Iris Jones has dedicated her career to the advancement of health equity and improving health outcomes for those with trauma, substance use and psychiatric or mental health disorders. Prior to becoming the Executive Director of the Office of Women’s Health, she worked at Cooper University Healthcare where she achieved her goal of integrating inclusive, behavioral health treatment into traditional health care service delivery. Iris co-founded the Cooper Center for Healing EMPOWER perinatal clinic, a nationally recognized program for the treatment of pregnant and parenting people with substance use disorders.

Iris earned her undergraduate degree in psychology and sociology from Albany State University and her graduate degree in clinical counseling from Eastern University. Her clinical internships were completed at Crozer-Chester Medical Center, where she specialized in the treatment of substance use, trauma and co-occurring mental health disorders for women in an underserved area.

Iris is an expert in the field of perinatal addiction and mental health, with a deep understanding of how race, poverty, and gender inequality unfold and influence health outcomes. As a social justice advocate, she made critical policy recommendations to state government partners, informed by her direct proximity to the needs and complexity of the families she served. In 2017, Iris integrated a novel medical-legal partnership into an academic health system. This partnership allowed patients to access no-cost legal services for both criminal and civil matters.

In 2023, Iris was honored with a Healthcare Hero award for her pioneering work creating trauma-informed health care curriculums and integrating them into emergency medicine education. She is an adjunct professor at Eastern University and teaches nationally on women’s health, addiction, mental health and humanism in medicine.

Currently, Iris is focused on decreasing health disparities, improving access to evidence-based health care, incorporating mental health and substance use treatment into traditional medical care, addressing social determinants of health and improving health outcomes for all of New Jersey’s women. When she is not at work, Iris is keeping busy with her two young sons and her husband of more than 20 years. Her credentials include Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), a Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LCADC), Certified Clinical Supervisor (CCS) and National Board-Certified Counselor (NCC).