Meet our Research Team!

The trauma among psychiatric workers research team is made up of members from Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care, the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group, the University of Toronto and the Public Services Health and Safety Association.

N. Zoe Hilton, Ph.D., C. Psych. Waypoint Research Institute. Dr. Hilton is the Senior Research Scientist at Waypoint. She is also a registered psychologist, an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, and an Adjunct Scientist at The Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research, University of Ottawa. Since joining Waypoint over 25 years ago, Zoe has worked both as a front-line clinician and full-time researcher. While most of her research has been in the areas of domestic violence, risk assessment, and risk communication, she more recently began studying our forensic inpatients and the professionals who provide services for them. She led the pilot study that became the foundation for the Trauma in the Workplace project.

Elke Ham, Waypoint Research Institute. Elke is a Research Psychometrist at Waypoint. She holds a Research Analyst diploma from Georgian College and has co-authored research studies in program evaluation, violence risk communication, and violent offenders. In the 8 years Elke has been at Waypoint so far, she has become well known to our staff and patients through coordinating the Therapeutic Climate Survey. She also helped develop the Waypoint Indexes of Clinical Improvement (WICIs) from analysis of RAI data, and is the project coordinator for ODARA 101: The Electronic Training Program.

Michael Seto, Ph.D., C.Psych. Royal Ottawa Health Care Group. Dr. Michael Seto is a registered clinical and forensic psychologist and a research director with the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group in Brockville and Ottawa, Canada. He also has adjunct professor appointments at four universities: the University of Toronto, Ryerson University, Carleton University, and the University of Ottawa. Dr. Seto has published extensively on pedophilia, sexual offending, mentally disordered offenders, and other topics in forensic mental health and regularly presents at scientific meetings and professional workshops on these topics. He has written well-reviewed books on pedophilia and sexual offending against children (2008) and on internet sex offenders (2013), both published by the American Psychological Association.

Nicole C. Rodrigues, The Royal Ottawa Health Care Group. Nicole C. Rodrigues is a research coordinator at the Brockville Mental Health Centre. She is also a Canadian Certified Counsellor with a focus on forensic psychiatric populations. Additionally, Nicole is an active member of her community, sitting on two Boards of Directors and is responsible for overseeing an Education Bursary Competition for local teens, who are in financial need and have been accepted into a post-secondary setting. University of Toronto

Bonnie Kirsh, PhD., OT Reg (Ont) University of Toronto. Dr. Bonnie Kirsh is a Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, and holds cross appointments to the Department of Psychiatry and the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto as well as the School of Occupational Therapy at Dalhousie University. She was a member of the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s Workforce Advisory Committee from its inception. Her primary research focuses on community and work integration for persons with mental illnesses, and she has conducted studies examining workplace anti-stigma initiatives, organizational culture and mental health, Canadian principles and practices in the area of work integration, social policy as it relates to employment for people with mental illnesses, and supported employment. She uses mixed methods in her research including quantitative, qualitative and participatory research.

Olena Chapovalov, Public Services Health and Safety Association. Olena Chapovalov is a Regional Consultant with the Public Services Health and Safety Association. Olena is a Registered Nurse with over nine years of experience in the field of Occupational Health, Safety and Wellness. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Masters of Public Health with a graduate diploma in Health Services and Policy Research. Olena has worked as an Occupational Health and Safety Nurse in Complex Continuing Care, Long-Term Care, and Canada’s largest mental health and addictions teaching hospital. Most recently, Olena has completed a secondment as a Provincial Specialist with the Leadership Table on Workplace Violence Prevention in Healthcare with the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. Olena is passionate about bridging the gap between research and practice to advance health, safety and wellbeing of employees in the public services sectors.

Sonja Addison, Waypoint Research Institute. Sonja was a Research Analyst at Waypoint from 2018 to 2020. She earned her post-graduate certification as a Clinical Research Associate at McMaster University. Prior to Waypoint, Sonja was the program director for a community-based research organization overseeing undergraduate and graduate level university research projects. Previously, her work included research in ageing on patient-transfer slings to reduce nurse or caregiver injury, mobile toileting systems and outdoor wear. She has also worked as a Psychometrist in mental health supporting the evaluation of psychological assessments. Sonja is working on the Trauma in the Workplace project’s systematic literature review of workplace factors in PTSD and its reduction in mental health service providers, and looks forward to augmenting her understanding of the needs in this area.

Kayla Sherborn, Waypoint Research Institute. Kayla was a Research Psychometrist at Waypoint. Before joining Waypoint in 2015, Kayla earned her Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Psychology with a minor in Criminology at the University of Western Ontario. Previously, Kayla has primarily been involved in working with geriatric populations both clinically and with a research focus. She has worked on an array of projects ranging from the role of medication in patients diagnosed with Lewy Body dementia to the role of genetics in the development of frontotemporal dementia. Kayla kept the team organized and ran the 1:1 staff interviews at Waypoint and The Royal.

Rebecca Harris,Waypoint Research Institute. Rebecca was a Research Assistant on the team in 2017-2018. She earned her Bachelor of Science at the University of Prince Edward Island and her Masters of Science in Community Health through Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador. Before joining Waypoint, Rebecca’s research focused on food and nutrition policy and healthy built environments with a special interest in the school food and food access in rural and remote communities. While Rebecca’s previous work was in the area of community health, she built her knowledge of mental health and psychometry while at Waypoint. She ran the survey and focus groups at Waypoint and The Royal and managed the data, setting up the quantitative analyses that are now ongoing. Rebecca is now an Analyst with the Canadian Mental Health Association.

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