Addiction, Treatment and Recovery

Dr. Garrett O’Connor has been named the first Chief Executive Officer of the Betty Ford Institute. Dr. O’Connor served for several years as Chief Psychiatrist of the Betty Ford Center. He also founded and guided the Clinical Diagnostic Evaluation (CDE) Program at the Center.

In announcing the establishment of the Betty Ford Institute, former First Lady Betty Ford stated, “Although we at the Center have long been involved as a leader in education and training in addictive disease and its treatment, as well as in public policy efforts, the establishment of our Institute will allow us to devote more resources to those areas.” The Betty Ford Institute – which operates independent of the Betty Ford Center – has already convened “Consensus Conferences” to discuss issues involving addiction, treatment and recovery. Ireland-born Garrett O’Connor, M.D. is an internationally recognized expert in the clinical assessment of fitness-for-duty in safetysensitive personnel. He has extensive clinical experience in corporate risk and liability arising from workplace addiction, crisis intervention, and disaster response strategies. Dr. O’Connor is certified in General and Addiction Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and in Addiction Medicine by the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

Dr. O’Connor has taught at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and the University of California, Los Angeles. He is past president of the California Society of Addiction Medicine, a former national board member of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, and a fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. Since 1984, Dr. O’Connor has been a senior fitness-for-duty evaluator for the FAA, the Airline Pilot’s Association, and for most major U.S. airlines, including Continental, United and Southwest. He has lectured widely on addiction topics in the U.S. and around the world. He has published articles in a variety of medical journals and has produced several educational films in the field of addiction and psychiatry. Dr. O’Connor is married to the actress Fionnula Flanagan. The Betty Ford Institute will have offices in the Coachella Valley, nearby the Rancho Mirage, California-based Betty Ford Center.

Related posts:

1. The Betty Ford Center Appoints Garrett O’Connor Medical Director of Professional Recovery Program
2. Betty Ford Institute
3. Betty Ford Institute Formed; Convenes Consensus Conference