Objectives:

1. Learn the principles of precision mental health care and how they may be applied to support children and caregivers.
2. Collaboratively evaluate how precision mental health approaches could enhance perinatal and newborn care, including opportunities to improve early identification, intervention, and family outcomes.
3. Engage in a discussion about the opportunities, challenges, and research partnerships needed to advance precision mental health care within perinatal and newborn health services.

Presented by: Dr. Kathleen Pajer, Dr. Angelica Blais, Dr. Zakara Stampp

Kathleen Pajer, MD, MPH, is a Professor of Psychiatry and formerly served as Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Ottawa and Chief of Psychiatry at CHEO. She currently serves as the Director of the CHEO Precision Child and Youth Mental Health (PCYMH) Collaboratory at the CHEO Research Institute and the Clinical and Scientific Director of Project ECHO Ontario: Child and Youth Mental Health. Dr. Pajer spent the majority of her career in the United States as a clinician scientist, focusing on stress response system function in adolescent girls with behavioral disturbances. Her scientific focus has since shifted to transforming the child and youth mental healthcare system.

Dr. Angelica Blais is currently a Research Associate with the Precision in Child and Youth Mental Health (PCYMH) Collaboratory at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute. She is a Project Manager for the CIHR-funded co-production of a blueprint for integrating PCYMH with Population/Public Mental Health. Her interdisciplinary training at the University of Ottawa and the CHEO Research Institute has allowed her to apply a wide breadth of skills and knowledge to scientific dissemination and knowledge translation. In her current role, she has led several Knowledge Translation-focused initiatives while prioritizing meaningful engagement with knowledge users.

Dr. Zakara Stampp is a Research Coordinator with the Precision in Child and Youth Mental Health (PCYMH) Collaboratory at the CHEO Research Institute. In these roles, she coordinates interdisciplinary research activities, facilitates collaboration across partners, and supports knowledge translation and meaningful engagement with children, youth, families, clinicians, and other knowledge users. Her work also focuses on the implementation and evaluation of measurement-based care across CHEO’s mental health programs, with an emphasis on equity and the integration of patient and family perspectives into service improvement. Dr. Stampp completed her PhD at Western University, where her research examined belonging, well-being, and experiences of anti-Black racism among Black youth in Southwestern Ontario. Drawing on her interdisciplinary training in health geography, health science, and psychology she conducts equity-oriented, community-engaged research aimed at strengthening child and youth mental health services and outcomes.

A Zoom meeting link will be emailed to registered participants.