Many people envision addicted as people who should be locked away in treatment facilities. However,Dr. Punyamurtula Kishore, the founder and Medical Director of Addiction Medicine Associates, had a vision that changed the course of addiction medicine. He believes that addiction is a primary care illness and should be treated as such in the community. His vision began with his first practice, a one room office in Brighton in 1996 and had grown to 27 sites throughout the state serving more than 12,000 patients per year. Dr. Kishore believes that addiction should be treated with the same vigor as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and all other primary care illnesses those who are suffering with addiction should be given the same respect as individuals with the aforementioned diseases.