Baptist Center of Excellence in Addiction Medicine and Arcare hosted the 2026 West Tennessee Substance Use Summit on Oct. 2 at Memphis Botanic Gardens. Health care and behavioral health professionals, law enforcement and public safety staff, and other community partners attended this free educational event funded by a grant from the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council.
“This summit reflects Baptist Memorial’s commitment to meeting people with compassion and connecting them with evidence-based care,” said Sierra Butler, manager of the Center of Excellence in Addiction Medicine. “By uniting professionals and community partners across West Tennessee, we can challenge stigma, strengthen access to treatment and help more individuals and families find a path toward recovery.”
Dr. William Cloud, vice president and chief medical officer for Baptist Memorial Health Care; Joey Flowers, chief strategy officer for Arcare; and Dr. Ronald Cowan delivered opening remarks. Dr. Omar Manjewala gave the keynote address: “No One Recovers Alone.”
The summit focused on strengthening cross-sector collaboration and emphasized the importance of health care, public safety, prevention and community partners working together to strengthen recovery by providing informed, compassionate and evidence-based support.
Topics covered include motivational interviewing and person-centered communication, building recovery capital in the Mid-South, reducing stigma, medications for opioid use disorder and bridging misconceptions through shared goals and collaboration.
The summit also included situation table sessions, an audience panel discussion and an emerging trends panel focused on substance use in West Tennessee, including field, laboratory and forensic perspectives.
