Meet Lorne Cross, MD, Medical Director in Portland, Oregon
Lorne Cross, MD is an Addiction Medicine healthcare professional based in Portland, Oregon. The United States is currently in the midst of an opioid epidemic, beginning in the late 1990s. Every year, more lives are lost to overdose deaths than were lost during the entire Vietnam War. New studies show that opioids are now responsible for more deaths every year than breast cancer. Treating and understanding the opioid crisis is of critical importance to this country, which is why Dr. Cross decided to specialize in Addiction Medicine and focus his professional attention on this crucial problem.
Dr. Cross currently serves as the Medical Director of the Willamette Valley Treatment Center. Here, he leads a team that administers Medication Assisted Treatment to patients with Opioid Use Disorder. Lorne Cross, MD is also the Medical Director of a new Opioid Treatment Program at the Yamhill County Jail. Treating opiate addiction, rather than punishing those suffering from it, helps to prevent relapse, lower the rate of recidivism in the jail population, decrease the number of overdose deaths, and put inmates on the proper path upon release. Giving patients a road to recovery sets them up for a more successful future.
Looking into the future of opiate addiction, Dr. Cross feels hope. He views the expansion of treatment into prisons and jails as a needed step towards preventing deaths due to overdose and treating the opioid crisis. The use of a rehabilitative approach for treating addiction is one of the greatest ways to provide help to those who truly need it most.
Starting from when he was a child, Lorne Cross, MD was always intrigued by the natural sciences and medicine. Once he reached college, he was sure that he wanted to attend medical school and earn his medical degree. He attended Loma Linda University School of Medicine, where he graduated in the top third of his class. He then completed his medicine internship and his anesthesiology residency at Loma Linda University Medical Center. Located in California, Loma Linda University is a coeducational health sciences university. He also graduated Magna Cum Laude from the Scholastic Honors Program at Southwestern Adventist College. Located in Texas, Southwestern Adventist College is a small college, with an undergraduate enrollment of around 800 students and is where Dr. Cross received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology.
When he is not working, Lorne Cross, MD likes to keep a healthy and active lifestyle. He is an avid cyclist and bicycle racer, and actively pursues many other sports. When not spending his time exercising, he also loves traveling to new locations and spending time with his two teenage children and family.
