Joint Mental Health Research and Innovation Day

“Bridging Mind and Body: Innovations in Mental Health Research”

Date: Thursday, November 27, 2025

Time: 8:30 am – 4:00 pm

Location: Best Western Lamplighter Inn & Conference Centre, London, ON, Canada

Learning Objectives

At the end of the Joint Mental Health Research and Innovation Day, participants will be able to:

  • Identify and discuss innovative basic, clinical, and population-level mental health care and substance misuse research being conducted locally;
  • Demonstrate enhanced familiarity with research being conducted locally on the etiology, pathophysiology, prevention, intervention, service delivery, recovery and rehabilitation of mental disorders;
  • Reflect upon diverse methodological approaches to conducting innovative and impactful research in mental health care;
  • Consider the potential value inherent in academic, healthcare, community, advocacy, and policy partnerships in enhancing mental health care, research, and service delivery;
  • Analyze the interconnectedness of physical health and mental health.

Agenda

8:30am-9:00am - Doors Open - Coffee/Tea and Light Continental Breakfast and sign-in at Welcome Desk

9:00am-9:45am  
Room: Crystal North

Welcome and Opening Remarks
Land Acknowledgement

Welcome

  • Dr. Arlene MacDougall - Director of Research, Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, Director of Research and Innovation for Mental Health Care, St. Joseph's Health Care London, Lawson Research Institute
  • Jeremy Burton, PhD – Interim Vice President, Research and Scientific Director, Lawson Research Institute, St. Joseph's Health Care London
  • Dr. Chris McIntyre – Interim Vice President, Research and Scientific Director, London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute, London Health Sciences Centre
  • Dr. Patricia Hall, Interim Chair, Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University
  • Indigenous Elder Opening - Hallie Abram, Wampum Learning Lodge, Western University

9:45am-10:40am
Room: Crystal North

Keynote Presentation
“Mood, Microbes and Innovation in Mental Health”
Dr. Valerie Taylor, MD, PhD, FRCPC - Professor and Department Head, Department of Psychiatry, University of Calgary

Learning Objectives:

  • Discuss the history of the gut brain axis in mental illness
  • Describe the links between the gut microbiome and mood disorders
  • Identify the opportunities and challenges of innovation in drug discovery in mental health

10:40am-11:00am
Room: Crystal North - Keynote Question and Answer Period

11:00am-11:15am - Break

11:15am-12:15pm - Oral Presentations - Concurrent Session A

12:15pm-1:30pm - Lunch and Poster Session (Presenters please be at your poster 12:45pm-1:30pm for judging)

1:30pm-2:30pm - Oral Presentations - Concurrent Session B

2:30pm-2:45pm - Break

2:45pm-3:45pm - Oral Presentations - Concurrent Session C

3:45pm-4:00pm - Closing Remarks, Prizes, and Awards Presentation

Dr. Arlene MacDougall - Director of Research, Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, Director of Research and Innovation for Mental Health Care, St. Joseph's Health Care London, Lawson Research Institute

Light refreshments and lunch will be provided.

Please register to attend. Registrations received before Nov. 13 will be entered in an early-bird draw for a $50 gift card to be drawn at the event.

Concurrent Session A

Theme: Exploring the Intersection of Mental and Physical Health (Room: Regency A)

11:15 am - 11:35 am: 
Shouldering the burden: Exploring the challenges and impact of work-related shoulder disorders..." (Temitope Osifeso)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Critically examine the multidimensional impact of work-related shoulder disorders (WSDs) on firefighters’ occupational performance, physical and psychosocial wellbeing, using interpretive description insights.

  • Identify systemic and gendered barriers that exacerbate shoulder reinjury risk and hinder equitable recovery pathways among firefighters.

  • Translate firefighter-informed narratives into actionable recommendations for policy reform, occupational health programming, and inclusive rehabilitation strategies tailored to the unique demands of firefighting.

11:35 am - 11:45 am Question and Answer Period

11:45 am - 12:05 pm

Is there a link between sexual health and psychological wellbeing among women with spinal cord injury? What healthcare providers need to know (Merna Seliman, Western University)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Analyze connections between sexual health and mental health and wellbeing among women with spinal cord injury.

  • Describe the impact of sustaining a spinal cord injury on women's sexual health and psychological wellbeing.

  • Describe priority areas related to sexual health as described by women with injury and demonstrate how to implement this knowledge in a clinical setting.

12:05 pm - 12:15 pm Question and Answer Period

Theme: Advances in Applied Neuroscience (Room: Regency B)

11:15 am - 11:35 am

Glutamate, contextual insensitivity and disorganized speech in first-episode schizophrenia: A 7-Tesla Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy study (Yingqi Laetitia Wang, Western University)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Describe the relationship between glutamate level and thought disorganization in individuals with early psychosis.
  • Explain how linguistic contextual sensitivity could quantify thought disorganization.
  • Explain the specific behavioral link of contextual sensitivity to glutamate.

11:35 am - 11:45 am Question and Answer Period

11:45 am - 12:05 pm

Attention modulation drives dissociable effects of pain on visual working memory (Angdi Chu, Western University)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Recall how different attentional mechanisms modulate the impacts of pain on visual working memory.
  • Formulate new research questions on the observed dissociable effects of pain on visual working memory.
  • Integrate the complex interaction between pain and attention on cognitive functions to their own clinical research or practices. 

12:05 pm - 12:15 pm Question and Answer Period

Theme: Exploring Mental Health Care (Room: Regency C)

11:15 am - 11:35 am

Forensic hospitalization following diagnosis of Nonaffective Psychotic Disorder: A retrospective cohort study using health administrative data (Rebecca Rodrigues, Maastricht University)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Describe the incidence and timing of forensic mental health admissions following a first diagnosis of nonaffective psychotic disorder.
  • Explain how the risk of forensic admission changes over time after diagnosis of nonaffective psychotic disorder and identify periods of highest risk.
  • Identify key sociodemographic and clinical factors associated with increased risk of forensic hospitalization in people with nonaffective psychotic disorder.

11:35 am - 11:45 am Question and Answer Period

11:45 am - 12:05 pm Displacement in the margins: Understanding rural and remote homelessness in Canada in a time of crisis (Gojjam Limenih, St. Joseph's Health Care London)

  • Identify key drivers and emerging trends of homelessness in rural and remote Canadian communities, including the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and housing market shifts.

  • Describe how structural, social, and cultural factors intersect to shape the experience of homelessness outside urban centres, particularly through the lens of displacement.

  • Evaluate the role of grassroots and community-led responses, such as YIMBY initiatives, in addressing stigma and mobilizing supports in rural and remote contexts.

12:05 pm - 12:15 pm Question and Answer Period

Concurrent Session B

Theme: Advancing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Treatment (Room: Regency A)

1:30 pm - 1:50 pm

Advancing Post-traumatic Stress Disorder treatment in military populations: Harmonizing evidence, practice, and the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense Guidelines (Jenny JW Liu, Western University)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Examine the evidence and scope of PTSD treatments, recognizing the value of combined therapeutic approaches.
  • Evaluate the implications of clinical prescription patterns on current and future PTSD treatment strategies.
  • Evaluate VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines in the context of evidence review and current clinical practices.

1:50 pm - 2:00 pm Question and Answer Period

2:00 pm - 2:20 pm

Network-wide effect of Alpha Neurofeedback Therapy for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (Zhongjie Bao, University of Ottawa)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 

  • Describe how neurofeedback therapy targeting alpha oscillations can modulate both spectral power and functional connectivity within the default mode network in individuals with PTSD.
  • Explain the methodological approaches for assessing time- and frequency-domain EEG connectivity and operational synchrony as potential biomarkers of neurofeedback-related neural changes.
  • Evaluate the implications of enhanced DMN connectivity and synchrony for understanding the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying symptom improvements and for informing personalized neurofeedback interventions.

2:20 pm - 2:30 pm: Question and Answer Period

Theme: Novel Insights into Child and Adolescent Mental Health (Room: Regency B)

1:30 pm - 1:50 pm

Family functioning, psychological distress and suicidal tendencies among adolescents in Ghana (Mawuko Setordzi, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Describe the relationship between unhealthy family problem-solving and adolescents’ psychological distress and suicidal tendencies.
•    Examine how unhealthy family communication influences psychological distress and suicidal tendencies among adolescents.
•    Analyze the impact of unhealthy family affective involvement on adolescents’ psychological distress and suicidal tendencies.

1:50 pm - 2:00 pm Question and Answer Period

2:00 pm - 2:20 pm

Riding the waves of COVID-19: Internalizing and externalizing problems in children and youth who experienced polyvictimization (Seema Hooda, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•  Describe how age, sex, and polyvictimization relate to internalizing and externalizing behaviours in children and youth.
•  Identify how the pandemic impacted behavioural difficulties in children and youth.
•   Recognize the need for trauma-informed mental health interventions.

2:20 pm - 2:30 pm: Question and Answer Period

Theme: Innovations in Neurotherapeutics (Room: Regency C)

1:30 pm - 1:50 pm

Neuroregulation in virtual reality (Nadine Charania, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Describe the effects of alpha neuroregulation (NR) on psychological and physiological outcomes in both alpha-up and alpha-down training conditions.
•    Compare the impact of virtual reality (VR) versus standard 2D formats on self-reported affect during EEG-alpha NR.
•    Discuss the methodological considerations and implications of combining immersive VR with EEG-based NR for future mental health interventions

1:50 pm - 2:00 pm Question and Answer Period

2:00 pm - 2:20 pm

Accelerated repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for people with treatment-resistant unipolar and bipolar depression (Sruthi Nunna, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Examine the feasibility, safety, and preliminary efficacy of a condensed five-day accelerated iTBS (aiTBS) protocol in individuals with TRD.
•    Differentiate accelerated iTBS from conventional TMS paradigms in terms of session frequency, treatment burden, and patient outcomes.
•    Assess the potential of aiTBS protocols to enhance accessibility and efficiency in delivering neuromodulation treatments for unipolar and bipolar depression.

2:20 pm - 2:30 pm Question and Answer Period [cite: 27]

Concurrent Session C

Theme: Evolving Perspectives in Mental Health and Addiction Services (Room: Regency A)

2:45 pm - 3:05 pm

A secondary analysis of emergency providers’ emotional responses and behaviours toward non-urgent attenders (Jillian Streef, Western University)

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to:

  • Interpret how healthcare provider perceptions are shaped by both patient factors and systemic pressures.
  • Identify strategies for supporting healthcare provider well-being in high-stress ED environments.
  • Reflect on their own emotional responses to non-urgent ED use and consider how these may influence patient care. 

3:05 pm - 3:15 pm Question and Answer Period

3:15 pm - 3:35 pm

COVID-19 stimulant use project: Substance use trends in a Canadian mid-sized city during the pandemic (Bilal Salem, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Describe how patterns of substance use disorder during the COVID pandemic in London, Ontario.
•    Identify increase in the use of other substances other than stimulants.
•    Discuss the policy implications of these findings and explore harm reduction strategies that can be used during future pandemics or public health emergencies.

3:35 pm - 3:45 pm: Question and Answer Period

Theme: Understanding Provider Well-being (Room: Regency B)

2:45 pm - 3:05 pm

“Doing well”: A qualitative study of how faculty in psychiatry assess resident competence in well-being (Jonathan Gregory, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Explain the challenges of applying the competency-based framework to the domain of physician wellness.
•    Describe the difference between competence in wellness and state of wellness.
•    Provide examples of observable behaviours that may indicate competence in wellness or a lack thereof.

3:05 pm - 3:15 pm Question and Answer Period

Risk factors of burnout in physicians: A multi-systems investigation of workplace, demographic, and organizational factors (Don Richardson, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Identify the key demographic, psychological, and workplace factors associated with physician burnout.
•    Evaluate the protective roles of professional fulfillment and psychological safety in physician burnout.
•    Discuss the implications of these findings for developing multi-level interventions at the workplace.

3:15 pm - 3:35 pm

Risk factors of burnout in physicians: A multi-systems investigation of workplace, demographic, and organizational factors (Don Richardson, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Identify the key demographic, psychological, and workplace factors associated with physician burnout.
•    Evaluate the protective roles of professional fulfillment and psychological safety in physician burnout.
•    Discuss the implications of these findings for developing multi-level interventions at the workplace.

3:35 pm - 3:45 pm Question and Answer Period

Theme: Clinical Advances in Electroconvulsive Therapy (Room: Regency C)

2:45 pm - 3:05 pm

Withdrawn

3:05 pm - 3:15 pm Question and Answer Period

3:15 pm - 3:35 pm

Clinical effectiveness of electroconvulsive therapy for psychotic vs nonpsychotic depression: A cohort study (Radhika Kelkar, Western University)
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 
•    Compare the effectiveness of electro-convulsive therapy in different patient populations presenting with depression.
•    Assess the factors associated with ECT treatment response
•    Assess factors associated with cognitive side effects with electroconvulsive therapy.

3:35 pm - 3:45 pm: Question and Answer Period

 

25% of this program is dedicated to participant interaction. 

This event is an Accredited Group Learning Activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and approved by Continuing Professional Development, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University. You may claim a maximum of 4.25 hours (credits are automatically calculated). Each participant should claim only those hours of credit that they actually spent participating in the educational program. 

Joint Mental Health Research and Innovation Day is co-hosted by the Department of Psychiatry (Western University), St. Joseph’s Health Care London, London Health Sciences Centre, Lawson Research Institute, and London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute.  

This program has received no commercial support.