Experts for Media - Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Jonathan E. Alpert, MD, Ph.D

Chairman, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Dr. Alpert is the Dorothy and Marty Silverman University Chair of the Department of Phychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Professor of Psychiatry, Neuroscience and Pediatrics. His academic interests include innovative treatments for difficult to treat mood disorders, childhood onset depression, depression comorbid with other medical illnesses, multi-cultural mental health, drug-drug interations, behavioral health integration, ethical issues in the conduct of human studies, and medical education.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

Reuters

Scott Wetzler, PhD

Vice Chairman of Psychiatry, Montefiore

Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Dr. Wetzler is the Director of the Supporting Healthy Relationships Program, aimed at couple in the South Bronx.  oversees behavioral health care management for Montefiore's risk business; care management for Montefiore's Health Home; specialized case management for substance abusers under contracts with NYC Human Resources Administration; child welfare programs under contracts with NYC Administration for Children's Services and a Regional Partnership Grant to Improve Child Welfare Outcomes Among Substance Abusers funded by US Department of Health and Human Services Children's Bureau; health care workforce development funded by a Health Professions Opportunity Grant from the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

The Wall Street Journal

Gary Kennedy, MD

Director of Geriatric Psychiatry, Montefiore Medical Center

Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Dr. Kennedy is a nationally recognized expert on Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. He has been widely interviewed on network television on caregiving issues in dealing with loved ones with Alzheimer’s, and on maintaining cognitive abilities.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

ABC News GMA Health, USA Today

Simon Rego, PsyD

Clinical Psychologist, Montefiore

Director of The Cognitive Behavior Therapy Program, Montefiore

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Dr. Rego is a licensed clinical psychologist with close to 20 years of experience in Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and other evidence-based psychological treatments.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

Fox News, MSNBC, FOX, Huffington Post

Vilma Gabbay, MD

Co-Director, Psychiatry Research Institute at Montefiore Einstein (PRIME)
Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Neursciences

Dr. Gabbay's primary areas of research include multimodal studies of adolescent depression
and reward deficits, the comorbidity of depression and substance use people living with HIV,
and neuropsychiatric sequelae of COVID-19.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

Medpage Today

Carol A. Bernstein, MD

Vice Chair Faculty Development & Wellbeing
Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Professor Obstetrics & Gynecology & Women’s Health
 

Dr. Bernstein, is a Past-President of the American Psychiatric Association and served the Association as Vice-President, Treasurer and Trustee-at-Large and as the chair of multiple committees. She has served as a spokesperson for the American Psychiatric Association on many occasions and received the 1997 exemplary psychiatrist award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI). She is the recipient of the APA/NIMH Vestermark Award in Psychiatric Education and the APA Alexandra Symonds Award for contributions to the advancement of women in leadership and in women’s health. 

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

Medpage Today, Renal & Urology News

Migelina German, PhD

Director, Pediatric Behavioral Health Integration Program, Montefiore Medical Group Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics & Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Assistant Director Pediatric Behavioral Health Integration Program (BHIP)

Dr. Germán's clinical focus is on pediatric anxiety, ADHD, depression and trauma. She has special expertise in postpartum mood and anxiety disorders and providing parental mental health services. Dr. Germán also specializes in the mental health of Latino children and families.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

MSNBC, NPR, BronxNet, NBC News, TODAY, NPR

Traci Maynigo, PsyD

Program Director, Attending Psychologist, Montefiore
Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Eisntein College of Medicine

Dr. Maynigo’s research focuses on adapting couple, family, and group-based interventions
for diverse, underserved populations. She is currently the Program Director of two family strengthening programs funded by the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance, Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood grants: Supporting Healthy Relationships (SHR) and HERO Dads.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage
U.S. News, Women's Health, Justlove, News12 Bronx

Howard L. Forman, MD

Director of the Addiction Consultation Service at Montefiore
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Dr. Forman is a nationally recognized leader in psychiatry and has published on topics ranging from the intersection of psychiatry and law to the relationship between pop culture and mental illness.

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

Los Angeles Times, YouTube, NBC News

Rubiahna Vaughn MD MPH

Program Director of Consultation Liaison Psychiatry Fellowship
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Dr. Rubiahna Vaughn, Director of Consultation Liaison and Emergency Psychiatry, Weiler Hospital, Montefiore Health System in New York City, commented on the study in an email to Reuters Health. "Sadly, the findings are not surprising at all. In the population that I treat, which is primarily publicly insured Black and Brown women, the pandemic has only served to worsen the chronic stressors
that can contribute to poor mental health outcomes."

Areas of Expertise

Selected Media Coverage

MD Alert