Louis J. Papa, M.D
Primary Care Physician
Partner, Olsan Medical Group, Strong Health, Rochester, NY

Louis J. Papa M.D., FACP is board certified in Internal Medicine and is a primary care physician and partner at Olsan Medical Group.  He is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of Rochester, where he helps educate internal medicine residents on primary outpatient care.  He is also an attending physician at Strong Memorial Hospital. In 1989, Dr. Papa graduated from the State University of New York at Stony Brook School of Medicine and came to Rochester to complete his residency at Strong.  He is a member of the American College of Physicians.   Dr. Papa was elected a Fellow of the American College of Physicians at age 33, is a former Delegate for the Young Physicians Section representing New York State to the American Medical Association, and was named by his peers to "Best Doctors in America" in 2001.  He was selected by "Rochester Business Journal" as one of the "Forty under Forty" young community leaders in 2001 and was named as one of only 25 physicians under 40 years old nationally to receive the "Excellence in Medicine Award" from the American Medical Association Foundation for leadership in 2003. Dr. Papa is a member of numerous medical, civic and community committees and boards including volunteer work with the uninsured, and as Vice- President of the local medical society.

Eric D. Caine, M.D.

John Romano Professor and Chair

Department of Psychiatry

University of Rochester Medical Center

Rochester, New York

Dr. Caine joined the faculty of the University of Rochester in 1978, following medical school at Harvard, residency training at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center and National Institute of Mental Health, and further postdoctoral research at NIMH.  He says he became fascinated with the relationships between organized brain functioning and behavioral disorders.  In addition to his residency, he pursued additional training in neuropsychology and neurology as a means of exploring "neuropsychiatry," a field held in relatively low regard at the time that he began his career more than 30 years ago. 

Dr. Caine's early research dealt with Huntington's disease, Tourette's syndrome and, to a lesser extent, Alzheimer's disease.  This led to studies of depression and to the interface between mood disorders and general medical conditions.  Since the late-1980s Dr. Caine, together with colleagues in what now has become the University of Rochester Center for the Study and Prevention of Suicide, has carried out research to understand the risk factors that lead to suicide, and has worked collaboratively with investigators in the U.S. and internationally to develop new public health and therapeutic approaches for suicide prevention. 

Beginning more than two decades ago, Dr. Caine defined his "most favorite" role as an educator, working with post-doctoral fellows and junior faculty as a mentor.  His greatest personal rewards in medicine, aside from those related to direct patient care, have come from supporting this developmental process and seeing generations of faculty emerge in their own right as outstanding researchers, educators and clinicians.

Sheila Briody, SSJ, D.Min.

Director of Counseling and Pastoral Counselor

St. Joseph's Neighborhood Center

Rochester, New York

A Sister of St. Joseph and a long-time community asset, Sr. Briody counsels individuals, couples and families, supervises master's level interns, and coordinates the psychiatric residency program at St. Joseph's.  Her training includes degrees in theology, pastoral counseling, and marriage and family therapy.

Sr. Briody comes from a family of 11 children born to Irish-born parents.  She is the recipient of the 2004 John Romano Award, which recognizes outstanding efforts meeting mental health needs in the Rochester community.

Judith S. Beck, Ph.D.

Clinical Associate Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

            and

Director

Beck Institute for Cognitive Therapy and Research

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Dr. Beck is an internationally recognized expert in the field of cognitive therapy – a time-limited form of psychotherapy shown to be effective in treating a range of psychiatric disorders, psychological problems, and medical disorders with psychological components.  Cognitive therapy focuses on helping patients solve current problems and modifying unhelpful (and often erroneous) thinking and behavior.

Dr. Beck, a consultant for several NIMH research studies, often presents workshops on cognitive therapy for a wide variety of psychiatric disorders.  She is the author of the widely adopted textbook, Cognitive Therapy: Basics and Beyond, and a new book, Cognitive Therapy for Challenging Problems: What to Do When the Basics Don't Work.  An editor of The Oxford Textbook of Psychotherapy and a co-author of Cognitive Therapy of Personality Disorders, Dr. Beck has written numerous articles and chapters on various applications of cognitive therapy.

Dr. Beck is a Distinguished Founding Fellow and President of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy, a non-profit organization that educates consumers about cognitive therapy and maintains a national and international directory of mental health professionals certified in cognitive therapy.

Mary Jo Codey

First Lady of New Jersey

Mary Jo Codey is a staunch advocate for individuals whose lives are affected by mental illnesses and for those who have been stricken with breast cancer.  A lifelong resident of New Jersey, Mrs. Codey has been married to Governor Richard Codey for 23 years.  A devoted wife and mother, and a gifted educator and counselor, Mrs. Codey received her Bachelor of Arts degree in elementary education from Caldwell College. She later earned a master's degree in elementary education (with certification as a Learning Disabilities Teacher Consultant) from Seton Hall University.  She is currently an elementary school teacher in West Orange.

Mrs. Codey is a former member of the board of directors of the Mental Health Association of Essex County, which honored both she and the Governor for their mental health advocacy efforts.  Mrs. Codey also pioneered and was the first facilitator for a postpartum depression support group that began at St. Barnabas Medical Center in 1994 and continues to operate today.  Mary Jo Codey's personal experiences with both clinical depression and breast cancer make her uniquely qualified to speak out on both of these serious health concerns.  As New Jersey's First Lady, she welcomes the opportunity to advocate on behalf of the Governor's newly created Task Force on Mental Health and to spearhead the launching of a statewide fundraising campaign in support of breast cancer awareness.

Elissa Orlando
Civilian Guest

Elissa L. Orlando is a 20-year veteran of public affairs programming and multimedia storytelling. Orlando is director of national programming and special projects at WXXI Public Broadcasting. She was producer of the nationally televised Crucible of Freedom companion program to Ken Burns Not for Ourselves Alone.  Orlando has won several New York State broadcasting awards for television news reporting in Somalia Africa, Homestead Florida and other local and national venues.  She is a recipient of the Gracie award for television programming from American Women in Radio and Television, and she is the recipient of a Telly award for her production of the TV documentary Reclaiming the Crescent.  Orlando also received the Woman of the Distinction award from the Jefferson County Women's Conference in 1995. She was formerly TV news and public affairs director at WXXI, where she also served as executive producer, Website editor and news anchor of Need to Know, WXXI's Emmy Award-winning newsmagazine.