Dr John Kelly
Associate Professor Psychiatry
Dr. Kelly is the Elizabeth R. Spallin Associate Professor of Psychiatry in Addiction Medicine at Harvard Medical School, the founder and Director of the Recovery Research Institute at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), the Program Director of the Addiction Recovery Management Service (ARMS) and the Associate Director of the Center for Addiction Medicine at MGH. Dr. Kelly is a former President of the American Psychological Association (APA) Society of Addiction Psychology, a distinguished Fellow of the APA, and a Diplomate of the American Board of Professional Psychology. He has served as a consultant to U.S. federal agencies and non-Federal institutions, and foreign governments. His clinical and research work has focused on enhancing the effectiveness of addiction treatment and recovery support services, stigma reduction, and addiction and criminal justice.
Alcohol and other drug (AOD) misuse and related disorders confer a prodigious burden of disease, disability and premature mortality in middle and high-income countries globally. Understanding how individuals are successful at changing and sustaining salutary change with regard to AOD-related behaviors, has become a clinical and public health priority in light of increases in alcohol and opioid harms and a rapidly changing policy landscape regarding the legal status of marijuana. This symposium examines these global challenges by bringing together international experts on addiction recovery science and policy. Professor John Kelly will present data from the first nationally representative study of US adults who have successfully resolved a significant AOD problem highlighting national prevalence estimates, the variety of recovery pathways used, recovery identity, and changes in indices of quality of life and functioning with time in recovery.
