WMU Public Health and WMed Collaborate to Advance Addiction Prevention and Care
KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Faculty, students, clinicians and community partners at Western Michigan University and Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine (WMed) are working together to address opioid use disorder through a growing, multi-year collaboration that spans prevention, emergency care and workforce development.
At the center of this work is a partnership between WMU Public Health faculty and students, WMed Addiction Medicine physician-faculty Dr. Ford, and community prevention specialist Nancy King of the Hope Network. Together, the group has created hands-on learning opportunities for students while delivering tangible benefits to the Kalamazoo community.
One major outcome of this collaboration occurred in Fall 2025, when WMU undergraduate public health students worked with Dr. Jessica Cataldo to develop an advocacy plan to bring a free naloxone box to WMU’s campus. With guidance from Dr. Ford and Nancy King, students presented their proposal to university leadership, who approved the installation. The naloxone box—stocked and maintained by Hope Network—now provides free opioid overdose reversal medication to the campus and surrounding community, expanding access to a critical harm-reduction resource.
The partnership also extends into clinical care. During Fall 2025, WMU graduate public health students collaborated with Dr. Brady and Dr. Ford to design an implementation and evaluation plan to support the integration of peer support specialists into Bronson Hospital’s emergency department. The plan outlined how newly hired peer support workers could be embedded into ER workflows to help initiate treatment and guide patients from emergency care into outpatient services. This work directly supports hospital efforts to improve continuity of care for individuals experiencing opioid-related emergencies.
Looking ahead, the collaboration continues to grow. In Spring 2026, WMU undergraduate public health students are working with Dr. Brady to adapt an existing provider training program into a community-based intervention aimed at increasing outpatient providers’ capacity to treat opioid use disorder across Kalamazoo County. Dr. Brady and Dr. Ford plan to submit a grant proposal seeking opioid remediation funds to support the delivery of this training.
Together, these projects demonstrate how cross-institutional collaboration can simultaneously enhance student learning, strengthen clinical systems and address urgent public health needs. By connecting academic expertise, medical practice and community prevention efforts, WMU Public Health and WMed are creating sustainable pathways to reduce harm and expand access to addiction treatment in Southwest Michigan.