Sharon Dow, MS

Sharon Dow, MS

Sharon Dow has over 40 years of experience in policy development, planning, technical assistance, and direct provision of substance abuse and mental health services, with 22 years of involvement in writing, interpreting, and managing federal and state grants and contracts. Currently a Senior Associate at the Bizzell Group, Ms. Dow has spent most of the past 20 years directing SAMHSA’s technical assistance contract which focused on providing technical assistance and training to Single State Agencies, provider organizations and opioid addiction treatment programs in the areas of accreditation, policy, regulation development, interagency relationships and professional development.  Ms. Dow was recruited from her position as Chief of the Program and Policy Development Division of Maryland’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration, where she was responsible for policy development and interpretation, regulation development, and methadone treatment issues.  While serving as the State’s Methadone Treatment Authority (SMA), currently referred to as State Opioid Treatment Authority (SOTA), she was given the Nyswander-Dole award from the American Association for the Treatment of Opiate Addiction (AATOD).

Ms. Dow ‘s expertise supported the Joint Commission (JC), a SAMHSA approved accrediting body who was at the forefront of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s (SAMHSA) policy initiative requiring accreditation of all opiate treatment programs. She has also served as reviewer and contributor to several SAMHSA Treatment Improvement Protocols, most notably TIP#1 State Methadone Treatment Guidelines, TIP#10 Assessment and Treatment of Cocaine-Abusing Methadone-Maintained Patients, and TIP #22 LAAM in the Treatment of Opiate Addiction.