Faculty
Joseph C. Vlaskovits, MD
Program Director
Dr. Joseph C. Vlaskovits is the Program Director of the Psychiatry Residency at Community Memorial Healthcare. He also is Adjunct Faculty for the Ventura County Medical Center (VCMC) Addiction Medicine Fellowship. He was previously Medical Director of the VCMC Inpatient Psychiatric Unit and has held leadership positions on the VCMC medical staff, including Chief of Psychiatry and Chair of the Credentials Committee. He serves as Medical Director of Substance Use Treatment Services for Ventura County Behavioral Health.
In addition to teaching psychiatry residents and medical students, he supervises addiction medicine fellows and has taught family practice residents and psychologists-in-training. His present practice specialties are in community psychiatry (especially those patients suffering from severe and persistent mental illness), addiction medicine, and forensic psychiatry.
Dr. Vlaskovits received his MD degree from the University of Pécs, Hungary, in 2005 and completed his residency in Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico in 2011, including serving as Chief Resident at Albuquerque VA Medical Center. He completed a Fellowship in Forensic Psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University in 2012. He is board-certified in Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry, and Addiction Medicine. He is a member of the American Psychiatric Association, Southern California Psychiatric Society, American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, American Association of Directors of Psychiatry Residency Training and the American Society of Addiction Medicine.
He is also involved in advocacy locally and through the Southern California Psychiatric Society for reform of laws and greater resources for those suffering from mental illness or addiction. He has published two articles on bioethics and forensic psychiatry.
Leslie A. Horton, MD, PhD
Associate Program Director
Dr. Leslie A. Horton is the Associate Program Director of the Psychiatry Residency at Community Memorial Healthcare. She is also the Lead Psychiatrist for the Ventura County Medical Center Inpatient Psychiatry Unit and is the Lead Psychiatrist for medical student education in psychiatry. Her prior academic appointments include Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Keck School of Medicine, and Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Southern California, 2001-2008. Her prior professional activities include psychiatrist for the Los Angeles LGBT Center, 2013-2015; Medical Director, Anne Sippi Clinics of Los Angeles and Bakersfield, 2009-2016; and psychiatrist for Amanecer Community Counseling Services, Los Angeles, 2009-2013, where she provided psychiatric care to unhoused individuals in downtown Los Angeles.
Dr. Horton received her MD degree from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in 1985, interned in Pediatrics at University of Chicago Hospitals 1988-1989, and completed her residency in Psychiatry at the University of Southern California LAC+USC Medical Center in 2001. She is board-certified in General Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. She is a member of the American Psychiatric Association, the Association of LGBTQ Psychiatrists, and the American Anthropological Association.
Dr. Horton received a PhD in Anthropology from UCLA in 1996, with an emphasis in medical anthropology and psycho-cultural studies. She is particularly interested in cultural psychiatry and the way that culture shapes brains in the experience of hallucinations and delusions. She has published two articles on the assessment and treatment of patients with suicidal behaviors across cultures. She recently co-authored a case study with Dr. Robert Rubin and several others based on a young man on the inpatient unit, “Behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia in a 23-year-old man."
Robert T. Rubin, MD, PhD
Director of Research
Dr. Robert T. Rubin is a member of the teaching faculty for the Psychiatry Residency. He also is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. His prior appointments include Chief, Department of Psychiatry, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, 2005-2013; Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Professor of Neurosciences and Professor of Psychiatry, Drexel University College of Medicine, Allegheny General Hospital Campus, Pittsburgh, PA, 1992-2005; and Professor of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, UCLA School of Medicine, 1972-1992.
Dr. Rubin received his MD degree from the University of California San Francisco in 1961, interned at Philadelphia General Hospital, 1961-1962, and completed his residency in Psychiatry at UCLA in 1965. He was LCDR, US Navy Medical Corps, 1967–69. He is board-certified in General Psychiatry. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, and a member of the Society of Biological Psychiatry, American Medical Association, Southern California Psychiatric Association, and Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society.
Dr. Rubin received a Ph.D. in Physiology from the University of Southern California in 1977, with an emphasis in neuroendocrinology. He has published 285 articles and book chapters and has authored or co-authored seven books. He was Editor-in-Chief of Psychoneuroendocrinology, 1980-1992.
Jason R. Cooper, MD
Faculty
Dr. Jason R. Cooper is Medical Director for the Ventura County Medical Center Inpatient Psychiatry and Crisis Stabilization Units, and Medical Director of Ventura County Behavioral Health. His prior academic appointments include Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego School of Medicine, 2008-2010.
Dr. Cooper received his MD degree from the University of California, San Diego in 2004, interned at the University of Southern California LAC+USC Medical Center, 2004-2005, and completed his residency in Psychiatry at UC San Diego in 2008. He is board-certified in General Psychiatry. He has published three articles on brainstem frequency responses during selective attention.
Ronda Doonan, PsyD
Faculty
Dr. Ronda Doonan is Director of Behavioral Health and Resident Well-Being for Graduate Medical Education at Community Memorial Healthcare, and is a clinical psychologist in the Internal Medicine and Family Medicine Resident Continuity Clinics. She also is a founding faculty member for the Family Support Services training program at Ronald McDonald House in Los Angeles, Inland Empire, Pasadena, and Palo Alto, CA.
She is Adjunct Assistant Professor of Social Medicine and Healthcare Leadership, College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona. Prior academic appointments include Instructor, Assistant Professor, and Associate Professor, California School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University, Los Angeles, CA, 2006-2016. Dr. Doonan received her PsyD degree from the California School of Professional Psychology in 2004 and completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services–Julia Ann Singer Center, Los Angeles, CA in 2006. She is a member of the American Psychological Association and the Psi Chi National Honor Society in Psychology and the author of multiple articles and book chapters.
Jantje M. Groot, MD
Faculty
Dr. Jantje M. Groot is the site Director at the Ventura County Behavioral Health, Ventura Adult Clinic and a community mental health faculty member for the Community Memorial Healthcare psychiatry residency. He has been a member of the Department of Psychiatry, Ventura County Medical Center, from 2012 to present. He has served as Chief Elect for the Department of Psychiatry from 2011-2013 and Chief from 2013-2015.
Dr. Groot completed his neurobiology bachelor’s degree with honors at the University of California in 2002. During that time he co-authored several articles in areas such as Alzheimer’s disease, down syndrome, stroke, epilepsy, and personality testing. He received his medical degree from the University of California Irvine in 2006. He completed his psychiatric residency at University of California San Francisco, Fresno in 2010. He was the chief resident from 2009 to 2010. He has been board-certified in general psychiatry since 2011. He has worked at Ventura County Behavioral health as a staff psychiatrist for the Ventura adults outpatient clinic since 2010. This clinic serves the severe and persistently mentally ill for Ventura County.
Richard D. Ha, DO
Faculty
Dr. Richard D. Ha is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist for the Ventura County Behavioral Health Outpatient Clinics. He received his DO degree from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, PA in 2013, completed his residency in Psychiatry at Virginia Tech Carilion Clinic, Roanoke, in 2016 and completed a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship also at Virginia Tech Carilion Clinic in 2018.
He is board-certified in General Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Ha is a member of the American Medical Association, American Osteopathic Association, American Psychiatric Association, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and Gold Humanism Honor Society. He has published one article on teaching quality improvement and a case report on autoerotic asphyxiation.
Vanessa V. Hernandez, MD
Faculty
Dr. Vanessa V. Hernandez is a Psychiatrist for the Ventura County Medical Center Inpatient Psychiatry and Crisis Stabilization Units. As well, she participates in Consultation/Liaison and Outpatient Psychiatry. Additional professional activities include Psychiatrist for La Casa and La Paz Mental Health Centers.
She received her MD degree from the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine in 2004 and completed her internship and residency in Psychiatry at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in 2008. She is board-certified in General Psychiatry. Dr. Hernandez is a member of the American Psychiatric Association, Southern California Psychiatric Society, and International Society of Sports Psychiatry. In addition to English, Dr. Hernandez speaks Spanish.
Tipu V. Khan, MD
Faculty
Dr. Tipu V. Khan is Chief of Addiction Medicine for Ventura County Medical Center and Program Director of its Addiction Medicine Fellowship. He received his MD degree from the University of California Davis School of Medicine in 2008 and completed his residency in Family Medicine at the University of Southern California LAC+USC Medical Center in 2012. He is board-certified in Family Medicine and Addiction Medicine, and he is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Practice and the American Society of Addiction Medicine. He has authored several articles and case reports on various medical topics, including addictions. In addition to English, Dr. Khan speaks Spanish, Urdu, and Hindi.
Debra London, MD
Faculty
Dr. Debra London is a Geriatric Psychiatrist for the Ventura County Behavioral Health Outpatient Clinics. She received her MD degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin in 1984 and completed her residency in Psychiatry at Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA in 1988. Additionally, she has had specialty training in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, eye movement desensitization reprocessing, and acupuncture. She is board-certified in General Psychiatry.
Megha Miglani, MD
Faculty
Dr. Megha Miglani is an staff psychiatrist at Hillmont Psychiatric Center of VCMC. She previously worked as the Medical Director of Psychiatric Emergency Services at California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) and as an Assistant Clinical Professor at UCSF, supervising residents and medical students at both CPMC and Zucker San Francisco General Hospital (ZSFG). Her present practice specialties are acute inpatient psychiatry, public psychiatry, and consult-liaison psychiatry.
Dr. Miglani received her MD degree from Keck School of Medicine of USC in 2009 and completed residency in Psychiatry at Cedars Sinai Medical Center (CSMC) from 2009 to 2012. The closure of CSMC’s inpatient and outpatient psychiatric services prompted Dr. Miglani to complete her residency at Yale University where she served as a Chief Resident on the Consult-Liaison Service at the VA. At Yale University, Dr. Miglani created curriculum for 2nd year medical students and joined the Yale faculty as a clinical instructor after graduation in 2013. She completed the UCSF Public Psychiatry fellowship in 2014 and joined UCSF as clinical faculty . She is a member of the American Psychiatric Association and Southern California Psychiatric Society. She has published one article on global psychiatry.
Ronald D. Pollack, MD
Faculty
Dr. Ronald D. Pollack is Site Director for the Psychiatry Residency and Lead Psychiatrist for the Outpatient Clinics at Community Memorial Healthcare. He teaches psychiatry to primary care residents at both Community Memorial Healthcare and Ventura County Medical Center. His previous responsibilities included Medical Director of Prototypes Women’s Recovery Program, Psychiatric Advisor to Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association, and Lead Psychiatrist for Ventura County Jail. His prior appointments include Chair, Department of Psychiatry in Family Medicine, Northridge Medical Center–UCLA School of Medicine, 1981-1991. Dr. Pollack received his MD degree from Chicago Medical School in 1977, interned at Los Angeles County Hospital 1977-1978, and completed his residency in Psychiatry in 1981, with an emphasis on psychiatry in family care. He is board-certified in General Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.
Daniel C. Powell, MA
Faculty
Daniel C. Powell, M.A. is a Marriage and Family Therapist and Board-Certified Behavior Analyst. He is the Mental Health Operations Supervisor for Inpatient Psychiatry and the Crisis Stabilization Unit, Ventura County Medical Center. He received his MA degree in Clinical Psychology from Phillips Graduate Institute, Encino, CA in 2004 and completed postgraduate training in Applied Behavioral Analysis at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale in 2006. He is certified as a Behavior Analyst and a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Specialist. He is a member of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, the California Association of Applied Behavior Analysis, and the Southern California Consortium of Behavior Analysts.
Danielle Shaw, MD
Faculty
Dr. Danielle Shaw began her medical career at UC Irvine where she graduated from medical school and completed her pediatric residency. After practicing pediatrics for almost two decades, she felt unprepared to deal with the mental health issues of her patients. She had compassion for her patients and their families, which led her to train in child and adolescent psychiatry via the Post Peds Portal Program at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University. She is currently board certified in pediatrics, psychiatry and child & adolescent psychiatry.
She returned to California where she worked with foster care youth and learned about the effects of trauma and other childhood adversities. She initiated a Pediatric Mental Health Collaborative to bring together pediatricians and mental health professionals to work together to improve access to mental health services and share resources. Dr. Shaw recently formed Village Collaboration Station, PC, through which she focuses on collaboration, education and advocacy. She serves as the Medical Director of Child Services for Engage Therapy in Westlake Village, CA. She has presented lectures locally on Adverse Childhood Experiences and is actively involved in the local medical and mental health communities.
Dr. Shaw currently is a part-time faculty member at Community Memorial Healthcare Psychiatry Residency Program, in Ventura, California. She has established a child and adolescent psychiatry outpatient clinic where she trains general psychiatry residents in child and adolescent psychiatry who in turn provide a much-needed service to the community. She also strives to support primary care physicians and advanced practice providers in the care of their pediatric patients through collaboration.
Deborah Thurber, MD
Faculty
Dr. Deborah Thurber is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist for the Ventura County Behavioral Health Outpatient Clinics. Her prior appointments include Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, University of Washington School of Medicine, 1998-2005, Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, 1991-1997, and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, 1995-1997. She received her MD degree from Louisiana State University, Shreveport in 1985 and had residency training at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, and Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, completing General Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry residency in 1990.
Dr. Thurber is board-certified in General Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She has one publication on crisis services for youth.
