Connie Greene MA, CAS, CSW, CPS
Vice President, RWJBarnabas Health Institute for Prevention and Recovery
Under Connie Greene’s leadership, the RWJBarnabas Health (RWJBH) Institute for Prevention and Recovery (IFPR) has become a leader in the state in the delivery of drug and alcohol, and addiction prevention and intervention services. IFPR is widely recognized for its training and educational programs for schools, agencies, businesses and health care organizations. Connie was a key leader in launching the state’s Opioid Overdose Recovery Program (OORP) and implemented it for RWJBH in Ocean and Monmouth Counties in 2016. Since its implementation, the RWJBH OORP, available in hospital emergency departments to patients reversed with Narcan, has helped thousands of people with substance use disorder (SUD) get into effective, long-term recovery. Since then, OORP, now known as the RWJBH Peer Recovery Program (PRP), is now available in seven NJ counties, including almost all RWJBH facilities and in all hospitals in Monmouth and Ocean counties, including those operated by both CentraState Healthcare System and Hackensack Meridian Health. Currently, nearly 50 percent of all patients seen through the program are in active recovery. In addition, Connie has overseen the vast expansion of the PRP throughout RWJBH to include SUD support services for all inpatients diagnosed with SUD and leads a team of over 80 Peer Recovery Specialists.
Connie has worked for RWJBH since 1993, holding several leadership roles with increasing responsibility over the years. In her current role as Vice President of the RWJBH IFPR, she oversees the daily operations and staff of IFPR’s state-wide prevention and intervention programs. In 2002, Connie led IFPR in applying to the state for grants in order to implement substance use prevention programs in schools in Essex, Monmouth and Ocean Counties. These prevention efforts expanded with the creation of the DART Coalition through federal and state funding. Connie then worked with the state to create the OORP pilot which has expanded to what RWJBH’s successful PRP has become today. Today she is also an active member of the RWJBH Tackling Addiction Task Force, focused heavily on the de-stigmatization of SUD and reviewing hospital-wide protocols for treating and managing all patients with SUD.
Connie started her career as a teacher in New York. She then went to work for a treatment provider in New Jersey (NJ) where she coordinated an education program for youth in treatment, eventually overseeing programs for youth and adults. Connie has also led the creation of substance use policies for schools across the state and has remained the state identified expert in these policies and standards for many years. She continues to train schools across NJ on how these policies are best implemented.
Connie is very active in the state in SUD services, focusing a majority of her professional and personal time on the opioid epidemic. Connie has brought together law enforcement agencies, state agencies, behavioral health, health care and addiction and recovery services to formulate programs and initiatives targeting SUD treatment, rehabilitation and long-term recovery. Connie has been an invited guest at a NJ Senate hearing at the state house to present on the OORP, has visited with former Governor Chris Christie on the subject, and has been vocal in the public and the media on the need for resources and understanding of SUD. Additionally, Connie sits on the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services’ State-Appointed Professional Advisory Committee. She also sits on the NJ Behavioral Health Council for Mental Health and Addiction Service and is a member of the Ocean County Professional Advisory Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, and the Suicide Task Force of Monmouth County. Connie is also an active member of the RWJBH Women’s Leadership Alliance where she works with junior female associates across the system to improve leadership skills and promote advancement throughout the organization.
Expertise and a unique training style have positioned Connie as a well-known trainer and consultant to school districts in the areas of Intervention and Referral Services, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, drug and alcohol prevention and intervention programming and conflict resolution. She is a frequent presenter at state-wide conferences including the NJ School Counselors Association, the State Association for Student Assistance Professionals, NJ Prevention Network Conference, Organization of Nurse Executives of NJ and the NJ State Bar Association. She is regularly called upon to facilitate issues impacting personnel in all sectors by providing conflict resolution and team building programming.
Connie and her team were awarded by the Mental Health Association of NJ for program excellence for RWJBH OORP in 2016. In addition, Connie was honored in 2017 by The Bergen Record/NorthJersey.com as one of the “17 People to Know in 2017” for her work in combating the heroin and opioid epidemic. Connie was recognized by the 2018 NJBIZ Healthcare Heroes program as an Education Hero finalist and was also honored with the CPC Behavioral Health Humanitarian Award and the Turning Point Honor of Distinction. Her work with the DART Prevention Coalition has been presented with the CADCA Got Outcomes! Coalition of the Year award recognizing exceptional community coalitions that effectively contribute to alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse prevention. DART Prevention Coalition was also chosen as one of 18 coalitions across the country to participate in the first-ever CADCA Graduate Coalition Academy, an opportunity for well-established coalitions to review their strategic plan and logic models to improve effectiveness in their communities. Finally, Connie’s work has been recognized by the Tigger House Foundation, which is dedicated to achieving a positive impact by reducing the death rate of heroin and opiate addiction.
Connie has worked for RWJBH since 1993, holding several leadership roles with increasing responsibility over the years. In her current role as Vice President of the RWJBH IFPR, she oversees the daily operations and staff of IFPR’s state-wide prevention and intervention programs. In 2002, Connie led IFPR in applying to the state for grants in order to implement substance use prevention programs in schools in Essex, Monmouth and Ocean Counties. These prevention efforts expanded with the creation of the DART Coalition through federal and state funding. Connie then worked with the state to create the OORP pilot which has expanded to what RWJBH’s successful PRP has become today. Today she is also an active member of the RWJBH Tackling Addiction Task Force, focused heavily on the de-stigmatization of SUD and reviewing hospital-wide protocols for treating and managing all patients with SUD.
Connie started her career as a teacher in New York. She then went to work for a treatment provider in New Jersey (NJ) where she coordinated an education program for youth in treatment, eventually overseeing programs for youth and adults. Connie has also led the creation of substance use policies for schools across the state and has remained the state identified expert in these policies and standards for many years. She continues to train schools across NJ on how these policies are best implemented.
Connie is very active in the state in SUD services, focusing a majority of her professional and personal time on the opioid epidemic. Connie has brought together law enforcement agencies, state agencies, behavioral health, health care and addiction and recovery services to formulate programs and initiatives targeting SUD treatment, rehabilitation and long-term recovery. Connie has been an invited guest at a NJ Senate hearing at the state house to present on the OORP, has visited with former Governor Chris Christie on the subject, and has been vocal in the public and the media on the need for resources and understanding of SUD. Additionally, Connie sits on the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services’ State-Appointed Professional Advisory Committee. She also sits on the NJ Behavioral Health Council for Mental Health and Addiction Service and is a member of the Ocean County Professional Advisory Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, and the Suicide Task Force of Monmouth County. Connie is also an active member of the RWJBH Women’s Leadership Alliance where she works with junior female associates across the system to improve leadership skills and promote advancement throughout the organization.
Expertise and a unique training style have positioned Connie as a well-known trainer and consultant to school districts in the areas of Intervention and Referral Services, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, drug and alcohol prevention and intervention programming and conflict resolution. She is a frequent presenter at state-wide conferences including the NJ School Counselors Association, the State Association for Student Assistance Professionals, NJ Prevention Network Conference, Organization of Nurse Executives of NJ and the NJ State Bar Association. She is regularly called upon to facilitate issues impacting personnel in all sectors by providing conflict resolution and team building programming.
Connie and her team were awarded by the Mental Health Association of NJ for program excellence for RWJBH OORP in 2016. In addition, Connie was honored in 2017 by The Bergen Record/NorthJersey.com as one of the “17 People to Know in 2017” for her work in combating the heroin and opioid epidemic. Connie was recognized by the 2018 NJBIZ Healthcare Heroes program as an Education Hero finalist and was also honored with the CPC Behavioral Health Humanitarian Award and the Turning Point Honor of Distinction. Her work with the DART Prevention Coalition has been presented with the CADCA Got Outcomes! Coalition of the Year award recognizing exceptional community coalitions that effectively contribute to alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse prevention. DART Prevention Coalition was also chosen as one of 18 coalitions across the country to participate in the first-ever CADCA Graduate Coalition Academy, an opportunity for well-established coalitions to review their strategic plan and logic models to improve effectiveness in their communities. Finally, Connie’s work has been recognized by the Tigger House Foundation, which is dedicated to achieving a positive impact by reducing the death rate of heroin and opiate addiction.