Geriatric Refresher DaysOptimizing the Present Preparing for the Future

Dr. Phil St. John is a professor at the Department of Internal Medicine at Max Rady College of Medicine and University of Manitoba. He is also a consulting geriatrician for the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. He completed his Master’s in Public Health with Specialization in Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University. He is an affiliate of the Centre on Aging at the University of Manitoba, the co-lead of the Manitoba site of the Canadian Longitudinal Study of Aging, and a collaborator with the Manitoba Follow-up Study.

Dr. Camilla Wong is a Geriatrician at St. Michael’s Hospital, an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto, and a Project Investigator at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute. Her clinical and research interests include the implementation and evaluation of acute care models for the frail elderly. Her publications have appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), and the Annals of Surgery.

Anna Banks is a physiotherapy graduate from the University of Western Ontario. She began her career in Toronto, working at the Riverdale Hospital as well as in a busy OHIP funded clinic. Anna relocated to Ottawa 1999 and worked in a private clinic until 2001 when she joined the Queensway-Carleton Hospital rehab team. She has been part of the West End Integrated Falls Prevention Program since its inception in 2009.

Dr. Soojin Chun is a geriatric psychiatrist at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health center. She completed her psychiatry residency training in the University of Ottawa, where she also completed a fellowship in geriatric psychiatry. She has a Master’s degree in science (behavioural neuroscience) and is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada where she is also board certified in Geriatric Psychiatry. Dr. Chun’s clinical interests involve providing clinical care to geriatric patients in outpatient and long term care settings.

She is active in teaching both residents and medical students at the University of Ottawa. She has published a review paper for the Canadian Geriatric Society on management of insomnia in the elderly in 2016. Her research interests include investigating psychiatric factors affecting CPAP adherence in elderly patients as well as examining geriatric psychiatry training for medical students in Canada. She has won several awards from the Department of Psychiatry at University of Ottawa as well as the Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry.

As a staff geriatric psychiatrist, she has taken a leadership role as education director for the division of geriatric psychiatry at the University of Ottawa and as a site education director at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre for the psychiatry residency program.

Dr. Chris Frank is a family physician with Certificate of Added Competency in Care of the Elderly. He works in the Division of Geriatric Medicine at Queen’s University and is based at Providence Care Hospital. His main clinical roles are in geriatric rehabilitation and consultation, and palliative care. He still finds these conversations hard but is getting better all the time.

Mary is a physiotherapy graduate from the University of Western Ontario.  She has worked at The Ottawa Hospital for over 30 years in all acute care areas as well as on the Geriatric Consult Team and in the Emergency Department.  Mary has worked in the Champlain Falls Assessment & Streamlined Treatment Clinic from its start in October 2015.   She has been involved in several best practice initiatives with a focus on the geriatric patient including development of a chair exercise video for hospitalized older adults, acute care fall risk assessment and prevention and mobilization of the geriatric patient.

Dr. Shirley Huang earned her Doctor of Medicine degree at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in 2007.  She completed her Internal Medicine and Geriatric Medicine training at UBC, followed by Master of Science in Healthcare Quality at Queen’s University. She joined the Division of Geriatric Medicine at The Ottawa Hospital as a staff Geriatrician in 2015 and she is also an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa.   She enjoys all aspects of caring for older adults and their families but has particular interest in dementia, falls, polypharmacy and issues of healthcare quality and patient safety.

Taryn MacKenzie Taryn has worked at The Ottawa Hospital since 1988 with a large portion of her career spent in the Emergency Department. She has worked as an Advanced Practice Nurse for Community Geriatrics under the RGPEO since 2015. She manages the Geriatric Medicine Clinics at TOH and currently oversees the Nurse Led Outreach Team. She co-led the development and implementation of the Champlain Falls Assessment and Streamlined Treatment (C-FAST) Clinic in 2015 where she continues to provide direct, clinical care. With a keen interest in fall risk reduction, Taryn has been involved in associated education, organizational/regional initiatives and research. She currently chairs TOH Hospital Fall Risk Reduction Steering Committee and is past chair of the Champlain Falls Prevention Steering Committee.

Dr. Lori Della Malva obtained her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology with Neuropsychology as her area of competence, in 1990. She joined the Ottawa Hospital in 1991 and over the course of the years, has worked on various in-patient and out-patient services. Currently, she provides in-patient services across all units at the Civic Campus, including University of Ottawa Heart Institute and is the Neuropsychologist for both the Geriatric Day Hospital and for the Deep Brain Stimulation implant surgery program. She is also a Clinical Professor at the University of Ottawa.

Kathryn May is a Nurse Practitioner with The Ottawa Hospital is currently working with the Nurse Led Outreach Team to provide acute care services to LTC residents. Kathryn has played an essential role to the design and execution of key program initiatives since 2009.

Acting as a clinical preceptor, adviser, and guest lecturer Kathryn continues to support Nurse Practitioner student learning for the University of Ottawa. She holds CNA gerontology certification and has recently reviewed geriatric modules for the provincial education series for Nurse Practitioners.

Before joining the Ottawa team, Kathryn held clinical and leadership positions with the Hospital for Sick Children, the University of Alberta, First Nations Inuit Health Branch, and several community health clinics across the country.

Cheryl is a Geriatric Assessor with the Geriatric Assessment Outreach Team of the Regional Geriatric Program of Eastern Ontario.  She has been with the team for over 10 years, and, prior to this, she worked as a physiotherapist at the Queensway Carleton Hospital.  Cheryl completed her Bachelors of Science in Physiotherapy Degree at McGill University in 2002 and has had experience working in a variety of clinical settings such as acute care hospitals, rehabilitation centers, retirement homes and long-term care facilities.  In her current role, Cheryl enjoys helping community-dwelling seniors access health care and community services that will support them to remain as independent as possible.

Dr. Kiran Rabheru is Full Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Ottawa and Geriatric Psychiatrist at The Ottawa Hospital (TOH). He serves as Medical Director of the Geriatric Psychiatry, Electroconvulsive (ECT), and the Behavioral Support Programs at TOH. He obtained his MD from University of Western Ontario and practiced as a family doctor for 5 years in rural and urban settings. He is a Certificant and Fellow of the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CCFP, FCFP). Subsequently, he completed a residency in psychiatry, subspecialized in geriatric psychiatry, and became Board Certified as a geriatric psychiatrist in Canada (FRCP) and the United States (DABPN).

Dr. Rabheru has been passionate and fully committed to serving the elderly throughout his life, and is recognized nationally and internationally for his work. He is a Founder of the subspecialty of Geriatric Psychiatry at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He is recipient of the Outstanding Achievements in Geriatric Psychiatry in Canada award by the Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry and has served as the President of the CAGP and its Board for many years. At present, he co-leads the Canadian Coalition of Seniors Mental Health. He is Chair of the Board of Directors of the International Longevity Centre, Canada and a member of the Board of the International Psychogeriatric Association. Recently, he has been elected as Chair of the Section of Positive Psychiatry of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA).  He serves on the national leadership team for the Fountain of Health initiative, where he has been active in promoting healthy aging, brain resilience and vitality.