MEET THE TEAM

Tanya Prochko, MEd, MFT

Founder and Director, Get Help Israel

Tanya received her post graduate training in counseling psychology from Fordham University of New York. Prior to moving to California, Tanya worked with the East Harlem population providing individual and group therapy to families of incarcerated mothers and victims of domestic violence. She was also part of the schizophrenia research team at Nathan S. Klein Institute for Psychiatric Research. Tanya continued her specialty in Marriage and Family Therapy after moving to California and provided clinical services to older adults through Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles, treating a wide range of issues including grief, isolation, depression, and anxiety.

After making Aliyah, in 2012, Tanya opened a private practice in Israel. Seeing a wide gap between the mental health needs of the English-speaking public and their ability to access help in their mother tongue, Tanya founded Get Help Israel - The Israel Association of Mental Health Professionals. Clients can now easily find private clinicians throughout Israel, as well as support groups, treatment facilities, psychiatric facilities, subsidized services, hotlines, and information on navigating the public mental health care system. For the professional members of the association, GHI serves as the compass for therapists in building and maintaining a successful private practice. Tanya is passionate about finding mental health solutions for Olim, as she continues to grow the organization's programming and resources. To learn more about Get Help Israel, click here

Ira Prochko

Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Ira graduated from Yeshiva University’s Sy Syms School of Business and spent eighteen years working in the Finance industry at Merrill Lynch, Nuveen, KCPS Clarity, and Battery Global Advisors.  In 2019 Ira joined the team at GHI, using his extensive finance experience to develop the organization and help it reach its optimal potential in helping Anglos access the right help.  Ira’s focus is on expanding the reach of GHI by building collaborative relationships with leading organizations, both international and domestic, to ensure that Get Help Israel is a globally recognized resource for anyone looking to navigate the mental health landscape in Israel.

In addition, Ira is the founder and CEO of The Get Help Israel Fund – Mental Health for Everyone, a non-profit focused on providing mental health support for Israel’s Lone Soldiers and Lone Bnot Sherut. 

Get Help Israel’s Board of Advisors

GHI’s advisory board assists members in upholding a high standard of ethical practice by answering industry-related questions and guides Get Help Israel in achieving its purpose as an invaluable resource to both clients and mental health professionals in Israel.

Dr. Michael Roth, PsyD

Dr. Michael Roth is a licensed psychologist and supervisor and is the Director of Psychological Services for the town of Bet El. He is also a member of the Psychologist's Registry Board and a member of the Jerusalem District committee for Bagrut testing accommodations. He maintains a private practice in Modiin primarily focused on psycho-educational testing and school based issues. Prior to making Aliyah, he worked as a school psychologist in the US.

Dr. Alyson Aviv, PhD, ABPdN

Dr. Alyson Aviv is a bilingual licensed clinical psychologist with American board certification in pediatric neuropsychology. After relocating back home to Israel from Saint Louis, MO (which was home for 17 years), Dr. Aviv now sees patients and their families at her diagnostic and treatment clinic in Raanana. With special interest and expertise in AD/HD, learning difficulties, dyslexia, autism spectrum, developmental issues and emotional disorders.

Dr. Aviv can explain the sources of difficulties, and then provide resources and interventions for overcoming them. She has published papers and given a variety of workshops and presentations internationally and locally, consults regularly with area schools and preschools; and gives lectures, workshops and group presentations. Dr. Aviv is the sole Israeli provider of COGMED, an evidence based treatment protocol for children and adults with working memory weaknesses, common to ADHD diagnoses.

Dr. Batya L. Ludman, Psy.D., F.T.

Dr. Batya L. Ludman, Psy.D., F.T., a licensed clinical psychologist, with over 35 years of therapy and counseling experience, has been serving the English speaking community of Central Israel and beyond for the past 17 years. Dr. Ludman has served on the board of directors of both the provincial psychological association and psychology licensing board in Canada, and has held faculty appointments at Universities in the US and Canada. She completed Post-Doctoral training in Sex Therapy and has advanced accreditation as a Fellow in Thanatology (Death Education and Counselling).

Dr. Ludman has given workshops on marriage, parenting, stress management, coping and bereavement, the psychological impact of terror and trauma as well as professional development. She has published extensively in both the professional and lay literature and has been quoted in Reader’s Digest, Modern Woman, Today’s Parent, Canadian Family, Jewish Week, The Jerusalem Report, and CNN among others. She initiated a psychology column in the Jerusalem Post in 2000, and has been writing this acclaimed column ever since and is the author of the book, Life’s Journey: Exploring Relationships, Resolving Conflicts.

Dr. Haim Rubinstein, PsyD

Dr. Haim Rubinstein is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in treatment of children, teens and their families with an emphasis on goal-directed short term therapy that makes sense to the client, regardless of age. He also sees adults for general psychological issues. Dr. Rubinstein moved to Israel in 1999 and treats most forms of childhood emotional and behavioral disorders with a sub-specialty in social skills groups for children and teens. The group therapy involves teaching concrete social skills with practice and video feedback.

Much of his individual/family therapy has been in the treatment of those struggling with ADHD, ASD and Learning Disabilities. His emphasis is often on grappling with the impact of these disorders on one’s emotional state and daily functioning. Dr. Rubinstein has a private practice in Raanana and treats in Hebrew and English. He also gives workshops and presentations for teachers, parents and mental health professionals on promoting social development in youth.

ETHICS BOARD

Philip Marcus, Judge (retired), Jerusalem Family Court

Philip Marcus was born and educated in England. He moved to Israel in 1978, he was admitted as an Advocate at the Israel Bar in 1979, and appointed a Judge of the Jerusalem Magistrates Court in 1995. He served as a Judge of the Family Court from its opening in 1997 until his retirement in 2012. Philip Marcus is a consultant to committees of the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) on all proposed legislation concerning children. He is a member of national and international organizations which focus on children who are affected by parental separation and divorce, child-parent contact problems and therapeutic jurisprudence. He has lectured on five continents, and has written and is consulted by governments and organizations around the world about family court system reform, interdisciplinary collaboration, and prevention of parental alienation, including, where necessary, proposals for changes in the law. He is also working on a research project whose object is to prove that investment in prevention of family breakdown and in early intervention where parental conflict occurs can help many children and at the same time save substantial costs to state treasuries.

Robin B. Zeiger, Ph.D

Robin B. Zeiger received her Ph.D. in clinical and social psychology in 1985 from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a Jungian analyst and member of the Israel Institute for Jungian Psychology in Honour of Erich Neumann (IIJP) and the International Association for Analytical Psychology (IAAP). She is the President of the Israel Sandplay Therapists Association and a member of the International Society for Sandplay Therapy. She immigrated to Israel from the United States in 2009 and practices psychotherapy and psychoanalysis, supervision, teaching, and training. She teaches Jungian psychotherapy in the Continuing Education program at Bar Ilan University and offers workshops to the Jungian analytical candidates of IIJP. Dr. Zeiger was involved in ethics training of the multi-disciplinary staff while at Jewish Family Services for 18 years.

Alexandra Rafaeli, Psy.D

Dr. Rafaeli's training focused mainly on evidence-based treatment approaches, and included a fellowship at Albert Einstein College of Medicine’s Adolescent Psychoeducational Treatment Program, training and research in Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) at the NY State Psychiatric Institute/Columbia University, and an advanced certificate and post-doctoral fellowship in Cognitive/Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapies (CBT and REBT) from the Albert Ellis Institute. She is licensed as a clinical psychologist in NY State and in Israel, and has worked as a therapist in outpatient clinics, counseling centers and research settings. Dr. Rafaeli’s main interest is in the development and dissemination of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT), in which she has close to 20 years of experience. She has given numerous trainings and workshops on IPT in Israel and abroad, and has extensive experience with various adaptations of the approach. She serves as a master co-trainer in a joint program of Columbia University and the World Health Organization (WHO) dedicated to spreading the IPT approach in developing countries, and has published theoretical articles and case studies of IPT therapies. She is a member of the International Society for Interpersonal Therapy (ISIPT), where she serves on the journal and certification committees. She is also a co-founder of the local Israeli chapter of IPT.

ALIYAH COMMITTEE

GHI's Aliyah Committee provides guidance and support to new therapists and prospective olim who have questions about working in Israel in the mental health field. If you're a new oleh or are considering Aliyah, and have questions for a member of the Aliyah Committee, you may email them through their professional profile.



Sol Adelsky, MD
Psychiatrist


Alyson Aviv, Ph.D, ABPdN
Clinical Psychologist, Neuropsychologist




Yaakov Jonathan Ugowitz, Ph.D, MA, LMHC
Educational Psychologist


Jeanne S. Lankin, LCSW
Clinical Social Worker


Micki Lavin-Pell, MFT, MSc, MA
Couple and Family Therapist



PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT