Discovery Behavioral Health Appoints Matthew Ruble, MD, As Chief Medical Officer

LOS ANGELES, May 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Discovery Behavioral Health, Inc., an expanding network of evidence-based mental health, substance use and eating disorder treatment centers, has appointed Matthew Ruble, M.D., a Harvard-trained psychiatrist, as Chief Medical Officer, reporting directly to DBH President & CEO John Peloquin.

Dr. Ruble (pronounced "roo-ble") has extensive experience as a physician in private, commercial and public practice, a medical school and residency leader and educator and an executive with healthcare providers. Most recently, he served as Lead Medical Director for Humana where he worked for seven years and created an innovative model of integrated medical and behavioral health and directed the clinical Utilization Management for Behavioral Health.

Previously, he worked for 14 years at Cambridge Health Alliance, a division of Harvard Medical School Teaching Hospital, where he served as Associate Training Director for the residency program with duties of oversight of the curriculum, clinical rotations, supervision of teaching and clinical staff and residents' recruitment, quality initiatives, productivity, and integrated behavioral and primary care practices.

With the increasing integration of clinical practices with telehealth to provide comprehensive behavioral healthcare, Dr. Ruble envisions one of his objectives as Chief Medical Officer as strengthening the alliance between patient and provider.

"Measuring the strength of this alliance will be one of the most powerful predictors of outcomes. To that end, my goal is to provide evidence-based behavioral health treatment for all those who need it by expanding the access points in our current healthcare system, including telehealth, primary care practices and even schools," he says.

He endorses the concept of creating a universal mental health exam for children. Given the recent advisory by U.S. Surgeon General on the nation's youth mental health crisis, Dr. Ruble says the need is urgent for creating such an annual exam that would complement the recommended annual physical exams given to school age children.

"The pandemic has underscored how we need to assess mental as well physical development in children of all ages. Providing a standardized mental exam that could be administered by behavioral health clinicians, pediatricians and or primary care providers would go a long way in improving the mental health challenges experienced by youth, which existed long before COVID-19," he says. " The mass murder of elementary school students in Uvalde, Texas – the 27^th mass shooting at a school  in the U.S. this year – demands the need to think in new ways of providing mental health support to our youth and families."

The opioid drug overdose crisis has continued to expand even as it's been overshadowed over the past two years by the pandemic, he says. The CDC recently issued a report that overdose deaths in 2021 from drugs increased 15 percent over the previous year to a record number of 107, 622. "There is a 60-to-80 percent comorbidity rate between substance use disorder and mental illness," he notes.  Efficacious, evidence-based treatments exist for behavioral illnesses, substance use disorders and the combination of the two.

Dr. Ruble, a native of Iowa, holds a medical degree from the University of Iowa College of Medicine, internship and residency in adult psychiatry from Harvard Medical School's Cambridge Health Alliance. He also completed his Chief Residency in Advanced Psychopharmacology and a Fellowship in Medical Education from Harvard Medical School.

Says DBH President & CEO John Peloquin, "Later this year Discovery Behavioral Health will unveil a new integrated healthcare model that will seamlessly integrate the best of telehealth and in-person patient visits. Dr. Ruble's experience as a practicing psychiatrist, a teacher and a healthcare provider executive is foundational for meeting our goal of providing best outcomes for the treatment of eating, mental health and substance use disorders."

Everyone deserves a happy, rewarding life. That's why Discovery Behavioral Health has worked to make evidence-based, outcome driven healthcare accessible and affordable since inception. With a full continuum of care – detoxification, medical residences, residential treatment centers, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, outpatient, psychiatric and addiction medicine, TMS, virtual and telehealth services, we strive to offer the right care at the right time for adults or teens struggling with mental health, substance use or eating disorders. We are a contracted provider with 100 payers and other managed care organizations. Our portfolio of more than 130 treatment centers includes service lines in successful operation since 1985. When treatment is complete, our patients become part of Discovery's growing family of alumni, connected through free aftercare programs, support groups, activities, and a caring community. Because when quality behavioral healthcare is within reach, so is happiness. 

Press Contact:
Greg Ptacek
Communications
Discovery Behavioral Health, Inc.
323-841-8002 mobile
[email protected]

SOURCE Discovery Behavioral Health