HARM REDUCTIONIST,
RESEARCHER,
SOCIAL WORKER,
AND AUTHOR
THE HARM REDUCTION GAP
By highlighting the large gap in our current approach to substance use - the harm reduction gap - this book is the first step for those interested in learning more about the limitations of our current approach to drug use and how to support local efforts to ensure people who use drugs and their communities can stay safe.
MY BACKGROUND
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW is an author, a sought-after speaker, and a national expert on harm reduction and drug policy. She is currently the Deputy Director of the Department of Research and Academic Engagement at the Drug Policy Alliance, the nation’s leading advocacy organization fighting to end the war on drugs. Dr. Vakharia brings over 15 years of combined experience in clinical social work in both treatment and harm reduction settings, research, teaching, and policy advocacy to her work.
SELECT PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
Support, Don’t Punish: Drug Decriminalization Is Harm Reduction.
Journal of the American Pharmacists Association
Social Workers as Potential Agents for Drug Policy Reform.
Advances in Social Work
Defiant Hospitality: A Grounded Theory Study of Harm Reduction Psychotherapy.
Addiction Research & Theory
Starting Where the Client Is: Harm Reduction Guidelines for Clinical Social Work Practice.
Clinical Social Work Journal
Find more of my work on my
Google Scholar page
SELECT MEDIA MENTIONS AND OP-EDS
The ‘crack pipe’ outcry was a huge missed opportunity
Washington Post
Read more of my
media mentions here
SELECT PRESENTATIONS AND AUDIENCES
Association for Multidisciplinary Education and Research in Substance use and Addiction (AMERSA)
National Academies of Medicine
Association for State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)
National Institute on Drug Abuse
United Nations
Available for speaking engagements
Contact me here
“...a one-of-a-kind book that meets the reader where they are and doesn't just leave them there. She brings them to harm reduction.”
Maia Szalavitz, New York Times bestselling author of Undoing Drugs
“An easy-to-follow explanation of harm reduction and shows that we can do so much more to keep our communities safe and healthy.”
Kassandra Frederique, Executive Director, Drug Policy Alliance, USA