Skyland Trail Launches Dual Diagnosis Task Force

December 29, 2025

ATLANTA – Skyland Trail recently launched a Dual Diagnosis Task Force to engage in strategic planning to better meet the needs of individuals struggling with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. The task force comprises academic and clinical leaders from across the country in the field of co-occurring disorders. The task force first convened at the Skyland Trail adult mental health treatment program campus in November 2025.

The task force is chaired by Kathleen Brady, MD, PhD, Vice President for Research and Director of the South Carolina Clinical & Translational Research Institute at Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). Members include:

  • Steve Delisi, MD, President & Chief Medical Officer of YourPath, Inc., and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Hazelden Betty Ford Graduate School of Addiction Studies
  • Denise Hien, PhD, ABPP, Helen E. Chaney Endowed Chair in Alcohol Studies and Distinguished Professor in the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology of Rutgers University
  • Frances Levin, MD, Kennedy Leavy Professor of Psychology and Chief of the Columbia University Vagelos School of Physicians & Surgeons
  • Justine Welsh, MD, Director of Emory Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Services and Child/Adolescent and Addiction Psychiatrist with Emory University School of Medicine

Members were joined by Skyland Trail staff and board:

  • Liz Blake, Skyland Trail Board of Directors
  • Chris Cline, LCSW, MBA, MHA, Senior VP of Clinical Services, Skyland Trail
  • Beth Finnerty, MBA, MHA, President & CEO of Skyland Trail
  • Ben Hunter, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Skyland Trail
  • Ashley Kelly, LPC, MAC, CPCS, Day Services Director & Primary Counselor, Skyland Trail
  • Colin Murphy, MD, Psychiatrist, Skyland Trail
  • Sarah Overton, LCSW, Assistant Director of Dual Diagnosis, Skyland Trail
  • Alex Rothbaum, PhD, MPH, Director of Research & Outcomes, Skyland Trail
  • Sanne van Rooij, PhD, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine
  • Ty Smith, Board Chair, Skyland Trail

On average, 30-50 percent of adult clients admitting to Skyland Trail have a moderate to severe alcohol and or substance use disorder in addition to a mood, anxiety, or thought disorder. Nationally, about half of people living with severe mental illnesses (like the disorders treated at Skyland Trail) also experience substance use disorder. Substance use disorders are associated with more negative outcomes for people with mental health disorders and is a risk factor for completed suicide.

Skyland Trail offers Dual Diagnosis programming to help clients address symptoms and challenges for both disorders simultaneously. Dual Diagnosis treatment typically is more effective than treating each challenge independently or asynchronously.

“We recognize both the incredible need for expanding Dual Diagnosis programming as well as the potential to improve patient outcomes and long-term wellness,“ says Beth Finnerty, Skyland Trail president and CEO. “We are grateful for these eminent professionals who are contributing their expertise to this important work.“

Skyland Trail created the task force with the aim of strengthening Dual Diagnosis programming and potentially expanding the capacity of the program. Goals of the task force are to identify emerging diagnostic and treatment interventions that may complement Skyland Trail’s existing Dual Diagnosis programming, to build partnerships locally and nationally, to strengthen the use of patient outcomes data in care planning and delivery, and to increase capacity to meet the needs of a growing population of individuals in need of Dual Diagnosis treatment for co-occurring disorders.

While many therapeutic and pharmacologic interventions are proven effective in treating co-occurring disorders, the changing landscape of alcohol and substance use merits continued attention and action. The opioid epidemic has had significant impact. The growing availability of cannabis-related products and the increasing concentration of active compounds in these products also is creating cause for concern. Studies suggest increasing prevalence of substance use among young people.

The Dual Diagnosis task force will meet throughout 2026 and will deliver recommendations to Skyland Trail leadership and Board of Directors. Recommendations may inform physical space planning, staffing, outcomes and research, and clinical programming.