Faculty grant recipients

Integrative Approach to Curriculum Development and Evaluation for Substance Use Disorder Training in Family Medicine Residency: A Collaborative Project between Psychiatry and Family Medicine Departments at Sinai Health.

Rotenberg Mental Health Research Grant in Primary Care

Other faculty contributors

Co-PI: Natalie Morson Co-Investigator: Wiplove Lamba

Total funding (Direct costs): $20,000

June 1, 2024 - May 31, 2026

Enhancing Patient Access to Care through Attendance Improvement Strategies in the Emergency Aftercare Service

Sinai Health Clinicians in Quality Improvement

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Carla Loftus, Outpatient Program Manager; Hillary Chan, CNS

Total funding (Direct costs): $10,000

May 1, 2024 - April 30, 2026

Health care costs and medical complexity of adults with a pathogenic genomic disorder in population-based health administrative data 

McLaughlin Centre Special Research Grant

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Sarah Malecki

Total funding (Direct costs): $75,000

July 1, 2023

Outcomes and disease burden in a model of young adult multimorbidity

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Ryan Yuen, Gregory Costain, Kathleen Hodgkinson

Total funding (Direct costs): $986,850

Oct 1, 2023

Intravenous Ketamine versus Personalized Accelerated Brain Stimulation in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Pilot Randomized Feasibility Trial of Rapid-Acting Treatments (IKARE-TRD)

Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Intravenous ketamine has established evidence and personalized accelerated brain stimulation  has emerging evidence as rapid-acting interventions for treatment-resistant depression (TRD); this project is a two-site pilot randomized feasibility trial comparing these two rapid-acting interventions (IKARE-TRD).

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Katherine Dunlop, Yanbo Zhang, Jennifer Swainson, Andrew KComt, Wendy Lou

Other faculty investigators: Benoit Mulsant, Daniel Blumberger, Sidney Kennedy, Perry Menzies

Total funding (Direct costs): $610,000

April 2024 - March 2027

Deep Brain Stimulation for PTSD: Development of personalized treatment and predictors of response

Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Clement Hamani

Other faculty investigators: Agessandro Abrahao, Peter Giacobbe, Maged Goubran, Nir Lipsman. Luka Milosevic, Sean Nestor, Jennifer Rabin

Total funding (Direct costs): $1,093,950

July 1, 2023

Novel markers for tracking early treatment response to rTMS in major depressive disorder

Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Evaluation of speech parameters and eye-tracking characteristics to emotionally laden stimuli as office-based biomarkers of early response to rTMS.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Jennifer Rabin

Other faculty investigators: Dr. N. Lipsman,  Dr. S. Nestor

Total funding (Direct costs): $436,050

January 31, 2024 - January 31, 2029

Maternal Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (m-ADHD): Mental Health, Pregnancy and Infant Outcomes

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

In this study, we will follow the ~35,000 people with ADHD in Ontario who became pregnant between 2012 and 2022. We will follow this group until 2024, and compare important maternal and child outcomes in pregnancy and up to 2 years postpartum in this group to those of pregnant people without ADHD. This will help us to identify health problems in the ADHD group that can be acted upon. We will also attempt to identify subgroups of people with ADHD who may be at particularly high risk for specific problems. Finally, we will create new, reliable, information about the safety of stimulant medication use in pregnancy. We believe that the study results will provide important information to patients and clinicians about how to best help people with ADHD plan for pregnancy, and guide us in developing new treatments or models of care to improve the health of  pregnant and postpartum people with ADHD, and their children.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Hilary Brown, Jonathan Zipursky

Co-Applicants:  Dr. L. Barker, Dr. B. Bolea-Alamanac, Dr. C. Clark, Dr. E. Cohen, Dr. C-. Dennis, M. Feldman, Dr. T. Gomes, Dr. C. Maxwell, Dr. J. Ray, Dr. N. Saunders, Dr. A. Toulany,

Total funding (Direct costs): $604,352

April 1, 2024-March 31, 2028

MOVIN: A pragmatic randomized controlled trial of a scalable collaborative care model for perinatal mental healthcare delivery

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Up to 20% of childbearing people develop mental illness during or after pregnancy. When untreated, these perinatal mental disorders negatively affect not only the perinatal person, but also the health and development of their children. Only 1 in 5 Canadians receive the help they need. Implementing a system-wide approach to reliably deliver recommended care to all perinatal mental health patients is a crucial healthcare priority. The Pregnancy and Postpartum Mental healthcare Optimization Virtual Intervention Network (MOVIN) is a perinatal mental health platform that allows patients to self-screen for symptoms, receive tailored education materials and connect with a care coordinator to co-develop personalized treatment recommendations in collaboration their primary care clinician and a perinatal psychiatrist when needed. Our pilot randomized trial showed clinical benefit, with potential for scale, spread and sustainability. We are now ready to take the next step in definitively evaluating the efficacy of MOVIN. In partnership with Ontario’s five large specialized perinatal mental health care programs, we will conduct a randomized controlled trial that will concurrently develop organizational and human capacity to enable sustainable province-wide scale-up of MOVIN in Ontario if results are positive. Along with knowledge users including decision-makers, healthcare professionals and persons with lived experience from across Canada, and meaningful opportunities for trainee development in perinatal mental health research, we will spark further collaborations to eventually pursue a national approach to implement best practices in perinatal mental health in our country.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Noah Ivers

Co-Applicants: Dr. L. Barker, Dr. H. Brown, Dr. T. Burra, Dr. C. Clark, Dr. C. Denni,s Dr. B. Frey, Dr. J. Gandhi, Dr. S. Grigoriadis, Ms. N. Hussain-Shamsy, Ms. Z. Ladak, Dr. C. Laur, Dr. C. Maxwell, Dr. B. Rosen, Dr. G. Saraf, Dr. D. Singla, Dr. M. Taljaard, Dr. K. Thavorn, Dr. R. Van Lieshout, Dr. E. Wright

Total funding (Direct costs): $1,510,875

April 1, 2024 - March 31, 2029

Reflecting on the Road to Social Justice – a Critical Discourse Analysis Evaluation of First Year Psychiatry Residents’ Reflections from the Underserved and Marginalized Populations Selective 

PGME and Department of Psychiatry - Medical Humanities Education Matching Funding Grants

Using a critical discourse analysis evaluation, we will evaluate PGY1 reflective pieces written during their U/MPS rotation, to explore how the discourses of equity/inequity manifest and operate in the training of residents caring for marginalized individuals

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Saadia Sediqzadah, Sacha Agrawal, Arno Kumagai, Stella Ng

Total funding (Direct costs): $6,755

January 2023 - January 2024

Cultivating confidence in the practice of secure recovery through education of forensic interprofessional staff

American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law AEIR (AAPL Institute for Education and Research) Education Grant

This grant funds a curriculum design and evaluation project aimed developing a tailored education curriculum in secure recovery informed by education best practices and the education needs of forensic care staff. The AAPL Institute for Education and Research was founded in 2004 to: engage in education and research activities; stimulate and encourage important and creative educational research programs in forensic psychiatry; Train and encourage the trainings of forensic psychiatry educators, researchers and students; Provide educational resources and activities for members; and Promote development of linkages and synergies among forensic education and research programs.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Sandy Simpson

Co-investigators: Stephanie Penney, Faisal Ali,  Patti Socha, Remar Mangaoil, Treena Wilkie 

Total funding (Direct costs): $9762.49

January 2023 - January 2024

Improving stratification of risk for schizophrenia using cell-specific EEG biomarkers

Miner's Lamp Innovation Fund

The proposed project aims to better stratify the risk of Clinical High Risk patients for developing schizophrenia, by applying new mechanistic in-silico biomarkers estimating cell-specific inhibition changes from EEG signals. As directly probing the cellular and microcircuit mechanisms in the living human brain is currently impossible, the in-silico biomarkers serve to overcome experimental limitations and pave the way into early detection using EEG biomarkers of fine-scale brain changes that precede full/overt cognitive symptoms in schizophrenia.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Andreea Diaconescu, Michael Kiang

Total funding (Direct costs): $133,000

2023 - 2025

Psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for treatment-resistant depression: A randomized phase II clinical trial comparing one versus two psychedelic doses of psilocybin

CIHR Project Grant

This study will be a two-site (University Health Network and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health), phase II, eight-week RCT evaluating the antidepressant efficacy, safety and tolerability of one versus two 25 mg (full psychedelic dose) doses of psilocybin with accompanying psychotherapy in adults with moderate to severe TRD (age 18 - 65; n = 92).

Other faculty contributors

Site PI for CAMH and Co-PA: Ishrat Husain

U of T Co-Investigators: Danica Johnson, Jeremy Riva-Cambrin, Jordan Bawks, Dan Blumberger, Alastair Flint, Rodrigo Mansur, Roger McIntyre, Benoit Mulsant, Christian Schulz-Quach, Smrita Grewal, Hilary Offman, Rick Sethi and Geneva Weiglein

Total funding (Direct costs): $1,000,000

June 2023 - June 2025

Optimized Predictive Treatment In Medications for Unipolar Major Depression (OPTIMUM-D)

CIHR Project Grant

The OPTIMUM-D study will test whether giving combined medication at the start of treatment, rather than waiting 8 weeks, improves depression treatment outcomes overall, or specifically for individuals who are predicted to not respond to an antidepressant alone. OPTIMUM-D will enroll 704 adults with depression across 8 Canadian sites.

Other faculty contributors

National PI: Rudolf Uher (NPA)

Site PI and Co-PA: Daniel Mueller

Co-Applicant: Sidney Kennedy

Co-PIs: Pierre Blier, Faranak Farzan, Benicio Noronha Frey, Raymond Wayne Lam, Roumen V Milev, Valerie Hannah Taylor

Total funding (Direct costs): $1,495,575

Feb 2023 - Feb 2028

An economic evaluation of scalable methods to improve mental healthcare for perinatal women

New Frontiers in Research Fund 

We will conduct an economic evaluation of an ongoing psychological treatment trial for perinatal depression which compares nonspecialist providers (nurses and midwives) and telemedicine sessions to specialist providers (psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers) and in-person psychotherapy sessions in Toronto, Chapel Hill and Chicago (N=1368). We hypothesize that non-specialists and telemedicine will be less costly, equally effective, and associated with similar use and cost of other health services, and thus will be cost-effective compared with specialist providers and in-person sessions.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PI: Claire de Oliveira

Co-Investigators: Samantha Meltzer-Brody, Richard Silver, Simone Vigod, Cindy-Lee Dennis, Jo Kim

Total funding (Direct costs): $200,000

April 2023 - March 2025

Metformin, Antipsychotics and Psychotic Disorders: Challenges and Opportunities in Psychiatry and Family Medicine

Innovation Fund, St. Michael's Hospital Association 

Family doctors and psychiatrists provide care for people living with psychotic disorders, like schizophrenia. Unfortunately, antipsychotics have serious side effects including weight gain. How do doctors assess and manage antipsychotic-induced weight gain? Whose responsibility is it anyway? To address this gap, we propose an innovative, cross-discipline project that will attempt to define the gap in care for AIWG through investigation of 600K+ primary care records, followed by semi-structured interviews with psychiatrists, family doctors, and patients.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Braden O'Neill

Co-Applicants: Andrew Pinto, Sanjeev Sockalingam, Samuel Law, Anika Maraj, Margaret Hahn, Osnat Melamed, Jon Hunchuk, Madison Burella, Gord Singer

Total funding (Direct costs): $48,129.38

May 2023 - May 2025

Exploring the long-term impacts of a service user advisory course for senior psychiatry residents

UofT – Department of Psychiatry

With this project we will explore the impact of participation in a service user advisory course for PGY4 psychiatry residents using narrative interviews at 2 - 4 years follow up.

Other faculty contributors

Collaborators: Csilla Kalocsai, Sophie Soklaridis, Suze Berkhout

Total funding (Direct costs): $9650

May 2023 - April 2024

Does hyperplasticity in the primary sensory cortex underlie atypical tactile reactivity in autism spectrum disorder?

AHSC AFP Innovation Fund

We will investigate if an excessive plasticity (i.e. hyperplasticity) in the sensory area of brain underlies atypical tactile reactivity in autism and if ‘mechanism-driven’ brain stimulation can reduce such excessive plasticity.

Other faculty contributors

Co-investigators: Dr Tarek Rajji, Dr Yona Lunsky, Dr Daniel Blumberger, Dr Christoph Zrenner, Dr Reza Zomorrodi,  Dr Meng-Chuan Lai, Dr Stephanie Ameis, Dr Hsiang-Yuan Lin, Mr Marcos Sanches. 

Total funding (Direct costs): $139,970

May 2023 - April 2025

Modulating plasticity in the motor cortex using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation to improve motor function in autism spectrum disorder

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

We will be: i) Testing whether hyperplasticity in the motor cortex (M1) underlies motor function difficulties in autism, and ii) Using ‘mechanism-driven’ rTMS with autistic adults to examine whether resulting reduced M1 hyperplasticity will be associated with clinical improvements in motor function.

Other faculty contributors

Co-investigators: Dr. Tarek Rajji, Dr. Daniel Blumberger, Dr. Stephanie Ameis, Dr. Meng-Chuan Lai, Dr. Yona Lunsky, Dr. Hsiang-Yuan Lin, Dr. Christoph Zrenner, Dr. Stewart Mostofsky, Mr. Marcos Sanches.

Total funding (Direct costs): $615,825

April, 2023 - March, 2028

Developing Service Standards for Youth with Complex Mental Illness

CIHR

While most youth mental health standards are disorder-specific, there are no agreed upon standards for “complexity,” despite the frequent use of this transdiagnostic term describing youth requiring more intensive supports. With youth, family members, service providers, administrators, policymakers, and researchers, we aim to achieve a consensus definition of complexity and a consistent approach to its measurement to help direct resources and guide interventions that target youth with the highest need.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Kristin Cleverley, Jo Henderson, Peter Szatmari 

Co-investigators: Madison Aitken, Darren Courtney, Stephanie Ameis, Yona Lunsky, Aristotle Voineskos, Louise Gallagher

Total funding (Direct costs): $198,514

March 2023 - February 2024

A Novel Study of TikTok Use and the Relationship to Mental Health in Adolescents Presenting to Hospital 

Sunnybrook AFP Innovation Fund

TikTok is a massively popular social media platform among youth. Suicide-related content is popular and readily accessible on the TikTok platform. This study will use a quantitative and qualitative approach to examine the relationship between TikTok use and mental health among a clinical population of adolescents.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PI: Mark Sinyor

Co-investigators: Dr. Juveria Zaheer, Dr. Janet Song

Total funding (Direct costs): $104,578

April 2023

GABAA Receptor-Specific Regulation Of Cortisol Release In Stress-Related Depression

CIHR

The project will characterize the role of various subunit of the GABAA receptors on the regulation of the stress axis in mouse models, in order to better understand how therapeutic interventions can better intervene in the context of stress-related disorders, including depression.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Etienne Sibille and Toshifumi Tomoda

Total funding (Direct costs): $619,000

April 2023 - March 2028

Neonate PK-Model Informed Precision Dosing: Feasibility Trial

NIH Maternal and Pediatric Precision in Therapeutics (MPRNT) Knowledge & Research Coordination (KRCC) P30 Pilot & Feasibility 

The purpose of this research is to assess the feasibility of doing a study of the MIPD approach to drug dosing in critically ill newborns in the ICU with a focus on its use to determine the starting dose of the drug exonaparin to treat blood clots. To do this, an established Model Improved Precision Dosing (MIPD) tool called Lyv developed by a company PUMAS-AI will be used.

Other faculty contributors

Named Principal Applicant: Tamorah Lewis 

Co-Principal Investigators: Melanie Barwick, Leonardo Brandão, V Ivaturi , Emily Tam

Total funding (Direct costs): $149,227 USD

October 2022

Dementia Caregivers Skills Training Through Virtual Reality Simulation (VR-SIM CARERS)

National Research Council and Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

The project aims to develop VR adaptation of the CARERS program (caregiver skill training program) through a process of co-design with caregivers, clinical investigators, technology developers and simulation experts.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Michael Smith, Mary Chiu

Academic Collaborators: Tarek Rajji, Joel Sadavoy

Total funding (Direct costs): $556,000

Sept 2022 - Aug 2025

Improving Quality of Mental Health Care Through Learning Collaboratives: A Co-Design Project

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Learning collaboratives are a structured data driven strategy wherein peer programs work together to conduct quality improvement projects. This grant will work with 3 sectors to discuss LC opportunities for which follow-up funding will be sought.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Avra Selick

Co-Investigators: Nicole Kozloff

Total funding (Direct costs): $9,973

July 2022 - June 2023

Standardizing Approaches to Transitions in Care in Early Psychosis Intervention

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Working with stakeholders this grant will develop a discharge protocol for Early Intervention programs that can be tested in a next phase of work.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Nicole Kozloff 

Co-Investigators: Aristotle Voineskos, Sophie Soklaridis

Total funding (Direct costs): $98,934

March 2022 - Feb 2023

A Data Driven Approach to Personalize Psychosocial Treatment for Parents of Children with Disruptive Behaviour Disorder

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

This project will identify which subgroups of parents, and children with emotional and behavioural challenges, benefit most and least from evidence-based psychosocial treatment in order to develop more targeted and personalized interventions.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Daniel Gorman, Jennifer Jenkins, Yuanyuan Jiang, Stefan Kloiber, Azadeh Kushki, Judith Laposa, Robert Mcmahon, Marcos Sanches, Debbie Schachter

Total funding (Direct costs): $100,000

July 2022

Linking depression with cognitive impairment in aging using EEG biomarkers of cortical microcircuit inhibition

Labatt Family Network

We propose to assess the relevance of reduced SST interneuron inhibition in underlying a link between major depressive disorder (MDD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in older adults. As a proxy of reduced SST interneuron inhibition, we will use EEG biomarkers of the level of SST
interneuron inhibition which we previously derived from detailed in-silico models of human cortical microcircuits in health and depression.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Tarek Rajji, Heather Brooks

Total funding (Direct costs): $97,000

2023 - 2024

Neurobiological Mechanisms of Reading Disabilities

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Study incorporates neuroimaging of children with reading disabilities and the characterization of stem cell derived neurons from the children. 

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigator: Shreejoy Tripathy

Total funding (Direct costs): $1,185,750

April 1, 2022

An adapted early warning signs and symptoms (EWSS) intervention to improve early recognition and referral of childhood cancers in Kenya and Cameroon: An Effectiveness Implementation Study

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Our overarching aim is to generate robust evidence of the feasibility, effectiveness, and costs related to implementing an adapted Early Warning Signs and Symptoms (EWSS) intervention in Cameroon and Kenya. We will address the study aims through five linked objectives: 1) Adapt core intervention components; 2) Identify barriers and facilitators; 3) Execute the intervention; 4) Evaluate clinical effectiveness; 5) Evaluate implementation effectiveness.

Other contributors

Primary Named Applicant and Co-Principal Investigator: Avram Denburg

Co-Principal Investigator: Sumit Gupta

Total funding (Direct costs): $1,250,776

Oct 2022

Implementing a sudden cardiac death risk assessment tool in childhood hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

The major goals of this project are to utilize implementation science methods to implement PRIMaCY, a sudden death risk prediction tool for childhood HCM, within hospital EHRs and workflows using an organization and physician focused implementation strategy; and to assess implementation outcomes and identify and address implementation barriers and facilitators to improve the effectiveness of the implementation approach.

Other contributors

Primary Named Applicant and Co-Principal Investigator: Seema Mital

Total funding (Direct costs): $631,126

Oct 2022

Development and piloting of an early warning score for psychiatric deterioration

HIROC Patient Safety Grant Program

This project will leverage existing EMR data to identify patients at risk of mental deterioration and alert their providers with the aim of reducing preventable harm.

Other faculty contributors

Co-PIs: Soyeon Kim, Kevin Young

Executive Sponsor: Kevin Young

Collaborators: Achal Mishra, Mara Smith

Total funding (Direct costs): $17,000

December 2022 - December 2023

Personalized Genetic Drug Technologies and Medical Economies in Canada: Moral Experiment or Curative Renaissance?

SSHRC and Genome Canada

Other contributors

A. Hay, LG. Balneaves, K. Chan, K. O’Doherty, J. Bramson, H. Llewellyn, V. MacDonald, J. Needham, S. Peacock, S. Sundquist

Total funding: $199,462

April 2022 - March 2026

STS, Disability Arts, and the Frictions of Futurity in Transplant Medicine: A Multidisciplinary Salon 

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)

This SSHRC Connection Grant will support the collaboration of international artists and scholars through two multidiscplinary salons. The salons will use arts-based research methods and practices to examine novel ways of understanding psychosocial challenges that span the solid organ transplantation process. 

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Kelly Fritsch, Margrit Shildrick

Co-Investigators: Susan Abbey, Donna Stewart

Project collaborator  Kathleen Sheehan, Josee Lynch, Eva-Marie Stern

Total funding (Direct costs): $30,060

March 2022 - March 2023

Temporalities of Cure in Liver Transplantation

University of Toronto Critical Digital Humanities Institute

The "Temporalities" project examines the experience of long-term survivors of liver transplantation, exploring the limitations that surround conceptualizations of survivors’ experiences in biomedical settings and what is lacking in conventional approaches to psychosocial supports for this population. This grant will support a project graduate student to lead a critical discourse analysis of liver transplantation patient manuals along with a series of qualitative interviews and digital storytelling workshops for transplant recipients.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Chloe Wong-Mersereau

Total funding (Direct costs): $10,000

April 2022 - August 2022

Functional Electrical Stimulation for Major Depressive Disorder: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Functional Electrical Stimulation of Facial Muscles: Treating Depression with a Smile 

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Sidney Kennedy, Milos Popovic

Co-Investigators: Benoit H Mulsant

Total funding (Direct costs): $390,000

Oct 2022 - Sept 2025

Feasibility of Inhaled Nitrous Oxide versus Intravenous Ketamine in Treatment-Resistant Depression with Suicidal Ideation: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP)

This pilot trial will compare inhaled nitrous oxide to IV ketamine for reduction of suicidal ideation in treatment-resistant depression.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Sidney Kennedy

Co-Investigators: Ishrat Husain, Benoit H Mulsant

Total funding (Direct costs): $90,000

Oct 2022 - Sept 2024

Understanding attitudes and beliefs toward the COVID-19 vaccines among youth with mental illness

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

The overall objective of this project is to explore the beliefs, attitudes, and information needs of youth with mental illness related to COVID-19 vaccines. Our findings will lead to the co-creation of targeted resources that can support youth, clinicians, and public health professionals in having effective youth-centric discussions about vaccines, mental health, and COVID-19 more generally.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Sanjeev Sockalingam, Joanna Henderson, Nicole Kozloff, Andrea Levenson

Total funding (Direct costs): $143,428

December 2022 - December 2023

Physiological Signature of Emotional Distress in Persons with Dementia: Multi-sensory X deep learning to Facilitate Personalized Management of agitation

Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging/CIHR

This project will investigate the physiological signature for "emotional distress" in patients with agitation due to Alzheimer disease leveraging two large multi-centre therapeutic trials. Methodology will include multi-sensory devices and deep learning.

Other faculty contributors

Co-investigators: Krista Lanctot, Tarek Rajji, Corinne Fischer, Andrea Iaboni, and  Sanjeev Kumar.

Total funding (direct costs): $40,000

May 2022 - April 2024

Anti-Muslim Discrimination in Medical Training: The experiences of resident physicians

Education Development Fund

This is a mixed-methods study using quantitative and qualitative methods to quantify and characterize anti-Muslim discrimination in residency training. A survey will be conducted nationally, along with in-depth qualitative interviews to understand the emotional and behavioural impact of discrimination on resident physicians.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Susan Abbey, Hashim Khan, Arfeen Malick, Umberin Najeeb, Javeed Sukhera, Juveria Zaheer

Senior advisors: Juveria Zaheer and Susan Abbey

Total funding (Direct costs): $20,000

August 2022

Common language for intimate partner violence risk appraisal and mitigation: An evidence-based policing approach

Social Science and Humanities Research Council

Partnering with police services and universities in Alberta, New Brunswick, and Ontario to study and share evidence-based approaches for assessing risk of intimate partner violence and coercive control.

Total funding: $199,583

2022-2024

A proof-of-concept randomized controlled trial to show that the antidepressant effects of psilocybin do not require psychedelic effects

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

This proof-of-concept “double dummy” RCT aims to assess whether psilocybin’s antidepressant effects are induced by 5HT2A receptor agonism (and hence by psychedelic effects) in 60 participants with treatment-resistant depression.

Other contributors

Co-Investigators: Daniel Blumberger, David Castle, Stefan Kloiber, Abigail Ortiz, Benoit Mulsant, Joshua Rosenblat, Wei Wang

Total funding (Direct costs): $546,976

Oct 2022 - Sept 2023

The Canadian Mental Health, Equity, and Climate Change Initiative

McConnell Foundation

This knowledge mobilization initiative was developed to enhance Canada's capacity to decrease the mental health impacts of climate change, emphasizing preventative responses for populations experiencing poverty. Subpopulations of focus include women, children and the elderly, and persons lacking adequate housing.

Other contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Kwame McKenzie, Arun Ravindran, Vicky Stergiopoulos, Samantha Wells, Trevor Young

Total funding (Direct costs): $443,880

June 2022 – June 2025

App for Independence-O (A4i-O) – Expanding a Validated Platform for Complex Behavioral Health to Address Opioid Use

CAMH Foundation

This study involves modifying a digital health platform currently tailored for psychosis to meet the needs of individuals.

Other faculty contributors

o-Investigators: Lena Quilty, David Castle, Tony George, Matthew Sloan, Peter Selby, Jessica D’Arcey

Total funding (direct costs): $165,000

March 2022 - April 2024

Creating an Evidence-Informed, Accessible, Clinically Useful and Personalized Virtual Mental Health Support Framework for School-Age Children on the Autism Spectrum: Building from Pandemic e-Support Experiences

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

This project will provide critical knowledge to create a child- and family-centered e-MH framework for Canadian school-age autistic children and their families. This e-MH framework can be applied widely to enhance personalized support for autistic children across geographical regions and contexts.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigator: Stephanie Ameis

Total funding (Direct costs): $657,900

April 2022 - March 2026

rTMS for apathy in dementia: a pilot study

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Evaluating the effectiveness of rTMS for apathy associated with dementia.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: D Gallagher, P Giacobbe, N Herrmann, S Nestor, M Rapoport, S Tumat

Total funding (Direct costs): $100,000

Apr 2022 - Mar 2023

Exercise augmenting cognition tDCS (EXACT) trial: A pilot study of a combined exercise and transcranial direct current stimulation intervention for cognition

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of exercise combined with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for improving cognition in mild Alzheimer's disease patients. This study may identify a safe, non-invasive treatment approach that preserves cognition in early Alzheimer's disease, therefore having major health implications.

Other contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Damien Gallagher, Nathan Herrmann

Damien Gallagher, Mark Rapoport and Nathan Herrmann will oversee patient management and care.  Ana Andreazza will perform biomarker analysis. Tarek Rajji will assist with aspects related to the tDCS machines and training.

Total funding (Direct costs): $456,706

Oct 2022 - Sept 2025

What do New Practitioners Need from Continuing Professional Development (CPD): A Case Study of Transition to Practice and Early Career Psychiatrists

CPD Advancement and Ideas Grants - Temerty Faculty of Medicine

The Royal College has stipulated new training experiences (e.g. learning the business aspects of practice, avoiding College complaints, engaging in QI initiatives amongst others) for Psychiatry residents in the penultimate stage of training: Transition to Practice (TTP). We seek to determine gaps in these competencies, as identified by senior Psychiatry residents and Early Career Psychiatrists, which would then inform Continuing Professional Development education sessions in order to best address their needs.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Dr. Certina Ho  

Collaborator, representing Early Career Psychiatrists: Dr. Tracey Sarmiento 

Collaborator, representing Equity and Mentorship: Dr. Mary Jane Esplen

Project Advisor: Dr. Sanjeev Sockalingam  

Total funding amount: $5,000

Lithium for the Treatment of Paediatric Bipolar Disorder: A Delphi Study

Pooler Charitable Trust, TD Bank

This study will use the Delphi Method to conduct a survey of international experts on the safe and effective use of lithium for the treatment of paediatric bipolar disorder in all phases of illness. 

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigator: Simina Toma Co-Investigator: Ayal Schaffer

Total funding (Direct costs): $21,850

March 1 2022 - March 1 2023 

Self-Harm Presentations Encountering ED in Youth (SPEEDY): Rapid Risk Stratification for Clinical Management 

American Foundation of Suicide Prevention (AFSP); Young Investigators Grant Competition 

To determine how self-harm method impacts risk of suicide and related outcomes following a first presentation of self-harm to the emergency department for youth. The specific focus will be on cutting versus poisoning as these methods represent over 90% of all emergency room presentations for self-harm among youth.  

Other contributors

Co-Investigators: Kathleen Dobson, Benjamin Goldstein, Nicole Kozloff, Natasha Saunders, Ayal Schaffer, Mark Sinyor (Young Investigator Mentor), Simone Vigod

Total funding (Direct costs):$90,000

Oct 2022 - 2024 

Magnetic Seizure Therapy for Schizophrenia - Neurocircuitry (MAST-Neuro)

Brain and Behavior Research Foundation (NARSAD)

The overarching goal of MAST-Neuro is to identify brain imaging biomarkers that relate to the therapeutic effects and cognitive side effects of MST and ECT. Identifying such brain imaging biomarkers is an important step towards precision medicine, in which targeted treatments may help maximize benefit and minimize risk.

Other faculty contributors

Daniel Blumberger, Co-I for MAST-Neuro, PI for MAST-Trial

George Foussias, Co-I for MAST-Neuro, Co-PI for MAST-Trial

Total funding (Direct costs): $70,000

July 2022 - June 2024

Predicting cardiovascular risk in patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder using clinical and biomarker data: focus on sex-related differences

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

The overall objective of this work is to understand the determinants of sex-related differences in cardiovascular morbidity in bipolar disorder (BD) towards the goal of developing prediction tools that will support prevention. This approach builds on the preliminary work of an interdisciplinary team of junior and senior investigators on: (i) clinical trajectories in BD; (ii) feasibility of using passive sensing in adults with BD during different types of episodes; (iii) cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in BD; (iv) and molecular and genetic basis of BD.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Dr. Benjamin Goldstein, Dr. Daniel Felsky, Dr. Ishrat Husein, Mr. Marcos Sanches, Dr. Benoit Mulsant

Total funding (Direct costs): $283,051

April 2022 - March 2025

Optimization of Prefrontal Theta-Burst Stimulation to Treat Depression: A Bench to First-in-Human Study

Brain Canada

In this project, we will first optimize theta-burst stimulation to induce plasticity in the prefrontal cortex of an animal model for depression then adapt the preclinical changes to human theta-burst stimulation and compare its ability to induce plasticity in humans compared to traditional protocol. Throughout the project we will also implement integrated Knowledge Translation in partnership with individuals with lived experience, learner and community of practice stakeholders.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Branka Agic, Daniel Blumberger, Clement Ma, Benoit Mulsant
Co-Applicants: Graham Collingridge, Evelyn Lambe, Sanjeev Sockalingam

Total funding (Direct costs): $950,000

January 2022 - December 2024

Neurobiological Effects of Psilocybin in Treatment Resistant Bipolar Depression: An Emotional-Processing fMRI Pilot Study

Labatt Family Innovation Fund in Brain Health

We propose an open-label, single-arm, pilot study, wherein twenty participants with moderate to severe treatment resistant bipolar depression (TRBD) will receive one 25 mg dose of oral psilocybin with supportive psychotherapy. Our primary objective is to determine if increased amygdala activity during emotional stimuli post-psilocybin treatment is associated with antidepressant effects in individuals with TRBD.

Other faculty contributors

Mentor: Roger S. McIntyre, MD, FRCPC

Co-Applicants: Ishrat Husain, MBBS, MD(Res.), MRCPsych, Colin Hawco, PhD, Rodrigo Mansur, MD, PhD, David Castle, MD, Hilary Offman, MD, FRCPC,  Wei Wang, PhD

Total funding (Direct costs): $340,000

February 2022 - January 2025

Maintenance Ketamine Infusions for Treatment-Resistant Bipolar Depression: An Open-Label Extension Trial

Physician Service Inc (PSI)

This study will evaluate the mood stabilizing and antidepressant effects of ketamine infusions in bipolar I/II disorder. This study is an add on study to Dr. Rosenblat's CIHR-funded RCT evaluating the acute antidepressant effects of ketamine for bipolar depression. The present study will provide additional 'booster' infusions to ketamine-responders to evaluate if the benefits may be sustained by additional ketamine doses.

Other faculty contributors

Co-investigator: Dr. Rodrigo Mansur

Mentor: Dr. Roger McIntyre

Total funding (Direct costs): $300,000

March 1, 2022 - March 1, 2025

Development of an education module to improve communication, engagement and inclusivity at PM: A curriculum focused on pronouns, gender, sexual orientation and relationship diversity in cancer care

UHN Cancer Experience Program at Princess Margaret

The purpose of this project is to promote knowledge about the health needs of sexual and gender minorities among healthcare providers, administrative/clerical staff and trainees in a format that is inclusive, interactive and effective.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Gilla Shapiro, Jennifer Croke

Total funding (Direct costs): $20,000

Lived experience of involuntary transport under the Ontario Mental Health Act: A qualitative study to inform the discussion on non-police responses to mental health crises

Innovation Fund, St. Michael's Hospital Association

This study will evaluate the lived experience of patients who have been apprehended by the police under a Form 1 and investigate the preferences of service users for an alternative authority they may respond to under a Form 1, if at all.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators: Michaela Beder, Amy Gajaria, Samuel Law

Total funding (Direct costs): $22,100

Implementation of Caring Contacts using patient feedback to reduce suicide-related outcomes following psychiatric hospitalization: A community-hospital partnership

The Cass Family Grants for Catalyzing Access and Change and the Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada (HIROC) Patient Safety Grant

Sunnybrook Department of Psychiatry piloted the first Canadian Caring Contact RCT with some early evidence of success. This project seeks additional patient input to enhance the acceptability and effectiveness of the intervention to reduce suicide-related outcomes. This quality improvement project aims to adapt and improve an evidence-based suicide-prevention initiative for psychiatric inpatients at high risk of suicide following discharge from hospital.

Other contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Saulo Castel, Ayal Schaffer, Mark Sinyor, Ari Zaretsky

Total funding (Direct costs): $25,000

July 2022 - June 2023

A Psychosocial Transitional Group to Improve Adaptation, Coping and Mental Health Outcomes Following Trauma, Catalyst Grant – Addressing Musculoskeletal

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

A feasibility RCT to test the effectiveness of a psychosocial transitional inpatient group in neuro-musculoskeletal (NMSK) trauma rehabilitation patients to enhance coping, adaptation and self-efficacy and to decrease psychological distress.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Investigators in psychiatry: Janet Ellis Others:  Godleski M, Gotlib Conn L, Guilcher SJT, Hitzig SL, Mayo AL, Redelmeier D, Simpson R, Wasilewski M. (Rehab/Physiatry)   Knowledge User: Domingo A

Total funding (Direct costs): $99,986

April 2022 to March 2024

Examination of Factors Influencing Mental Health and Suicidality

CANSSI Ontario

We aim to examine the risk and protective factors influencing suicidal ideation and related mental health phenotypes in the CanPath dataset

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Wei Xu, Pratyusha Attaluri, Arun K. Tiwari, Gwyneth Zai, James Kennedy

Total funding (Direct costs): $5,000

2022-2023

Using Long-read Whole-genome Sequencing to Understand Treatment Resistance in Psychiatric Patients

McLaughlin Centre

We aim to conduct a long-read whole-genome sequencing study to examine genetic factors of treatment resistance in diverse psychiatric populations.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: James L. Kennedy, Arun K. Tiwari, Gwyneth C. Zai, Joyce So, Jerry Warsh

Total funding (Direct costs): $75,000

2022-2023

A Pragmatic Trial to Evaluate the Impact of an Inpatient Psychosocial Transitional Group to Improve Mental Health Outcomes Following Limb Loss

War Amps of Canada

This is a pragmatic research trial (stemming from an earlier feasibility trial) comparing effectiveness of a group therapy intervention (SEGT) to treatment as usual (TAU) for patients with traumatic and dysvascular limb-loss in a inpatient rehabilitation setting.

Other faculty contributors

Co-Principal Investigators: Robinson L, Mayo A, Simpson R, Hitzig S, Wasilewski M, Jankey S, MacKay S

Total funding (Direct costs): $122,000

November 2022 to October 2024