Dr. Kristine Santoro serves as Chief Operating Officer at Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, overseeing administrative and clinical operations rooted in trauma-informed whole-person care.

Through oversight of integrated mental health, substance use and crisis care services, she has a wealth of experience in outpatient and residential services across the care continuum. She also leads teams that are responsible for innovation, quality client care, health equity, research and evaluation, and training. She is a licensed psychologist with 25+ years of experience, over 20 of which was with Didi Hirsch where she has taken on increasingly complex leadership roles.

Dr. Santoro received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from UCLA, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center where she received specialized experience in working with youth and families.

Kristine is passionately dedicated to improving client care, especially for historically marginalized individuals where discrimination and injustice limit access. She uses data-driven decision-making to reduce healthcare disparities and improve the quality and effectiveness of mental health, substance use and suicide prevention services.

Over the course of her career, she has published multiple book chapters and research articles in scientific journals on varied topics such as organizational culture, social support, life stress, and information-processing.