Course Directors
David Deitch, PhD, is the Founder of the Center for Criminality and Addiction Research, Training
and Application (CCARTA) at the currently Emeritus Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at the
University of California, San Diego. Dr. Deitch has over 45 years of experience in the development of drug abuse treatment systems for adolescents and adults, nationally and internationally. In the non-profit public health sector, he was Co-Founder of Daytop Village, Inc., and also served as Senior Vice President and Chief Clinical Officer for Phoenix House’s Foundation. In the academic sector, he has had appointments at Temple University, the University of Chicago, University of California at San Francisco, as well as serving as Chief of Substance Abuse Services for the University of California, San Francisco. In the government sector, he has served as Coordinator of Curriculum and Faculty for the United Nations East Central European Drug Abuse Treatment Training Project; has consulted to a variety of Department of Corrections and Ministries of Justice and Health, in Latin America, SE Asia and Europe. Dr. Deitch served during the Johnson Administration as consultant to the Presidential Commission for the Study of Crime and Juvenile Delinquency, and the National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse. During the Carter Administration, he chaired the White House Task Force on Prevention. He chaired the Curriculum Development Committee of the National Addiction Technology Transfer Centers, Technical Assistance Publication Series 21 — The Addiction Counseling Competencies: The Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes of Professional Practice, used today as a guideline for corrections and community based substance abuse treatment organizations. He has further served as Regional Director of the Executive Committee of the Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse — Mentor Project (2000). He has numerous publications (and videos) in the field.
Igor Koutsenok, MD, MS is а Professor of Practice in Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego, Director of the Center for Criminality and Addiction Research, Training and Application, Director of the SAMHSA Addiction Technology Transfer Center-Ukraine. He graduated as a medical doctor in 1983 at the National Medical University in Kiev, (Ukraine). In 1986, he completed his psychiatry residency training and received degree as psychiatrist from the Medical University in Sofia (Bulgaria). In 1993 -1996 he worked at the University of London, Department of Addictive Behavior and Psychological Medicine at St. Georges Hospital Medical School and completed Masters Degree in Addictive Behavior. In 1996, he was recruited by the University of California San Diego, School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and since then he serves as faculty member of the Department. In 2013-2016 he served as Chief of Prevention, Treatment, and Rehabilitation Branch at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, United Nations Office in Vienna. Over the last 20 years Dr. Koutsenok led the design and implementation of multiple training and technical assistance programs for addiction treatment, mental health practitioners, primary health care and social work practitioners, criminal justice professionals in the United States and around the world. Dr. Koutsenok served as a trainer for the National Drug Court Institute in the USA. Dr. Koutsenok is also a member of the International Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT). For many years, Dr. Koutsenok teaches general and addiction psychiatry to medical students, psychiatry residents, psychology trainees, social workers, criminal justice professionals, and policy makers around the world. He is a recipient of numerous national and international awards. He has authored and co-authored over 30 scientific publications and 4 book chapters. Dr. Koutsenok has been invited as a presenter and trainer to hundreds of conferences and workshops in the USA and more than 40 countries around the world. He is a proud father of three.
2022 UCSD SCI Distinguished Faculty
Chris Blazes, MD Blazes is Asst. Prof. of Psychiatry and Emergency Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). He is triple board-certified in psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, and emergency medicine and is the director of the OHSU addiction psychiatry Fellowship. Dr Blazes is a clinician educator whose practice is based out of the Portland VA Medical Center. He lectures widely and publishes on such topics as benzodiazepines, synthetic fentanyl analogues, buprenorphine, and the neurobiology of addiction and recovery. He is currently the principal investigator for a trial studying buprenorphine inductions on patients using fentanyl. He also recently published an article describing a new clinical entity, Complex Persistent Benzodiazepine Dependence as well as an article reconsidering the usefulness of adding naloxone to buprenorphine.
Geoffrey Bork, LCSW, served honorably in the Navy for 24 years, earned his bachelor’s in psychology at the University of Phoenix, and a Masters in Social Work (MSW) at the University of Southern California (USC). He has worked in the field of addiction, co-occurring disorders, and complex PTSD for 18 years, mainly working with Active-Duty Service Members with these complex disorders and problems.
His work began by graduating from the Navy’s Drug and Alcohol Counseling School (NDACS), working as a Drug and Alcohol Counselor for the Navy while on active-duty service at Point Loma Residential Treatment Program for three years. Mr. Bork then became a NDACS Advisor/Teacher, training and mentoring Intern counselors to become Navy Drug and Alcohol Counselors. Retiring from military service, he began working as an Alcohol and Drug Counselor for the Department of the Navy at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton for 10 years. He worked as a licensed independent practitioner for the United States Marine Corps, at Camp Pendleton, where he helped active-duty service members, families, and retirees with addiction problems at Marine & Family Behavioral Health Services. He currently works at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Treatment Programs as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker for Co-Occurring Disorders continuing to help active-duty service members with complex problems in an Intensive Outpatient Treatment Program Co-Occurring Program, for the Defense Health Agency (DHA).
In addition, he works as an independent contractor with Options Recovery Services in Berkeley CA, working with the Offenders Mentorship Certification Program (OMCP), for the California State Prisons and Corrections Rehabilitation Department Justice system. In this role, he trains inmates in counseling characteristics and group dynamics to earn a certification as an Alcohol and Drug Counselor, helping reduce recidivism rates, decrease substance problems, and improve vocational jobs, educational opportunities in helping with transitioning into the community. Mr. Bork has also developed and published three alcohol and drug studies courses, two for UCSD Extension (Crisis Theory and Practice and Dual Diagnosis), and one for Palomar College (Group Theory and Practice).
Thom Browne, Jr., MA Rubicon Global Enterprises: President and CEO (Aug. 2015 – present) Colombo Plan Secretariat: Chief Executive Officer (Jan. 2016 – present) Provides global technical assistance on drug prevention, treatment, recovery, and criminal justice issues. Chairs international working groups to develop certification for addictions counselors, licensing for treatment centers, and networks of treatment/prevention professionals. Serves as expert advisor to selected international organizations on counter-narcotics issues. Develops specialized programs addressing unique international challenges such as identification of toxic adulterants added to drugs of abuse and related public health responses. Developed the U.S. government's program and approach to international drug demand reduction for over 25 years as the U.S. Department of State's Division Director for Criminal Justice Programs.
Zafiris J. Daskalakis, MD, Ph.D. is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the UC San Diego. He was formerly the Temerty Chair in Therapeutic Brain Intervention and Chief of the Mood and Anxiety Division at CAMH. His research involves the use of magnetic brain stimulation to study the role of cortical inhibition, plasticity and connectivity as potential pathophysiological mechanisms in schizophrenia, depression and obsessive compulsive disorder. Dr. Daskalakis also conducts treatment studies using repetitive transcranial magnetic brain stimulation (rTMS), magnetic seizure therapy (MST) and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for resistant symptoms in these disorders. He has received several national and international awards and distinctions including the Samarthji Lal Award in Mental Health Research from the Graham Boeckh Foundation for the top mid-career neuropsychopharmacology researcher in Canada in 2013. He also holds or has held NIMH and CIHR peer-reviewed funding and has also mentored numerous NARSAD Young Investigator awardees. Finally, he has over 400 peer-reviewed publications, books and book chapters and is an editorial board member for Biological Psychiatry and an Associate Editor for Clinical Neurophysiology.
Janene DelMundo has over 25 years of applied program experience specializing in information technology and project management. Ms. DelMundo is currently serving as the Project Director for the Integrated Substances Use Disorder Program (ISUDT), and has been instrumental in coordinating large-scale projects for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Federal Court Receiver. High profile projects include oversight of the statewide implementation of the Employee Health Records Systems (EHRS) and the Electronic Dental Records System. Ms. DelMundo was named Healthcare Professional of the Year in 2017 and awarded a Distinguished Service Medal in 2020 for her leadership in implementing both EHRS and ISUDT.
Thomas Dooley, MFA, poet for the past decade, has pioneered the health humanities at hospitals such as Mount Sinai Hospital and New York Presbyterian Columbia Medical Center, designing reflective writing programs for caregivers and clinical staff and implementing narrative interventions at the bedsides of patients. His research centers on attentiveness in the clinical encounter and he has been invited to present at the Mayo Clinic, Kings College London, University of Glasgow, Weill Cornell Medical College, and Columbia University, among others. Thomas is the Founding Artistic Director of Poetry Well, an organization dedicated to promoting poetry as a vital part of our individual and collective wellness for which he has created and directed live poetry events for New York audiences and featured on NPR's hit show Radiolab. Thomas' debut collection, Trespass, was selected by the National Poetry Series and published by Harper Perennial. He serves as the inaugural Resident Poet at T. Denny Sanford Institute for Empathy and Compassion’s Center for Compassionate Communication, developing humanities curriculum and arts programming.
Cary Hopkins Eyles, CAP, MA, Deputy Director is a certified addictions professional with 20 years of experience in the field of substance use disorders. She began her career in this field after graduating with a master’s degree in criminology and becoming a counselor at a non-profit treatment center working with women and their children. In that non-profit organization, Cary moved into leadership roles and managed the Residential and Criminal Justice related programs. She has also supervised outpatient and pre-trial diversion programs. Prior to coming to ICUDDR, Cary helped oversee the Universal Treatment Curricula Coordinating Center at the University of South Florida. Cary is a passionate teacher and trainer – conducting UTC trainings as a Global Master trainer credentialed by ISSUP, INL, and CP as well as international trainings on various substance use disorder topics, adult learning principles, self-care for addictions professionals, the role of shame in substance use cycles, motivational enhancement, and more. She also is an instructor at the University of South Florida in Tampa, FL, teaching about drugs, crime, and the criminal justice system.
Mateusz Gola, Ph.D. is a psychotherapist and neuroscientist helping individuals with compulsive sexual behaviors (CSBD) through his clinical work and research allowing for better understanding of neural mechanisms underlying problematic pornography use. He is an associate professor of Polish Academy of Sciences and University of California San Diego and has authored and co-authored over 120 research publications on neuroscience of addictive behaviors, including first studies directly comparing mechanisms of CSBD with substance addictions. In his free time, he surfs and develops new mobile technologies supporting addictions recovery.
Lisa Heintz serves as the Director of Legislation and Special Projects for the Federal Court Receiver, and is the Project Executive for the Integrated Substance Use Disorder Treatment (ISUDT) program. Prior to this assignment, Ms. Heintz served as an Associate Director for the Division of Adult Parole Operations, and as the Chief Clinical Program Administrator for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), overseeing the CDCR’s Mental Health Continuum, including implementation of the Affordable Care Act for all CDCR releasing inmates. Ms. Heintz has over 25 years of applied program experience specializing in county, state and federal program design, implementation, and focused on obtaining successful outcomes to support recovery. Ms. Heintz’ administrative experience is focused on addiction policies, barriers to treatment, correctional operations, adult parole operations, mental health program administration, court administration, project management and community-based program development.
Renee Kanan, MD is the Chief Quality Officer and Deputy Director, Medical Services Division for the California Correctional Health Care Services. She has spent much of her career creating sustainable quality management and population health programs within correctional systems including most recently the Integrated Substance Use Disorder Program. Dr. Kanan is a board-certified internist and has a master's degree in public health.
Donna Kalauokalani, MD, MPH, “Dr. K” received her medical degree from the University of Hawaii, John A. Burns School of Medicine, trained in Internal Medicine and Anesthesiology at Washington University in St Louis, and obtained post-graduate training in multidisciplinary pain management at the University of Washington in Seattle - which spanned the entire spectrum from acute to chronic pain, addiction and palliative care. She went on to acquire additional training in Preventive Medicine, Program Development, and Health Services Research. She received her master’s degree in public health and completed a prestigious fellowship in the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar's Program.
She has worked as a pain management specialist in a variety of health systems and has devoted her work to developing programs for vulnerable populations and studying the social determinants of health.
Dr. K authored clinical guidelines for pain management, palliative care, and substance use disorder for California Correctional Health Care Services and currently serves as Deputy Medical Executive for Integrated Care and Complex Patient Populations. She leads the clinical services aspects of the Integrated Substance Use Disorder Treatment Program.
Andrew Kurtz, LMFT is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who has been a Clinical Specialist with UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs since 2014 and is the Co‐Director for UCLA ISAP’s Pacific Mental Health Awareness Training project. Mr. Kurtz has previously served as a program director in community mental health, specializing in optimizing access to integrated services through a same‐day assessment center. He has served as the lead contact of a nationally‐recognized Trauma‐ Informed Care implementation that provided staff trainings and program design assistance to improve trauma services, including developing a one‐of‐a‐kind wellness center focused on reducing barriers to accessing care for individuals exposed to traumatic events. Mr. Kurtz has been the instructor for the Fieldwork Practicum course in UCLA Extension’s Alcohol and Drug Counseling Certificate Program since 2017. Mr. Kurtz has a background in research on cognitive and behavioral interventions for the treatment of first‐episode schizophrenia diagnoses.
Carla Marienfeld, MD, DFAPA, FASAM is board-certified in psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, and addiction medicine, and she is a Clinical Professor at the University of California San Diego who supports recovery in an evidence based, harm-reduction approach through therapy, motivational interviewing, and medication treatment. Her research involves analysis of electronic medical record data for individuals with substance use disorders, and her lab has published recently on pregnant women with substance use disorder. She has over 2 million dollars in grant funding for research and to found the UCSD Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program. She was named a San Diego Top Doctor in 2021, and has grown the UC San Diego Addiction Recovery and Treatment program to a respected and thriving outpatient and intensive outpatient service for the UCSD and San Diego Community. She has authored or co-authored over 35 peer reviewed articles, book chapters, practice guidelines, and invited commentaries, and she edited two books: Motivational Interviewing for Clinical Practice and Absolute Addiction Psychiatry Review: An essential board exam study guide. She has been highly involved in education of colleagues and trainees about addiction psychiatry and effective interventions including buprenorphine treatment and motivational interviewing, and she is the fellowship director for the UCSD Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship. Dr. Marienfeld completed a fellowship in addiction psychiatry and residency training in psychiatry at Yale. During her residency, she was chief resident of psychiatry and founded (and later led) the Yale Global Mental Health Program. She earned a medical degree with honors from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. She is active in many professional organizations, including the American Society of Addiction Medicine, the American Association of Addiction Psychiatry, and the American Psychiatric Association.
Carla Marienfeld, MD, DFAPA, FASAM is board-certified in psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, and addiction medicine, and she is a Clinical Professor at the University of California San Diego. She edited two books: Motivational Interviewing for Clinical Practice and Absolute Addiction Psychiatry Review: An essential board exam study guide. She has been highly involved in education of colleagues and trainees, and she is the fellowship director for the UCSD Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship. Dr. Marienfeld completed a fellowship in addiction psychiatry and residency training in psychiatry at Yale, and her medical degree with honors is from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
Carla Marienfeld, MD, DFAPA, FASAM is board-certified in psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, and addiction medicine, and she is a Clinical Professor and the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program Director at the University of California San Diego. She edited two books: Motivational Interviewing for Clinical Practice and Absolute Addiction Psychiatry Review: An essential board exam study guide. Dr. Marienfeld completed a fellowship in addiction psychiatry and residency training in psychiatry at Yale, and her medical degree with honors is from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
Gita Mehta, MD is a Professor Emeritus of Medicine at the University of California San Diego (UCSD). She is board-certified in Internal Medicine (1986), Geriatrics (1992) and has been on the faculty as a clinician-educator at UCSD since 1988, retired in 2017.
She has developed and implemented training programs utilizing simulation to train junior and mid-level faculty, and residents in the Department of Medicine in communication skills, mentoring and providing feedback. These programs have been incorporated in the yearly orientation program for incoming interns, and junior faculty. She is a certified Communication skills trainer and has developed and presented healthcare communication workshops internationally and at UCSD.
As a recipient of the Fulbright Scholar Award in 2018, she developed Faculty Development Programs to build a sustainable curriculum for trainees on Professionalism and Medical Communication in India. In conjunction with the Team at CCC, and as Program Director for the Sanford Communication Faculty Fellowship, Gita will collaborate on building innovative evidence-based educational programs to enhance delivery of relationship-centered compassionate care.
Marc A. Schuckit, MD, is Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Alcohol and Drug Treatment Program, University of California, San Diego and the VA San Diego Healthcare System. Dr. Schuckit received his BS from the University of Wisconsin, an MD from Washington University, interned at Cedars Sinai Medical Center, and was a resident in psychiatry at Washington University and UCSD. He was a special advisor to the Commanding Officer of the Naval Health Research Center, and the first Director of the Alcohol and Drug Institute, University of Washington (1975-1978). He returned to San Diego as Professor and Director of the Alcohol and Drug Treatment Program, University of California, San Diego and the VA San Diego Healthcare System. Dr. Schuckit’s major focus is alcohol and drugs. He was Chair of the DSM-IV substance disorders workgroup and has published papers about the optimal diagnostic criteria for substance use disorders. Regarding the genetics of alcoholism, he has carried out adoption studies, identified a genetic characteristic that impacts on elevated alcoholism risk (the low level of response to alcohol), and is now searching for related genes. He is currently completing a 20-year follow-up (97% success rate) of sons of alcoholics where he is trying to identify environmental events that might relate to whether biological predisposition toward alcohol dependence is expressed. An additional research area is co-morbidity between substance use disorders and major psychiatric conditions.
Dr. Schuckit directed the Alcohol and Drug Treatment Program at the VA San Diego Healthcare System, supervising residents, medical students and staff. He is also a major contact person regarding alcohol and drug problems in faculty and staff at UCSD and the San Diego VA. Additional clinical interests include the treatment of depressive disorders, anxiety conditions, and geriatric psychiatric populations.
Summer clinical institute in addiction studies