News
Addiction Psychiatry Division Update
Thursday, June 19, 2025
We are excited to formally announce recent developments to the clinical leadership structure and service within our Addiction Psychiatry Division.
Itza Morales, MSB, CASAC, was promoted to the role of Senior Director of Clinical Operations in the Addiction Psychiatry Division. Itza took over this role earlier this spring, and in it, she has operational oversight for all the clinics under the umbrella of Strong Recovery. This includes the Opioid Treatment Program (OTP), the Adult Chemical Dependency clinic (SRCD), the Adolescent/Young Adult clinic (AYA), and the Substance Use Disorder-Primary Care program (SUD-PC). Itza is approaching 34 years of service with the University, 26 of which have been within the Department of Psychiatry.
She started in Strong Recovery in 2008 as a Sr. Counselor and has been in various leadership roles for the past 10 years. Most recently, Itza was the Co-Director of Clinical Operations with Julie Achtyl. Along with this promotion to Senior Director, Itza worked with Dr. Mathis and I to adjust the leadership structure of Strong Recovery to adequately support the robust services in each of the clinics, which are also part of the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC). This restructure includes the promotion of 3 Clinical Coordinators to Managers of Clinical Program Operations for each of the clinics in Strong Recovery. Itza will also continue in her role as the Department’s Staff Wellness Officer.
The new Managers of Clinical Program Operations for Strong Recovery are as follows:
- Janine Coppini, MA, MPA, LMHC, CASAC is being promoted to be the Manager of Clinical Program Operations for the Adolescent/Young Adult clinic and Integrated Services. Janine has been in Strong Recovery for over 6 years and in a leadership role since 2019. She has been a Clinical Supervisor and Clinical Coordinator for Strong Recovery’s Co-Occurring Disorders team and the Adolescent/Young Adult clinic.
- Kelly Vandermark, MS, CASAC is being promoted to be the Manager of Clinical Program Operations for the Adult Chemical Dependency clinic and Access/Outreach services, including the SUD-PC. Kelly has been in Strong Recovery for over 15 years and in a leadership role since 2019. She has been a Clinical Supervisor and Clinical Coordinator for Strong Recovery’s Intake Team and the SUD-PC team.
- Lauren Smith-Friedman, LMSW, CASAC is being promoted to be the Manager of Clinical Program Operations for the Opioid Treatment Program (OTP). Lauren has been in Strong Recovery for over 17 years and in a leadership role since 2017. She has been a Clinical Supervisor and Clinical Coordinator for Strong Recovery’s OTP, providing different levels of clinical leadership.
In addition to celebrating these new leadership roles, the Addiction Psychiatry Division has expanded to include the URMC Westfall Practice, with medical and clinical leadership overseen by Dr. Myra Mathis as Clinical Chief and Itza Morales as Senior Director. As the practice transitions to Addiction Psychiatry, we want to thank Dr. George Nasra and our Collaborative Care and Wellness (CCW) Division for supporting the Westfall team through the acquisition process and during the initial phases of their integration into URMC and the Department of Psychiatry. We are excited to see the continued development of the Westfall Practice under the Addiction Psychiatry umbrella. Please join me and Dr. Mathis in celebrating the continued growth of addiction psychiatry and congratulating these outstanding clinical leaders on their new roles!!!!