Retreat Behavioral Health’s Medical Director, Roger Ayres, MD to be Promoted to Chief Medical Officer (CMO)

Retreat Behavioral Health’s Medical Director, Roger Ayres, MD to be Promoted to Chief Medical Officer (CMO)

(New Haven, CT) — Within the past year, the medical industry has adjusted to a myriad of changes with the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing rates of substance use and mental health disorders. Navigating these concerns on-site at our New Haven, Connecticut campus and virtually at our Palm Springs, FL location has been Roger Ayres, MD. Today, Retreat Behavioral Health is pleased to welcome Dr. Roger Ayres as our new Chief Medical Officer.

“Dr. Ayres will be an integral asset to our team, he joins us with an extensive knowledge of the behavioral health field and is able to dissect the root causes of many individuals struggling with mental health and substance use disorders,” said Chief Operating Officer, Kenneth Kosza in a statement. “His expertise within his own private practice and organizational leadership skills will benefit our program in numerous ways including the way we strategically approach our relationship with insurance companies.”

About Dr. Ayres

A graduate of the Saba University School of Medicine, earning his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree – Dr. Ayres took the time to specialize in his medical interests. Following his education, he began to train with the Yale New Haven Hospital in Adult Psychiatry before joining the New York-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center to specialize in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Today, Dr. Ayres is currently board certified in Addiction Medicine in addition to Child, Adolescent, and Adult Psychiatry. He holds over 15 years of private practice experience as well as complete knowledge of utilization management through his experience working with Retreat insurance partner Magellan Healthcare.

“Dr. Ayres comes to us with expertise in high-quality care for all Behavioral Health diseases as an ABPN board-certified psychiatrist. His experience and compassion for people was observed moments after meeting him,” shares Chief Nursing Officer, Melissa Callahan, in a statement. “I am excited to be able to work with him to continue to advance Retreat Behavioral Health’s expertise in substance use disorder and mental health diagnoses throughout the continuum of care.”

In his new role as Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Ayres will oversee the entire medical department at each facility while providing medical vision to ensure that Retreat remains at the forefront of innovative care within the behavioral healthcare field.

“I am honored to be able to bring both my addiction medicine background along with my psychiatric training in order to make a transformative difference for our patients,” said Roger Ayres, MD. “This is honestly a dream come true for me as it has been my entire life’s work and I will work hard to advance Retreat’s mission and goals.”