Linda Gowing

Associate Professor Linda Gowing retired in November 2020 after more than 20 years working in the field of drug and alcohol, with expertise in best practice in the treatment of drug and alcohol problems. At the time the course material was developed, she was a Principal Research Officer at Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia (DASSA), and an Associate Professor in the Discipline of Pharmacology at the University of Adelaide. DASSA is the government provider of specialist treatment services for people with drug and alcohol problems in South Australia. Linda’s work at DASSA enabled her to bring to the course an awareness of the practicalities of providing treatment to people with alcohol and other drug problems, as well as the more academic knowledge of research evidence. Linda also had experience in health care policy having worked for the Australian Commonwealth Department of Health, including two years in charge of the section on illicit drug policy.

Linda’s research interests related to critical appraisal of research evidence on the treatment of addiction and translation of evidence into practice. She was affiliated with the Cochrane Collaboration, which produces The Cochrane Library, a collection of up-to-date systematic reviews on healthcare. Linda was a member of the editorial board for the Cochrane Drugs and Alcohol Group, an author of multiple Cochrane reviews on different aspects of addiction treatment, and was a mentor for researchers in Thailand, China, USA and Australia, undertaking systematic reviews. Linda also had experience in the preparation of evidence-based guidelines and was involved in teaching medical and science students on the treatment of alcohol and other drug users, evidence-based practice and critical appraisal of research.