Hello WISAM members,

With the end of the academic year fast upon us, many of us will be taking time off. I just returned from a three week trip to Egypt. While there, my partner and I found ourselves among an amazing group of people from around the globe, all of whom were doing their part to make the world a better place. It expanded my mind on multiple fronts as we met a banker from Luxembourg during our first night in Cairo. I hadn't considered that anyone in the banking profession would be doing anything of a world-healing nature, but this man spent most of his time in his native South Africa providing loans for projects that would help people rise out of poverty.

We also met people in the healthcare field and on comparing notes, the similarities of the challenges treating patients with addiction issues far outweigh the differences in rich vs poor countries, religious affiliations, and different cultural and ethnic groups. There were some interesting differences as well, such as Tramadol being one of the most abused opioids in Egypt, possession of which is punishable by long imprisonment.

So, as we start our summer excursions, our connectedness to those around us matters, as does our willingness to learn. This is as true for those we talk to during an unexpected encounter as it is for those we treat clinically.

WISAM will be a little quieter during the summer months as we take time off from our monthly teleconferences after the May call. However, we continue to plan for the WISAM 2019 Annual Conference taking place September 26-27 in Madison.

Please stay connected! As an organization, WISAM is only as strong as our involvement with all of you, our members.

Matt Felgus, MD FASAM
President