Rachel Winograd, PhD, leads the Addiction Science, Practice, Implementation, Research, & Education (ASPIRE) Lab within the Department of Psychological Sciences at UMSL. She also holds a dual appointment within UMSL's Missouri Institute of Mental Health where she leads the broader Addiction Science team. She received her doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Missouri Columbia, and completed her doctoral internship with the VA St. Louis Healthcare System. Her clinical, research, and program development interests revolve around substance use and the systems designed to address it. She is committed to expanding access to medical treatment and harm reduction strategies for those most in need of evidence-based, person-centered care for opioid and other drug use disorders. This requires examining and eliminating obstacles to good care – both for people seeking that care as well as the providers striving to deliver it. Dr. Winograd serves as PI and Project Director of multiple statewide and regional efforts to address our current and worsening overdose death crisis. Grant partners and funders include the Missouri Department of Mental Health, Department of Health and Senior Services, the Missouri Foundation for Health, and multiple community-based organizations, healthcare agencies, and non-profits in the St. Louis region.
Dr. Winograd's program of research merges the ASPIRE Lab and the Addiction Science team at MIMH, with areas of focus including:
Identifying and reducing barriers to evidence-based treatments for substance use disorders, particularly medical treatments (like buprenorphine and methadone) for opioid use disorder
Expanding access to naloxone and other harm reduction tools to improve community members' ability to recognize and respond to overdose events
Evaluating and demonstrating community needs and disparities in access to substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery support services
Dr. Winograd will be accepting a new graduate student for the 2025-2026 academic year.
