Trainee Award Recipients 2022-2023
Dr. Jaylyn Leighton
Dr. Jaylyn Leighton, R/TRO, completed her PhD at the University of Waterloo in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies, Faculty of Health. She is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the St. John’s Rehab (SJR) Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute under the supervision of Dr. Marina Wasilewski and Dr. Robert Simpson. Her research interests include: community mental health, health care policy, peer support, psychosocial rehabilitation, leisure as care, healing, and restoration, critical theories, creative methodologies, and creative knowledge mobilization. Dr. Leighton is facilitating a mixed-methods study on co-creating a rehabilitation strategy to support the psychosocial health of individuals with long-COVID.
Supervisor: Dr. Marina Wasilewski, Scientist at St. John’s Rehab, Assistant Professor with the Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy and the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto
Research Overview
‘Long COVID’ (LC) -- a condition characterized by a cluster of symptoms lasting 12+ weeks-- impacts 10-35% of people who contract the COVID-19 virus. The lasting impacts of LC affect people’s holistic health, relationships, income, return to work, and access to rehabilitation services. Health care providers are well-positioned to champion the psychosocial health of people with LC. The goal of this project is to develop a ‘Long COVID Workforce Toolkit’ that will enhance public awareness of LC, build capacity of the scope of practice for HCP collaboration, and equip providers with best practices, strategies, and resources related to LC.
Meera Premnazeer
Meera Premnazeer completed her Master of Science in Occupational Therapy at the University of Toronto (UofT). Now she is a PhD Student at the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute (RSI) at UofT. Meera’s research is focused on improving healthcare delivery for people with stroke and their caregivers across Canada.
Her passion and research center around the area of patient- and family-centered care. Meera has received the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute Student Scholarship, and the Gwen Bell Endowment Fund from RSI. She is also a recipient of the Canadian Occupational Therapy Foundation Future Scholar Award.
Supervisor: Dr. Jill Cameron, Professor and Vice Chair Research in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto
Research Overview
Project Title: A Qualitative Study of Person and Family Centered Care across the Stroke Care Continuum in the Context of COVID-19
Worldwide, COVID-19 is known to cause a 7.6-fold increased risk of having a stroke. As a result, people with stroke (PWS) also commonly have COVID-19. This further complicates recovery from and caregiving for PWS. Despite this, there has been no research that examines the needs of PWS and family caregivers.
My research aims to understand the perspectives and preferences of PWS and caregivers for patient- and family-centered care (PFCC) across the care continuum within the context of COVID-19.
This novel research will contribute to the development of models of PFCC to support recovery and caregiving across the care continuum.
Orianna Scali
Orianna Scali completed her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Ryerson University and is currently completing her Master of Science at the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto (UofT). Orianna’s research focuses on exploring Family Centered Care (FCC) across the care continuum in family caregivers of individuals with Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). The goal of her research aims to understand the specific perceived challenges in the context of SCI across the care continuum through qualitative inquiry of family caregivers of individuals with SCI.
Supervisor: Dr. Jill Cameron, Professor and Vice Chair Research in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto
Research Overview
Family caregivers play a critical role in the wellbeing of individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Caregivers are not routinely prepared or supported in their role. These challenges can be compounded if the individual with SCI also experiences COVID-19. Models of patient and family centered care are proposed to enhance the health care system’s abilities to meet the needs of individuals with SCI and family caregivers. Through examination of the experiences of family caregivers and individuals with SCI in the context of COVID-19, researchers will be able to develop health service delivery models of family and patient centered care.
Dr. Vijay Chattu
Vijay Kumar Chattu is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy at University of Toronto. He is a medical doctor (MBBS) with an MD in Community Medicine, MPH in Health Policy & Management, MPhil in HIV/AIDS Management, and Fellowships in HIV/AIDS Epidemiology, Cancer Epidemiology and a Post-Master’s Certificate in Global Mental Health. He coordinated a CIHR-funded multi-provincial 2-year-cohort study entitled “Impact of COVID on Physicians and Healthcare workers” in Ontario at St. Michael’s Hospital. He has been ranked among the world’s top 2% scientists in Public Health by Stanford University in 2022 & 2021.
Supervisor: Dr. Behdin Nowrouzi-Kia, Assistant Professor at the Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy at the University of Toronto
Research Overview
Project Title: Exploring burnout and occupational stress among rehabilitation professionals of indigenous, black, and racialized groups working in home care in Ontario: A qualitative study
Vijay’s research interests include public health, global occupational health and global health governance. Moreover, he has worked extensively on public health policies, refugee health, global mental health, equity issues, digital health applications, burnout, and occupational stress. His current research focuses on the COVID-19 pandemic, including COVID-19 preventive measures, public health strategies for COVID prevention, COVID-19 management, Long COVID syndrome, HIV/AIDS among risk groups, job satisfaction and stress among healthcare workers. He applies his interdisciplinary knowledge to various policy papers on Canada’s role in global health security, Canada’s legal preparedness during COVID-19, the role of multilateralism in strengthening international cooperation etc. He is also listed among the Sustainable Researchers by the Sustainability Department, University of Toronto (STARS database), recognizing his interdisciplinary work aligned with the UN-Sustainable developmental goals.