Nicole Labor, DO, FASAM
Candidate for Director-at-Large
Nicole Labor, DO, FASAM is board certified in Addiction Medicine and Family Medicine and has spent more than 20 years caring for people with substance use disorders. She serves as Medical Director for multiple addiction treatment organizations and co-founded the Summa Health Addiction Medicine Fellowship. A nationally recognized educator and speaker, Dr. Labor is the author of The Addictoholic Deconstructed and The Addictoholic Reconstructing and is known for translating addiction neuroscience into accessible, practical education. As an ASAM Director-at-Large, she brings extensive frontline clinical experience, a commitment to evidence-based treatment, and a passion for improving addiction education, access, and care.
Candidate Questionnaire Responses
1. How would your election to the ASAM Board of Directors benefit ASAM and the field of addiction medicine?
I would bring a perspective that bridges clinical practice, organizational leadership, education, and public communication. Throughout my career, I have worked across nearly every level of addiction treatment, giving me a broad understanding of both the clinical and systemic challenges facing our field.
I have also built my career around making addiction science understandable outside the walls of medicine. One of the greatest barriers to addiction treatment is the disconnect between medicine and the people we serve. My approach is direct, authentic, and approachable because credibility does not require clinicians to sound inaccessible. Effective leadership in addiction medicine requires communicating with patients, families, policymakers, the public, and physicians alike.
My experience implementing evidence-based practices across diverse systems, combined with my ability to communicate beyond traditional medical audiences, would help ASAM broaden its reach, strengthen its connection with the communities we serve, and advance evidence-based addiction care.
2. Candidate Statement
I have dedicated my career to advancing addiction medicine through patient care, physician leadership, education, and advocacy. As a board-certified Family and Addiction Medicine physician, I have practiced across hospitals, residential and outpatient treatment programs, opioid treatment programs, correctional settings, and federally qualified health centers, giving me firsthand experience with the opportunities and challenges facing our field. I currently serve in multiple medical leadership roles and have devoted my career to implementing evidence-based care while mentoring clinicians and improving systems of treatment.
Beyond clinical practice, I am passionate about making addiction science understandable and accessible. As an educator, author, national speaker, and public science communicator, I have reached hundreds of thousands of people by translating complex neuroscience into practical, relatable information for clinicians, patients, families, and policymakers. I believe one of the greatest opportunities for ASAM is not only to advance the science of addiction medicine, but also to improve how we communicate that science to the world. Also, I'm pretty hilarious.
If elected, I will bring a collaborative leadership style, experience building programs across diverse treatment settings, and a commitment to expanding access to evidence-based care while reducing stigma through education. I would be honored to help ASAM continue leading our specialty and shaping the future of addiction medicine.