Michael Baron, MD, MPH, is the Medical Director of the TMF. He previously served as medical director for The Ranch, a 120-bed residential treatment center located in Nunnelly, TN. He is Board certified in psychiatry, anesthesiology and addiction medicine and he has practiced in the Nashville area since 1998.
Dr. Baron had a private psychiatry practice for 12 years; he also served in various treatment settings at Parthenon Pavilion and at Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital. He is a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. He is the medical director and provides pro-bono psychiatry services to the Nashville - Davidson County Drug Court – DC4.
Dr. Baron specializes in treating chronic pain and addiction. In 2010, he was appointed to the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners (BME) and re-appointed in 2015. He also served as chair of TN’s Controlled Substance Monitoring Database (CSMD) Committee; and helped write the Tennessee Chronic Pain Guidelines as well as many different Department of Health rules dealing with prescription drugs, buprenorphine and chronic pain treatment. Dr. Baron resigned both roles in 2017 to take the position as medical director of the TMF Physician’s Health Program. Dr. Baron is open about how his own addictions led to an intervention by the Physician’s Health Program years ago and credits its former medical director, Dr. David Dodd, as one of the people who saved his life.
Dr. Baron earned his Medical Degree and Masters in Public Health and completed an internal medicine internship at Tulane University School of Medicine. He completed his first residency in anesthesiology at Washington University School of Medicine and his psychiatry training at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
He is a member of the course faculty for the "Proper Prescribing of Controlled Substances" course at the Center for Professional Health.