Neuropsychiatric & Cardiovascular Pharmaceutical Toxicity | 2026 Total Tox
Includes a Live Web Event on 12/04/2026 at 8:40 AM (EST)
-
Register
- Non-member - Tier I - $300
- Non-member - Tier II - $150
- Non-member - Tier III - $125
- Non-member - Tier IV - $100
- Member - Tier I - $275
- Member - Tier II - $125
- Member - Tier III - $100
- Member - Tier IV - $75
#TotalTox2026
Join us for the next live, virtual session of the Total Tox Course, Neuropsychiatric & Cardiovascular Pharmaceutical Toxicity.
Our second session will delve into toxicities from cardiovascular, neurologic, and psychiatric pharmaceuticals and provide critical insights into managing common inpatient toxicologic emergencies. Speakers will explore the pharmacology, toxicity profiles, and treatment differences among antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, antidepressants, and lithium, and learn to navigate the overlapping features of serotonin syndrome, neuroleptic malignant syndrome, and the anticholinergic toxidrome. The curriculum highlights advanced cardiovascular interventions—contrasting standard ACLS strategies with tailored strategies for drug-induced dysrhythmias, navigating high-dose insulin and the controversial management of beta-blocker and calcium channel blocker toxicity, and treating major bleeding with modern anticoagulant reversal agents.
Learner Objectives
After attending the event, participants should be able to:
- Synthesize advanced management strategies for neuro-psychiatric, anticonvulsant, and antidepressant toxicities.
- Optimize critical care interventions for drug-induced cardiovascular collapse, hematologic emergencies, and perioperative hazards.
- Analyze complex, real-world toxicology cases through multidisciplinary expert panels to refine clinical decision-making.
Questions?
Please write to ACMT at events@acmt.net
Agenda | Total Tox Day 2 - December 4, 2026
8:50 - 9:00 AM ET | Opening Remarks
9:00 - 9:30 AM ET
The Ins and Outs of Ups and Downs #1: Antipsychotics
J.J. Rasimas, MD, PhD, FAACT, FACLP, FACMT, FACP, Professor of Psychiatry & Emergency Medicine, Dalhousie University, University of Minnesota, & Penn State College of Medicine, Minneapolis, MN
Dr. Rasimas will kick things off by identifying the pharmacologic, toxicity, and treatment differences between Tricyclic Antidepressants and Antipsychotics. With this groundwork he will the overlapping features of Serotonin Syndrome, Anticholinergic Syndrome, and NMS produced by TCAs and Antipsychotics.
9:30 - 10:00 AM ET
The Ins and Outs of Ups and Downs #2: Tricyclic Antidepressants
J.J. Rasimas, MD, PhD, FAACT, FACLP, FACMT, FACP, Professor of Psychiatry & Emergency Medicine, Dalhousie University, University of Minnesota, & Penn State College of Medicine, Minneapolis, MN
Dr. Rasimas will return to explain the unique concerns of specific antidepressants in overdose and describes the overlapping features of Serotonin Syndrome, Anticholinergic Syndrome, and NMS produced by TCAs.
10:00 - 10:30 AM ET
The Ins and Outs of Ups and Downs #3: SSRIs and Lithium
Katherine Katzung, MD, FACEP, FASAM, Director of Addiction & Toxicology Program & Emergency Care Physician, Abbott Northwestern Hospital & Emergency Care Consultants, Minneapolis, MN
Join Dr. Katzung as she will discuss drug discontinuation syndrome as it applies to SSRIs & atypical antidepressants. She will also compare differences in acute vs. chronic lithium toxicity.
10:30 - 11:00 AM ET
Drug-Induced Dysrhythmias: When You Can't Control the Rhythm
William "Russ" Kerns, II, MD, FACMT, FACEP, Emeritus Professor of Emergency Medicine, Carolinas Medical Center, Charlotte, NC
Dr. Kerns will identifiy optimal treatment of drug-induced dysrhythmias while describing how the optimal management of drug-induced dysrhythmias differs from AHA ACLS algorithms.
11:00 - 11:30 AM ET | Break (30 min)
11:30 - 12:00 PM ET
Beta Blockers and Calcium Channel Blockers: When the Antagonists Become Antagonistic
Katherine Katzung, MD, FACEP, FASAM, Director of Addiction & Toxicology Program & Emergency Care Physician, Abbott Northwestern Hospital & Emergency Care Consultants, Minneapolis, MN
Dr. Katzung will explain treatment options focusing on high-dose insulin vs vasopressor controversy. She also discusses mechanisms of toxicity, clinical manifestations, and updates on optimal therapy for beta-adrenergic blocking drugs and calcium channel antagonists drugs.
12:00 - 12:30 PM ET
Case Panel
More information coming soon!
12:30 - 1:15 PM ET
Anticoagulants and Antithrombotics: When You Can't Control the Bleeding
Nena Bowman, PharmD, DABAT, Director of Vaccine Operations, Vaccine Preventable Diseases and Immunization Program, Tennessee Department of Health, Nashville, TN
Dr. Bowman will review the mechanism of action, indications, contraindications, adverse reactions, and common drug interactions of warfarin. She also identifies appropriate uses of reversal agents for common anticoagulants and summarizes the latest data in NOAC trials.
1:15 - 1:45 PM ET
Anticonvulsants: When the Level Makes You Unsteady
Daniel J. Sessions, MD, Medical Toxicologist, Ochsner Medical Center, New Orleans, LA
Dr. Sessions will list the toxicities of common anticonvulsants, examines which laboratory testing is required for toxicity from anticonvulsant agents, and identifies treatment options for anticonvulsant toxicity.
1:45 - 2:15 PM ET | Break (30 min)
2:15 - 2:45 PM ET
Hospital Hazards #1: Anesthetic Toxicity & Malignant Hyperthermia
Shaun D. Carstairs, MD, FACMT, Medical Toxicologist, Rady Children's Hospital, San Diego, CA
Dr. Carstairs will describe the history and pharmacology of local anesthetics and discusses the unique characteristics and common clinical use for each prototypical local anesthetic. With this information, Dr. Carstairs assesses the most commonly caused several complications of local anesthetics.
2:45 - 3:15 PM ET
Hospital Hazards #2: Methemoglobinemia
Andrea Carlson, MD, Emergency Medicine Physician, Advocate Christ Medical Center, Oak Lawn, IL
Dr. Carlson will begin by discussing the common agents causing Methemoglobinemia and identifying mechanisms of its toxicity. After learning these components, she describes best practices in clinical management of Methemoglobinemia.
3:15 - 4:15 PM ET
Case Panel: Novel Treatments for the Crashing Patient; Hot Patient Case
More information coming soon!
Andrea Carlson, MD
Emergency Medicine Physician
Advocate Christ Medical Center
Dr. Andrea Carlson is an attending physician in Emergency Medicine at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, IL, where she has served the patients of Chicago's South Side for 25 years. She is also the Director of Medical Toxicology, and the Associate Program Director of the Advocate Christ Emergency Medicine Residency. Her primary academic interests lie in toxicology education and critical care toxicology.
Shaun Carstairs, MD, DFACMT, FACEP
Emergency Physician & Medical Toxicologist
Scripps Healthcare San Diego
Dr. Carstairs is triple-boarded in emergency medicine, medical toxicology, and addiction medicine. He completed an emergency medicine residency at the Naval Medical Center San Diego and a medical toxicology fellowship at the University of California, San Diego. He retired from active duty with the US Navy in 2019 after a 25-year career and currently serves as teaching faculty with Scripps Healthcare San Diego and at Rady Children's Hospital San Diego. He also maintains a faculty appointment as Professor of Military & Emergency Medicine at the Uniformed Services University, the nation's military medical school.
Nena Bowman, PharmD, DABAT
Director of Vaccine Operations
Vaccine Preventable Diseases and Immunization Program, Tennessee Department of Health
Nena Bowman received her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry at Middle Tennessee State University in 2010 and her Doctorate of Pharmacy at Lipscomb University College of Pharmacy in 2014. Bowman completed a specialty fellowship in Toxicology with the Utah Poison Control Center at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2016. She is board certified as a clinical toxicologist, Diplomate of the American Board of Applied Toxicology (DABAT). Dr. Bowman currently practices at the Tennessee Department of Health as the Director of Vaccine Operations and a Toxicologist Consult for the Emergency Preparedness Program. Bowman works closely with providers across the state to ensure proper utilization of federal vaccine program funds, and equal access to all ACIP recommended vaccines for underserved children and adults. She also teaches at Lipscomb University College of Pharmacy as an adjunct professor in toxicology and emergency preparedness curriculum. She is an Advanced Hazmat Life Support (AHLS) Provider and Instructor, and she is the immediate past president of the Nashville Area Pharmacists Association. She enjoys working in public health to educate providers, consulting on difficult toxicology situations, and problem solving to navigate unprecedented events and challenges.
Katherine Katzung, MD, FACEP, FASAM
Director of Addiction & Toxicology Program & Emergency Care Physician
Abbott Northwestern Hospital & Emergency Care Consultants
Katherine Katzung, MD is an attending physician in the emergency department at Abbott Northwestern, where she serves as chair of the department. Additionally, she is the medical director of the hospital’s addiction medicine and toxicology program, which began in 2020 after she received grant funding to initiate a hospital-based toxicology/addiction medicine consult service as well as an emergency department-based addiction medicine "bridge" clinic to provide continuity of care for patients initiated on Suboxone. This innovative program allows patients evaluated at Abbott Northwestern in the emergency department or inpatient units continuity of care, while focusing on harm-reduction strategies, until they can be given a warm hand-off to community providers.
A graduate of the University of Minnesota School of Medicine, she completed emergency medicine training at Regions Hospital in St. Paul and additional fellowship training in medical toxicology. She is board certified in emergency medicine, medical toxicology, and addiction medicine. Her clinical interests surround the intersection of these 3 specialties, with special focus on early ED & hospital-based interventions to evaluate and treat substance use disorder, including initiation of medication assisted therapies.
She volunteers as a consultant for the Minnesota Poison Control System in addition to serving on the board of the Steve Rummler HOPE Network and acts as medical director of its overdose prevention program.
William "Russ" Kerns, II, MD, FACMT, FACEP
Emeritus Professor of Emergency Medicine
Carolinas Medical Center
Dr. Kerns trained in Emergency Medicine and Medical Toxicology and served as Professor in both disciplines at Carolinas Medical Center for 33 years. Faculty roles included leadership of the Medical Toxicology Fellowship and clinical division, consultation for the Carolinas Poison Center, and research. Research interests included antidotes, envenomation, and resuscitation of cardiotoxic drugs. He also served the ACMT focusing on advancing research and education.
J.J. Rasimas, PhD, MD, FAACT, FACLP, FACMT, FACPsych
Professor of Psychiatry & Emergency Medicine
Dalhousie University, University of Minnesota, & Penn State College of Medicine
Dr. Rasimas has a Jesuit university background in biochemistry, mathematics, and philosophy. He completed the Medical Scientist Training Program, earning a PhD in chemical biology (2002) and MD (2003) from Penn State University. After Psychiatry residency at the Mayo Clinic, he was a clinical fellow at the National Institutes of Health in Washington, DC where he did translational research and trained in medical ethics. He also undertook formal education in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, completed the critical care based medical toxicology fellowship at Penn State, and became certified in Psychosomatic Medicine, Addiction Medicine, and Medical Toxicology. Further work at NIH has included the Undiagnosed Diseases Program and roles in research ethics and oversight. Dr. Rasimas was the Director of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Co-Chair of the Biomedical Ethics Committee at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota before moving to Prince Edward Island, Canada in 2022. Based at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown, he served as the lead Psychiatrist for C-L and Addictions for the province. He has recently transitioned to Nova Scotia Health in an effort to build treatment programs for patients with complex psychosomatic illnesses and substance use. For PEI, Dr. Rasimas remains the Medical Director of the Atlantic Mentorship Network for Chronic Pain, Addictions, and Mental Illness. Dr. Rasimas is a university professor with continued involvement in medical education in both the US and Canada pursuing an academic medical career at the interface of psychosomatic medicine, medical toxicology, and psychodynamic psychotherapy with a primary clinical interest in the phenomenology of suicide.
Daniel J. Sessions, MD, FACMT, FASAM, FAAEM
Chief of Medical Toxicology, Interim Chair of Emergency Medicine
Ochsner Medical Center
Dr. Sessions practices serves as Interim Chair of Emergency Medicine and Chief of Medical Toxicology at Ochsner Medical Center - New Orleans. He also leads a Medication Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder expansion program for Ochsner Health Foundation. He completed a Medical Toxicology fellowship at the Rocky Mountain Poison & Drug Center at Denver Health in 2013. He is board-certified in Addiction Medicine by the American Board of Preventive Medicine. He is President-elect of the American College of Emergency Physicians Toxicology Section. He holds academic appointments at Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine and University of Queensland, Ochsner Clinical School.
Registration Rates
Registration includes:
- Access to the live virtual event on December 4, 2026
- Access to the on-demand recording for 90 days after the event
- Access to the Speaker slides
- 6.75 Continuing Education Certificate. Available credits: Continuing Medical Education (CME), Continuing Nursing Education (CNE), Continuing Pharmacy Education (CPE), Continuing Medical Education for Physician Associates (AAPA CME), and Continuing Education for Nurse Practitioners (AANP CE).
Member Rates
Member Tier I: Full, Affiliate, International, Emeritus |
$275 |
Member Tier II: Fellows |
$125 |
Member Tier III: Residents, International - Developing Country |
$100 |
Member IV: Medical Students |
$75 |
Non-Member Rates
Non-member Tier I: Physicians, Pharmacists, Lawyers, "Other" |
$300 |
Non-member Tier II: Fellows, SPIs, Nurses, etc. |
$150 |
Non-member Tier III: Educators & Emergency Responders |
$125 |
Non-member IV: Residents & Students |
$100 |
ACMT Membership
ACMT Members receive a discounted rate. Interested in becoming an ACMT Member? Contact our Membership Team at membership@acmt.net. Learn more at: www.acmt.net/membership
Package Rates
Sign up for the all four days of the 2026 ACMT Total Tox Course and save $150!
Interested in two days? Add two courses directly to your cart and receive an automatic $50 discount!
Refunds and Cancellations
- Cancellations made 15 days or more in advance of the event date will receive a full refund less a 8% processing fee.
- Cancellations made within 14 days of the event date will not receive a refund.
All cancellation requests must be made in writing and emailed to: events@acmt.net. No telephone cancellations will be accepted. A refund that results from a cancellation or change to your registration will be returned to the original payer and in the original method of payment.
Pending review, limited exceptions will be made based on need and circumstance (family emergency, for example) and must be submitted in writing to events@acmt.net. For these instances, the full registration fee, minus a 8% processing fee, will be refunded. Because each exception must undergo a review and approval process, we ask in advance for your patience.
Questions?
For any questions, please email us at events@acmt.net.
Instructions
Once you have completed your registration:
- Click on the Contents tab on the day of live event. This is where you will be able view the Zoom link for the course as well as all required components.
- Complete the Pre-Test. For best the best learning experience, please complete this before the live event on December 4, 2026.
- Watch live event. You can use the Zoom link in the Learning Center to leave and enter the webinar during event.
- Complete the Post-Test. These questions are based on content from the lectures to gauge your comprehension of the lectures. It requires a 70% to pass.
- Complete the Event CE Survey. If you are completing CE, this survey is required.
- Claim your CE certificate. Once you have claimed your CE credit, you will not be able to change your CE certificate.
Full credit can only be claimed after completion of all required components.
Hardware/Software Requirements
Computer or Other Internet-Enabled Device; Internet Connection; Browser.
Materials
None.
Prerequisites
None.
Format
This event is a live Webinar with CME, CNE, CPE, AAPA CME, and AANP CE.
Need Assistance or Have Questions?
For assistance logging in, accessing content, purchasing or completing Continuing Education credits, or for other questions, please contact us at events@acmt.net or visit our FAQ page.
If you are in need of accessible learning accommodations, please contact events@acmt.net for additional assistance.
Continuing Education
Continuing Education credit for this activity is provided by AKH Inc., Advancing Knowledge in Healthcare. The activity is pending approval, and registrants will be able to claim up 6.75 Continuing education credit per activity.
Continuing Education available for
Pharmacists, Physicians, Physician Associates, Nurses, and Nurse Practitioners.
