Alice Girard Award

So much has happened since beginning my nursing career 10 years ago! I studied nursing because I thought it would be interesting, fulfilling, and that I would have opportunities to grow both professionally and personally. Those expectations have been met and exceeded! I have been employed at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) since I was a new graduate RN. Currently, I am Advanced Practice Clinical Leader supporting the inpatient addictions services at CAMH. In this role I have engaged in research, presentations, publications and teaching. I am most proud of the occasions when I have taught undergraduate nursing students and inspired them to seek clinical placements in addictions and mental health settings! It was due to my experiences in the Advanced Practice role that I decided to pursue a PhD at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto. My doctoral research focuses on understanding why some people leave withdrawal management services before their treatment goals are complete. Specifically, my research examines what may predict early discharges, and also explores patient perspectives on the experience of early discharge. Ultimately, the goal of my research is to better understand early discharges in order to develop interventions to prevent people from leaving treatment early.