ADOPT Study Alternatives to Dental Opioid Prescribing After Tooth Extraction

Douglas Oyler, PharmD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science at the University of Kentucky’s College of Pharmacy. His research focuses on safe opioid prescribing and other strategies to mitigate harm from the opioid crisis in Kentucky and beyond. He has served as principal or co-investigator on numerous projects funded by NIH, FDA, DOJ, DOD, and others.

Dr. Oyler is one of the primary investigators and, along with Dr. Rojas-Ramirez, will oversee all aspects of the study. 

Dr. Marcia Rojas-Ramirez is an Assistant Professor at the University of Kentucky’s College of Dentistry with a background in Public Health. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and has over 10 years of experience in the field of chronic pain management.

Dr. Rojas-Ramirez will work closely with Dr. Oyler to ensure the study is successfully implemented by overseeing all aspects of the trial, including harmonization of the processes, recruitment, and retention of the clinical sites.

Aaron L. Begley, BPH, is the Assistant Research Coordinator for the ADOPT study. He has 2 years of experience working at the University of Kentucky within the Substance Use Priority Research Area, including the HEALing Communities Study. He received his BPH from the UK College of Public Health, and his research interests include Health Disparities in Kentucky, Social/Behavioral Theories pertaining to behavior change, and substance use/Opioid Prescribing practices. 

Mr. Begley will serve as the principal contact for managing supply inventory and assist with invoicing, reporting, and site coordination.

Jennifer M. Dolly Prothro, MPH, CCRP, is the Project Manager for the ADOPT study and has over 10 years of experience working in research at the University of Kentucky (UK).  She received her MPH from the UK College of Public Health, with a focus on Health, Behavior & Society.  Her research interests include clinical research in substance use disorders, behavioral methodology, and implementation science.

Ms. Dolly Prothro will work closely with the project team to guide research activities conducted at the dental clinic sites and will oversee research coordination, regulatory oversight, and network operations.

Enif A. Dominguez-Fernandez, DDS, graduated from dental school at the Central University of Venezuela (Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas-Venezuela). After nine years as a chief surgical assistant in a nationally well-recognized oral and maxillofacial surgery center (Caracas-Venezuela), she received her oral and maxillofacial surgery training at the University of Kentucky. Her clinical interests include dental implants, zygomatic implants, distraction osteogenesis, orthognathic surgery, oral and maxillofacial reconstruction, and sleep apnea surgery. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Dentistry at the University of Kentucky’s College of Dentistry.

Dr. Dominguez-Fernandez will collaborate with MPI Dr. Rojas-Ramirez to ensure the harmonization of study procedures across sites and aid in the recruitment of dentists and oral surgeons.

Patricia (Trish) Freeman, Ph.D., is the Earl Platt Slone Endowed Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Science and University Research Professor at the University of Kentucky’s College of Pharmacy. She has substantial experience leading and coordinating pharmacist-initiated prevention and opioid-related harm reduction efforts, including academic detailing to reduce opioid prescribing. Dr. Freeman has authored more than 100 publications.

Dr. Freeman will oversee the study’s academic detailing initiatives and aid in evaluation and dissemination. 

Hannah K. Knudsen, PhD, is a Professor of Behavioral Science at the University of Kentucky’s College of Medicine. Her area of specialization is addiction health services research and implementation science. Much of her work has focused on the adoption and implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) for the treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs), and she has published more than 130 peer-reviewed publications.

Dr. Knudsen will oversee implementation-related design and analysis, specifically examining key implementation outcomes of the intervention. Knudsen will also ensure scientific and ethical standards are met and aid in evaluation and dissemination.

Maggie Lang, MMC, MS, is a Biomedical Data Scientist within the Biostatistics Consulting and Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration Lab (Biostat CIRCL) at the University of Kentucky’s Department of Biostatistics. She leverages her extensive experience working with large-scale biomedical data to collaborate with researchers across various disciplines.

Ms. Lang will serve as a Staff Statistician, working closely with Dr. Westgate on all required statistical analyses.

Craig S. Miller, DMD, MS, is the Alvin L. Morris Professor of Oral Health Research and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Development at the University of Kentucky’s College of Dentistry. He is board-certified in Oral Medicine, with 35 years of experience in the diagnosis and management of complex oral health issues and medically compromised patients. Dr. Miller has authored more than 200 publications, co-authored four internationally recognized textbooks, and has maintained funding from the National Institutes of Health for more than 30 years.

Dr. Miller will facilitate the recruitment of dentists and oral surgeons, assist in ensuring protocol adherence, manage communication with clinical site providers, and aid in the evaluation and dissemination of the findings.

Monica F. Roberts, PharmD, is an academic detailing pharmacist with experience providing education to physicians, pharmacists, and dentists. She developed and delivered the prescription opioid safety educational outreach program for the University of Kentucky’s HEALing Communities Study.

Dr. Roberts graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy in 2017 and completed the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy Community Pharmacy Residency Program with the Kroger Louisville Division in 2018. She has over 6 years of experience working in various roles in community pharmacies. Prior to her pharmacy career, she worked in journalism and publishing as a copy editor, page designer, and technical writer.

Courtney Rogers, BA Sociology & Spanish, is the Administrative Research Coordinator for the ADOPT study and is earning an MSW at the University of Kentucky. She has a combined ten years of experience implementing programs pertaining to opioid use disorder treatment (UK’s HEALing Communities Study), health insurance (Kynect), transportation access (Broke Spoke Community Bike Shop), and nutrition/food security (UKY SNAP-Ed).

Ms. Rogers will be the principal contact for regulatory compliance, ensure protocol adherence, and assist with site coordination.  

Sharon Walsh, Ph.D. is a Professor of Behavioral Science, Psychiatry, Pharmacology, and Pharmaceutical Sciences in the Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy at the University of Kentucky and serves as Director of the Center on Drug and Alcohol Research and the Substance Use Disorder Priority Research Area.   Her clinical research focuses on pharmacological and behavioral issues in opioid use disorder, including studies on the efficacy of pharmacotherapies for opioid use disorder, abuse liability of psychoactive drugs, and the pharmacology of widely used opioid analgesics. She has published more than 170 manuscripts and book chapters.  She is presently the Principal Investigator of the HEALing Communities Study, which is a large-scale implementation science project aimed at reducing opioid overdose deaths.

Dr. Walsh will provide scientific guidance and administrative support to this trial to ensure its integrity, successful implementation, and compliance within the relevant regulatory frameworks.  She will also ensure that ethical standards will be met with regard to clinical research and clinical trial conduct and assist in disseminating the outcomes.

Philip Westgate, Ph.D., is a Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Biostatistics at the University of Kentucky’s College of Public Health. His methodological areas of interest include cluster, group, or community randomized trials, longitudinal studies, and clustered data in general. Furthermore, he has applied interests in a variety of areas, including the substance use area.

Dr. Westgate will serve as the statistical lead and oversee statistical planning/design, measurement of variables, and development of study-specific data entry user guides. Dr. Westgate will also oversee monthly data quality and completeness reporting as well as analysis of all outcomes.