Jared O'Garro-Moore, PhD

Dr. Malone completed her PhD at the University of Michigan in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, investigating signal transduction systems under stress conditions. She completed her medical education at Albert Einstein College of Medicine receiving the Jean L. Cook Memorial Award for Medical Excellence. During medical school, she worked to identify barriers to the treatment of opioid use disorders in previously incarcerated individuals. She trained in general psychiatry at Columbia University and during residency investigated Vivitrol as treatment for substance use in younger adults. Upon graduation, she joined the Columbia/Cornell Universities Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Residency Training Program in the Community and Public Psychiatry Track. Dr. Malone specializes in working with individuals throughout all life’s developmental stages who struggle with psychiatric disorders and/or substance use like drugs or alcohol. Her aim is to use a combination of targeted therapies and/or medications to increase a person’s functionality, life fulfillment and ability to maintain healthy relationships.

Dr. Medalia has been instrumental in raising awareness about the need to address cognition as a central aspect of health related to functional outcome. Her key contribution to psychiatry relates to her application of motivation theories to the treatment of cognitive disorders, and more generally psychiatric rehabilitation. Medalia identified the need for the treatment of cognition to move beyond theories of neuroplasticity, to embrace an understanding of how people learn. She developed the widely used Neuropsychological & Educational Approach to Remediation (NEAR) model of cognitive remediation, which has been disseminated worldwide in psychiatric, educational, forensic, and supportive housing settings and used with people diagnosed with schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD, and mild cognitive impairment. Dr. Medalia has primary research interests in treating cognition, improving motivation, and facilitating recovery among people with mental illness. She is the principal researcher in several NIMH funded studies, and a prolific writer. Dr. Medalia is a leading proponent for the need to address cognition as a central aspect of health related to functional outcome for people living with persistent mental illness. In 1998, she established and continues to direct the world’s largest conference on this topic, Cognitive Remediation in Psychiatry, now hosted by Columbia University. She lectures and consults to agencies worldwide and conducts training workshops for clinicians to learn the techniques of cognitive remediation for psychiatric patients. By focusing on cognitive health in addition to mental health, cognitive remediation seeks to improve critical thinking skills, enabling people to be more effective in their daily lives and pursue their goals for recovery in a purposeful and meaningful way.

Dr. Ana G. Cepin is an Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Her professional activities are diverse and include clinical, administrative and educational roles. As Director of Community Women's Health, she is actively engaged in efforts to improve the health outcomes of the women in the local community. As the Co-Director of the Ob/Gyn Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, she is committed to advancing health equity. Her clinical interests include all aspects of preventative care, family planning and general gynecology.