Meet The Team

Dr. Back is a Professor and licensed clinical psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina. She is also a Staff Psychologist at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Healthcare System. Dr. Back has been conducting research for more than 25 years on the intersection of stress, PTSD and substance use disorders and the development of effective treatments. She is also Principal Investigator of the grant the supported the development of COPEweb.

Dr. Brady is an experienced clinical and translational researcher and has been conducting scientific investigations and clinical work in the field of addictions and psychiatric disorders for over 30 years. She has received numerous federal research grants and has published over 400 peer-reviewed journal articles and co-edited 10 books. She is the former Vice President for Research at the Medical University of South Carolina. She has been conducting clinical and translational research and treatment development in the area of PTSD and addictions throughout their career.

Dr. Brown is a licensed counseling psychologist and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina. She completed her PhD in psychology at Howard University and her clinical psychology internship and NIAAA-funded postdoctoral fellowship at MUSC. Dr. Brown's research interests broadly involve understanding, preventing, and addressing racial disparities in mental health problems and substance use among African American adults.

Amber M. Jarnecke, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor in the Addiction Sciences Division of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina. She specializes in substance use and trauma and believes that people’s relationships and social connectedness are key to well-being; thus, her primary research focuses on the ways that interpersonal relationships impact recovery from substance use disorders and PTSD.

Dr. Killeen received her Ph.D. in Nursing from the University of South Carolina/Medical University of South Carolina in 1998. She is a former National Institute of Nursing Research and American Nurses’ Association Research Scholar. She has worked in the field of addiction and comorbid disorders, specifically PTSD, for 27 years. She has been principal and co-investigator on numerous NIH grants involving behavioral and pharmacologic interventions.

Dr. Santa Ana is a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at MUSC. She is the Associate Director of the Charleston Health Science Research Health Equity and Rural Outreach Innovation Center. She has treated patients using COPE since 2013 and has served, alongside her colleagues Drs. Back, Saraiya, and Lozano, as a COPE trainer at the VISN and national levels for several years.

Tanya Saraiya is a licensed clinical psychologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at MUSC. Broadly, her work aims to develop, test, and implement treatments for trauma/PTSD and co-occurring substance use disorders. She is actively adapting the COPE therapy to individuals with opioid use disorder and PTSD in her NIH-funded research. Across her work, Dr. Saraiya is passionate about enhancing treatments particularly to serve underrepresented and historically marginalized populations, such as women and racial/ethnic minorities.

Dr. Wilkerson is an Associate Professor in the Sleep, Mood, and Anxiety Research and Treatment (SMART) Division within the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina. She is a licensed clinical psychologist, diplomat in behavioral sleep medicine (DBSM), and Clinical Director of the SMART Clinic. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Texas A&M University, she earned her M.Ed. in Counseling Education and her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of North Texas.

Dr. Christine Tirabassi Hahn is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at MUSC and directs Sexual Assault Services within the National Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center. Her research and clinical practice focus on developing and delivering interventions for traumatic stress and substance use that are both practical and scalable for real-world settings. She is especially passionate about advancing early intervention for survivors of sexual violence and strengthening the systems that support their recovery.

Lee Lewis, MD is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist and Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina. He currently serves as the Division Director for C&A Psychiatry, Medical Director of the C&A Mental Health Service Line, and Program Director for the C&A Psychiatry Fellowship. Along with his medical career, Dr. Lewis is also a professional actor and performing throughout the Charleston area. He is passionate about how to incorporate the arts into medical care and education, making COPEweb a project he is excited to participate in!

Jessee R. Dietch, PhD, DBSM is an assistant professor of psychology at Oregon State University where she directs the Sleep Health Assessment, Intervention, and Dissemination (SHAID) lab. Her research focuses on development and dissemination of behavioral sleep health interventions for sleep disorders including insomnia, shift work sleep disorder, and nightmares.

Dr. Bishu is a Statistician and Health Research Investigator in the Center of Innovation (COIN) at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Healthcare System. He specializes in big databases analyses (MEPS, NHANES, NIS and NRD). Dr. Bishu is also an Affiliate Assistant Professor and Statistician in the Department of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).

Dr. Alexander Busch is a mental health professional with highly specialized training in the diagnosis and psychological treatment of mental, behavioral, and emotional illnesses, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). His main focus is on diagnosing and treating mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. Some of the common disorders that he can treat are learning disabilities, substance use disorder., depression, anxiety, and eating disorders.

Dr. Dismuke-Greer is a Research Health Science Specialist at the Health Economics Resource Center (HERC), VA Palo Alto Health System. Her methodological areas include economic evaluation, statistical modeling, disability research, rehabilitation research, community reintegration research, and analysis of vulnerable population disparities, especially for Veterans living in US Territories and Native American Veterans living on Federal Tribal Lands.

Tenelle O. Jones has passionately focused on promoting the overall mental, physical and spiritual health of all communities for the past 21 years. There is no individual, family or community adversity that she is not equipped and well trained to handle. She is enthusiastic about showing others that they matter and have a place in this world. She believes that as long as she lets her light shine and remains true to self, it will give others the courage to do the same.

Julianne C. Flanagan, Ph.D. is a Professor at the Medical University of South Carolina and a Staff Psychologist at the Ralph H. Johnson VAHCS. Her program of research focuses on examining factors that explain the intersection of alcohol use and PTSD with intimate partner violence (IPV) and developing novel treatments for alcohol use disorders (AUD) and co-occurring conditions such as PTSD and IPV among individuals and couples.

Dr. Mulugeta Gebregziabher is tenured Professor of Biostatistics and Vice Chair for Academic Programs at Department of Public Health Sciences at MUSC. He is a Health Research Scientist and Methods Core Leader of the Health Services Research and Development funded Health Equity and Rural Outreach Innovation Center (HEROIC) at the Charleston Veterans Affairs Medical Center in South Carolina. He is also Director of the HRSA funded Region IV Public Health Training Center for South Carolina.

Dr. Cristina M. López is an Associate Professor in the College of Nursing and the Mental Health Disparities and Diversity Program in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). She received her B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis and her M.S. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Florida State University. She completed her predoctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the Medical University of South Carolina (Charleston Consortium), followed by an instructor position with Family Services Research Center (FSRC) from 2012-2013.

Sonya Norman, PhD, is Director of the National Center for PTSD’s Consultation program and a Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine. Dr. Norman is a researcher in the treatment of PTSD and addictions, and in novel treatments to address trauma-related guilt, shame, and moral injury.

Kristi E. Pruiksma, PhD, DBSM, is an Associate Professor and Licensed Clinical Psychologist at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. She works with the STRONG STAR Consortium and specializes in behavioral sleep medicine, PTSD, and developing and testing web-based provider trainings.

Ken Ruggiero, PhD, is Professor and SmartState Endowed Chair of the Technology Applications Center for Healthful Lifestyles (TACHL), as well as Director of the Telehealth Resilience and Recovery Program. He received his BA from the State University of New York at Buffalo and MA and PhD from West Virginia University and completed his internship and NIMH postdoc at MUSC. Dr. Ruggiero’s research centers on the development, testing, and implementation of technology-enhanced interventions.

Stacey Sellers is a research professional in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina. She supports NIH and VA funded research focused on PTSD, substance use disorder, and related behavioral health conditions, with expertise in research operations, regulatory management, budgeting, and multi-site study coordination. Her work focuses on advancing clinical research aimed at improving treatments for PTSD, substance use disorder, and related co-occurring conditions.

Daniel J. Taylor, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Arizona, and a licensed psychologist board certified in both Sleep Medicine and Behavioral Sleep Medicine. He is an expert in cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) and the primary investigator of the grant that funded CBTIweb.org.