Dr. Phillip Coffin

Phillip Coffin, M.D., M.I.A., is the Director of Substance Use Research in the Center for Public Health Research at the San Francisco Department of Public Health. He is a board certified internal medicine and infectious diseases clinician; specific foci of Dr. Coffin’s training include HIV management, buprenorphine maintenance, addiction management, toxicology, and viral hepatitis care. As Director, Dr. Coffin oversees several pharmacologic and behavioral trials that aim to reduce substance use and related HIV risk behaviors. Since the early 1990s, Dr. Coffin has been involved in developing and studying services for drug users, including syringe exchange, agonist maintenance therapy, and overdose prevention programs.

Dr. Coffin completed his graduate studies in international affairs at Columbia University, and obtained his medical degree at the University of California, San Francisco. He returned to Columbia University to complete his internal medicine residency, and then moved to Seattle to complete his training with an infectious diseases fellowship at the University of Washington.

In addition to the intersection between substance use and HIV, Dr. Coffin’s interests include screening and linkage to care for persons with hepatitis C; opioid overdose and the distribution of naloxone; and mathematical modeling; and clinical care for HIV, viral hepatitis, and general infectious diseases. Dr. Coffin has an established record of clinical experience, academic service, and innovative research, and his expertise in the field is evidenced by his extensive presentation and publication record. Dr. Coffin is also credited with developing a major international conference, Preventing Heroin Overdose: Pragmatic Approaches, and establishing the first hospital-based naloxone distribution program at Columbia University Medical Center.