolerability noted, with no blood pressure changes, minimal reports of sedation, and minimal dissociation. Headache, dizziness, and anxiety were the most common adverse events. "Use of an extended-release oral dosage ketamine formulation may be advantageous compared with intranasal or intravenous dosing, in terms of reduced intensity of dissociation, lower risk of abuse, reduced frequency and intensity of sedative and cardiovascular side effects, and improved convenience for administration in the community," the authors write. Several authors disclosed ties to biopharmaceutical companies, including Douglas Pharmaceuticals, which is developing extended-release racemic ketamine and funded the study. Abstract/Full Text Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.

TUESDAY, June 25, 2024 -- A new slow-release pill form of ketamine can quell hard-to-treat depression without producing psychedelic side effects normally associated with the drug, early research suggests. Patients on the strongest dose of ketamine tablets saw significant improvement in their depression compared to a placebo, researchers found. On a 30-point depression scale, people taking the ketamine pill improved by 14 points, while the placebo group had an average reduction of 8 points. The tablet could provide an improvement over ketamine injections and nasal sprays, which already are used to treat depression, said researcher Colleen Loo , a clinical psychiatrist with the University of New South Wales in Australia. A derivative of ketamine called esketamine (Spravato) is already approved in the United States for treatment-resistant depression in adults. It comes as a pill, nasal spray or injection, but these all work quickly and produce psychedelic effects. “This is a way of administering ketamine to treat depression that's much easier to give,” Loo said in a university news release. “Rather than having to come to the clinic and have an injection and have medical monitoring for two hours, once or twice a week, this is much more convenient and allows patients to have their treatment at home, making it as convenient as other antidepressant medications.” Extended-release ketamine also doesn’t cause the hallucinations typically associated with the drug, Loo added. It had been thought that the altered reality and perception caused by ketamine are part of the reason why the drug helps depression, Loo noted. “That's very similar to the psychedelic-assisted therapy model that says changing your brain circuit functioning in that very profound way gives you new insights that help you to break out of your way of thinking, and that this acute kind of dissociative, altered reality experience is necessary for you to improve,” Loo said. But the results with the slow-release tablet call that theory into question, she said. “With this tablet form you don't experience that because only a tiny amount is released into the bloodstream at a time, with ongoing slow release over days, and you don't experience the dissociation at all, and yet people are improving,” Loo said. In this clinical trial, researchers gave 231 people with severe, hard-to-treat depression a moderate dose of the time-release ketamine tablet. By day eight, 168 patients had received some benefit from the tablet and 132 had their depression lift to the point they could be considered in remission, results show. Researchers then zeroed in on the people who had responded to extended-release ketamine, randomly assigning them into one of five groups. Four of the groups received different strengths of extended-release ketamine pills, and one received a placebo. The strongest dose of slow-release ketamine had a significantly better effect than a placebo, researchers found. All of the lower doses had slightly, but not significantly, better outcomes than a placebo, results show. However, researchers did see a dose response -- the higher the dose, the more a person’s symptoms subsided. “The results here, they look encouraging,” Dr. Brian Barnett , clinical director of the Psychiatric Treatment Resistance Program at the Cleveland Clinic, told CNN . Barnett was not involved in the study. Barnett noted that a two-point drop in the depression rating scale used in this study is considered meaningful to patients. A six-point drop is “similar to what we’ve seen in recent clinical trials of psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression,” Barnett said, referring to studies of “magic” mushrooms and depression. This was the first trial to measure the effectiveness of a slow-release form of ketamine against depression, researchers said. It will likely take years to fully test the tablet before it’s ready for approval as a clinical treatment, researchers said. “Douglas Pharmaceuticals, which is the New Zealand company that has produced the drug, still needs to do further studies, and it’s important to note this is not yet approved by the FDA in the US or the [Therapeutic Goods Administration] here in Australia,” Loo said. “But if it does get through all those hoops and becomes an approved treatment, it certainly makes it much more convenient, not to mention cheaper, to use ketamine to treat severe depression,” Loo added. The next step is to run similar clinical trials in sites around the world, involving larger numbers of patients, Loo said. The trials could also compare extended-release ketamine against injectable and nasal spray versions. “It is also possible that some people may respond to one approach to treatment, such as the tablet, while others respond to another, such as the injection, so having more treatment approaches is very useful,” Loo noted. Douglas Pharmaceuticals sponsored the trial, while lead researcher Paul Glue, with the University of Otago in New Zealand, is named on a patent for the extended-release ketamine formulation. The new study was published June 24 in the journal Nature Medicine . Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.