News
Lauren DeCaporale-Ryan Named Director of the Institute for the Family and the Laurie Sands Distinguished Professor
Wednesday, July 29, 2026
We are excited to share that Lauren DeCaporale-Ryan, PhD has been appointed the next Director of the Institute for the Family and the Laurie Sands Distinguished Professor, effective August 1st, 2026.
Dr. DeCaporale-Ryan is a clinical psychologist specializing in geriatrics and medical family therapy. She earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology, with additional training in geropsychology, from the University of Missouri–St. Louis in 2011. She completed her internship at the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, followed by a fellowship in Primary Care Family Psychology at the University of Rochester Medical Center's Institute for the Family.
Since joining our faculty in 2013, Dr. DeCaporale-Ryan has become a highly respected clinician, educator, and leader whose work exemplifies the Institute's commitment to integrating family systems and the biopsychosocial model into patient care. She currently holds appointments in the Departments of Psychiatry, Medicine, and Surgery and serves as Director of the University of Rochester Physician Communication Coaching Program and Interim Chief of Psychology in Department of Psychiatry. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated a remarkable ability to build interdisciplinary collaborations, mentor trainees, and advance innovative models of integrated behavioral health care. The search for the next Chief of Psychology is currently underway.
The Institute for the Family has a distinguished legacy of advancing family systems, medical family therapy, education, research, and clinical innovation.
Experts Warn Suicides are Undercounted in the U.S. | CSPS Co-Founder, Eric Caine, discusses under-reporting in suicide deaths in the United States
Wednesday, July 29, 2026
Experts Warn Suicides are Undercounted in the U.S.
An accurate account of suicide burden is needed to develop, implement, and measure prevention efforts
“Most drug overdoses are the result of motivated behaviors and aren't ‘accidents’ in the strict sense. They aren’t completely random events like a tree branch falling on someone’s head,” explained Eric Caine, MD, professor emeritus of Psychiatry and co-founder and past director of the Center for the Study and Prevention of Suicide at University of Rochester Medicine. “Recurrent illicit drug use, especially with drugs from unknown sources, is really self‑injury in a public health sense, often leading to death but not accidental death.”
Read Full Article - Experts Warn Suicides are Undercounted in the U.S.