Marvin D. Seppala, MD, resigned his position as Chief Medical Officer of Hazelden to join Beyond Addictions as the Medical Director, CEO. Dr. Seppala graduated from the Mayo Medical School in Rochester, Minnesota in 1984 completing his Psychiatry Residency and Fellowship in Chemical Dependence at the University of Minnesota Hospitals. Dr. Seppala left a successful private practice to become the Chief Medical Director at Hazelden. At Hazelden, Dr. Seppala was responsible for medical care throughout Hazelden’s facilities nationally. Hazelden’s web site describes Dr. Seppala’s position, “His primary responsibilities include promoting state-of-the-art addiction medicine practices, leading innovative clinical services, championing Hazelden’s Physicians-in-Residence training program, and overseeing special recovery programs for addicted health care professionals.” Dr. Seppala’s history is closely tied to Hazelden and is described on the website in the following way: “Dr. Seppala was one of the first adolescents to be treated for addiction at Hazelden in Minneapolis. Following treatment, he developed an interest in medicine and went on to earn a medical degree…”

Dr. Seppala was recently awarded the 2006 De Paul Freedom Award. The award is described by Sheila L. North, M.A., M.F.T., Executive Director, De Paul Treatment Centers, Inc: “We are honoring Dr. Seppala for his commitment to people who suffer from addiction and for his work to make recovery a possibility. His story as well as his work in the addiction field inspires others and helps to reduce the stigma. He has demonstrated his dedication by tirelessly giving his time to educate people about treatment and recovery as well as by championing research that demonstrates the effectiveness of treatment. The more open we are about addiction and recovery, the more we normalize the process, and the more people seek treatment. Dr. Seppala’s work is helping the community view addiction as a chronic disease much like asthma and diabetes.”

Dr. Seppala is involved in national policy making by serving on the Board of the American Society of Addiction Medicine and is a founding member of the Oregon Society of Addiction Medicine.

Dr. Seppala is a well-known speaker and has been a guest on The Early Show (CBS), Talk of the Nation (National Public Radio), and his comments have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Chicago Sun-Times, USA Today and Newsweek.

Dr. Seppala’s hobbies include skiing, fishing, backpacking, hiking, surfing, and reading.