At the age of 16 I began working as an orderly in a hospital. I was working in the emergency room at the age of 17 when I was asked to join the local voluntary ambulance squad. I continued doing this through high school and college until I left for medical school in 1973.
After completing medical school in Mexico I did a rotating internship at the Wilmington Medical Center. I worked on the internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, family practice, and emergency medicine services. On completion of the rotating internship, I went to Cooper Hospital/University Medical Center where I completed a residency in internal medicine.
After completing the residency in internal medicine I opened a primary care practice. During the first year of practice, I supplemented my income by working full time at an emergency room where I operated the Camden County paramedic base station. I developed my primary care practice and then developed a large primary care practice.
In 1987, I developed an interest in addiction medicine through my own recovery and began offering more services to patients in the area of addiction medicine. By 1995, my addiction medicine practice had grown to the point where I sold my primary care practice to Cooper Hospital/University Medical Center and devoted myself exclusively to the practice of addiction medicine.
I became certified in addiction medicine by the American Society of Addiction Medicine by examination in 1991 and recertified in 1998. Based upon my activities in this area I became a Fellow in 1999. In March of 2009 I became a Diplomat of the American Board of Addiction Medicine. I am now Board certified in Addiction Medicine and continue to practice in this area on a full time bases. I have lectured internationally on topics of addiction medicine.
As part of my addiction medicine practice, I was frequently asked to provide expert testimony and asked to lecture at the Widener University School of Law. I certified on several types of evidentiary breath testing instruments and in 2000 I enrolled at Widener University School of Law and received my Juris Doctor in May of 2004. I then passed the bar examinations in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. I provide litigation support and have been accepted as an expert by many jurisdictions. I have lectured nationally on medical legal issues related to addiction medicine.