# Training in Equity and Structural Solutions in Addictions (TESSA)

> **NIH NIH T32** · UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON · 2024 · $406,734

## Abstract

PROJECT ABSTRACT
Inequity in addictions and their treatment are growing, ubiquitous threats to health and society. A global
pandemic and large social movements, such as #BlackLivesMatter, have highlighted negative impacts of racism
and discrimination for addictions and centered “structures as the root cause of inequities. Structural racism has
fundamentally shaped responses to substance use in the U.S. Other structural factors, such as policies and
systems like education, housing, criminal justice, and healthcare reinforce inequality and contribute to addictions
disparities and inequities. However, structural factors in addictions, and how to increase equity in addictions care
and outcomes, are grossly understudied. A new generation of addictions health services scholars is
needed to address equity challenges rooted in structures. Consistent with the goals of NIDA’s Racial Equity
Initiative, next generation scholars will need strong training in anti-racism and related research methods and
fields that can alter structures that reinforce inequity (e.g., policy and implementation science) in addition to
training in traditional health services and addictions-specific content and methodology. As the nation’s premier
public university for research—home to a leading doctoral program in health services research, a top-ten medical
school, nationally-recognized programs in implementation science and health policy, and one of only a handful
of anti-racism centers in the nation—the University of Washington (UW) is well positioned to address these
training needs. Thus, UW’s Department of Health Systems and Population and Division of General Internal
Medicine seek NIDA funding to found the Training in Equity and Structural Solutions in Addictions (TESSA)
Program to: 1) recruit 11 pre- and post-doctoral scholars with interest in addictions disparities, 2) deliver a
specialized curriculum fostering a multidisciplinary understanding of addictions and their care, policy,
implementation science, and anti-racism; 3) provide TESSA scholars mentored research opportunities focused
on addictions equity in multidisciplinary research teams, 4) support TESSA scholars in developing research
career training plans to enhance their skills and prepare them for research careers; and 5) evaluate the success
of the program using explicit benchmarks and pre-defined outcomes. We have developed the TESSA program
to train scholars in 17 core competencies addressing anti-racism, policy, and implementation science in addition
to traditional health services and addictions content and methodology. If we continue to train addictions scholars
without such a direct multidisciplinary approach, we are likely to see slow progress and missed opportunities to
improve equity and reduce morbidity, mortality, and suffering associated with addictions. Investment in TESSA
will result in a new generation of diverse, anti-racist and equity-focused addictions research scholars who are
optimally prepared ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10830346
- **Project number:** 5T32DA057920-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
- **Principal Investigator:** GEETANJALI CHANDER
- **Activity code:** T32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $406,734
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-07-01 → 2028-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10830346

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10830346, Training in Equity and Structural Solutions in Addictions (TESSA) (5T32DA057920-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10830346. Licensed CC0.

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