On April 30, 2026, the Fonds de recherche du Québec (FRQ) announced the results of its funding applications. We are delighted to announce that several members of the Douglas Research Centre have received support from FRQ through Research scholar, DIALOGUE, and postdoctoral, doctoral and masters training awards. Congratulations to everyone who received funding!
Research Scholar
"A multi-scale analysis of brain ageing in healthy individuals and in Parkinson’s disease: an integrated in vivo and ex vivo approach"
As we age, the brain changes. For most people, these changes are mild and part of the normal aging process, but for some they lead to diseases such as Parkinson’s disease (PD), the second most common neurodegenerative disorder. PD affects movement, cognitive functions, and quality of life. More than 11 million people worldwide live with PD, with men being nearly twice as likely to be affected as women and experiencing more severe symptoms and faster disease progression. Despite this, no tools currently exist to predict who will develop the disease or how quickly it will progress. Current treatments relieve certain symptoms, such as tremors, but they do not slow or stop disease progression.
Based at the Douglas Research Centre of McGill University, my team has access to state-of-the-art MRI technology and the largest brain bank in Canada. Using these resources, my research program aims to transform our understanding of PD by combining brain imaging, genetics, cell biology, and computational modeling. The goal is to identify early signs of the disease, better understand sex differences, and move toward treatments that target the underlying causes.
The first part of the program focuses on brain aging. By analyzing large datasets of brain MRI scans from healthy individuals and from people living with PD, we will map normal brain aging in men and women. By comparing these maps with those of brains affected by PD, we will be able to detect early signs of the disease and predict the evolution of symptoms.
The second part examines the building blocks of the brain. We will study the substantia nigra, a small region involved in the control of movement and the area most affected by PD. Using new technologies that allow the analysis of thousands of individual cells from human brains, we will identify the cell types that are most vulnerable, the causes of this vulnerability, and the differences between men and women. This approach will help clarify the biological origins of sex differences in PD.
The third part aims to bridge discoveries from the laboratory with clinical care. By linking microscopic changes observed in brain tissues with MRI data, we seek to identify imaging markers that reflect disease processes. These markers could then be used in patients to improve diagnosis, track disease progression, and test new treatments.
In summary, this program addresses PD from multiple perspectives—brain, cellular, and genetic—with the ultimate goal of enabling earlier diagnosis, more personalized treatments, and a better future for people living with the disease. All results, data, and tools will be openly shared so that our discoveries can benefit the broader scientific and medical communities.
DOI
Support for research teams / Academic – renewal
"Papageno Suicide Prevention Research Team"
Our youth are growing up in a world marked by profound upheavals: climate change, political instability, social inequalities, and rapid transformations in digital environments. These challenges place significant pressure on their mental health and, for some, can lead to suicidal thoughts or behaviors. In Quebec and elsewhere, suicidal distress among young people is increasing and calls for a coordinated and ambitious scientific response.
It is within this context that Team Papageno was formed, bringing together 11 clinician-researchers from 7 institutions across Quebec. Our shared mission is to prevent youth suicide by combining scientific excellence, intersectoral collaboration, and the active participation of young people and their communities.
The 2026–2030 program is structured around three complementary axes.
Axis 1 – Identifying developmental trajectories along the suicidal continuum.
We aim to identify the risk and protective factors that shape trajectories leading to suicidal distress across development. To do so, we draw on large Quebec population-based cohorts that have followed thousands of young people since birth, allowing us to identify high-risk pathways such as exposure to maltreatment or problematic social media use, as well as protective factors such as parental support. Recognizing that some vulnerable populations are underrepresented in these cohorts, we have also launched complementary studies involving youth receiving psychiatric care, those who have attempted suicide, or those who have died by suicide, in order to broaden our understanding of the highest-risk trajectories.
Axis 2 – Evaluating innovative suicide prevention interventions.
Identifying risk factors is essential but not sufficient; we must also act within young people’s everyday environments. We are developing and evaluating diverse interventions aimed at reducing suicidal distress: arts-based and reflective programs to reduce isolation and distress at the university level; school-based interventions targeting social skills among at-risk boys; community approaches adapted to regional realities in partnership with local stakeholders; and the integration of prevention strategies within the province-wide Aire ouverte youth services.
Axis 3 – Understanding the needs of youth and their environments.
To transform practice, prevention strategies must be grounded in the lived realities of young people and their communities. However, several contexts remain under-documented, limiting the development of tailored interventions. This newly created axis seeks to better understand the needs, barriers, and levers for action in key settings and groups—for example, gender-diverse youth, pediatric emergency departments, or secondary schools—in order to inform the future development of interventions.
Knowledge mobilization and training the next generation.
Knowledge dissemination and the training of emerging researchers are central to the team’s mission. We share our findings with decision-makers, practitioners, youth, and families through a variety of channels: scientific publications, plain-language summaries, training sessions, podcasts, videos, and strategic collaborations. Our team hosts many students, who actively contribute to the projects.
DOI
Dialogue Project
Camila Velez
"The Program on “Radically Relational Futures”: Imagining Other Worlds Through Artistic Methods with Young People"
Young people face many challenges: the climate crisis, social inequality, polarization, and the impact of digital technologies. Many young people in Quebec feel anxious about the future. Research shows that when young people have the opportunity to imagine desirable futures together, they develop greater hope, creativity, and a sense of belonging. However, research and opportunities for young people to reflect collectively and creatively on their visions of the future remain limited. The project “Radically Relational Futures,” led by Camila Vélez as part of her doctoral research thesis at McGill University, invites young people aged 18 to 29 to participate in a collective creation program. Together, through artistic practices, they will imagine and create visions of futures of well-being where the well-being of humans and nature (plants, rivers, animals) is interconnected and cared for. The project is based on the idea that well-being depends not only on individuals, but also on the connections we forge with others, nature, and our environments. It encourages us to rethink our futures and the ways we live together in a spirit of openness, humility, and shared responsibility.
The project aims to address three research questions: how young people express and interpret desirable futures of well-being through artistic creation; how artistic methods influence the futures they imagine and express; and what effects and possibilities emerge from their participation in the project. Four groups will participate: Indigenous youth, queer immigrant youth, young women musicians, and youth who have experienced mental health challenges. Over the course of a year, each group will take part in a series of collective creative workshops—theater, music, podcasts, or body mapping—as well as learning and reflection sessions. The project’s experience and outcomes will be evaluated using focus groups, reflective journals, and field notes. The data will be analyzed using a thematic and narrative approach to examine the stories, commonalities, and differences in experiences of change. The youth will be invited to participate in the co-production of three bilingual (French/English) dissemination formats to share their creations and the learnings from the research with the public. An exhibition will showcase the youth’s works and feature a Wall of Dreams, inviting visitors to share their reflections and commitments. A documentary film, co-directed with a Quebec filmmaker, will chronicle the project’s journey. During the exhibition and screenings, Q&A sessions and discussions between researchers, participants, and the public will be organized.
Finally, an interactive website will offer free access to the artworks, the film, and resources to inspire other initiatives. These outreach activities aim to make research vibrant, participatory, and accessible; to give a voice to young people who are often overlooked; and to foster intergenerational dialogue around a future that is more relational, inclusive, and full of hope.
DOI
Student scholarships
We’re also delighted to announce that several of our students and trainees have also received awards.
Julia Alcaide Pozo
Postdoctoral Award
"Child abuse and brain neuroplasticity in humans: molecular mechanisms"
Childhood maltreatment—whether sexual, physical, psychological, or due to neglect—leaves deep and lasting effects, greatly increases the risk of depression in adulthood, and makes treatments less effective. To better prevent and treat these outcomes, it is essential to understand how such experiences disrupt the developing brain. Our project focuses on a key region involved in emotion and decision-making, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). During critical periods—brief windows of development when the brain is especially plastic—throughout childhood and adolescence, this region rapidly reorganizes its connections before stabilizing them through structures called perineuronal nets (PNNs). These delicate, lattice-like structures surround mainly parvalbumin (PV) neurons, which are responsible for inhibiting and synchronizing neural circuits.
Recent work from our team shows that PNNs are more numerous and more mature in the vmPFC of individuals who experienced childhood abuse, suggesting a premature stabilization of neural circuits that may anchor maladaptive emotional functioning. Our objective is to understand precisely how PV+ neurons and their PNNs are altered in individuals who experienced abuse. To do so, we will analyze postmortem brain tissue from the Douglas-Bell Brain Bank, comparing three carefully characterized groups identified through psychological autopsy: adults who died by suicide in the context of depression with a history of childhood abuse (DS-CA), those who died by suicide with depression but without abuse (DS), and control individuals who died suddenly without psychiatric disorders or histories of abuse.
Specifically, we will microscopically isolate PV+ neurons with and without PNNs in the vmPFC and examine their “molecular signature” through RNA sequencing. Key genes will then be validated using imaging techniques (fluorescent in situ hybridization), and bioinformatic analyses will be used to identify the genes and molecular networks most strongly associated with histories of abuse, PNNs, and depression.
We hypothesize that, in individuals who experienced abuse, PV+ neurons surrounded by PNNs will express higher levels of genes promoting PNN formation and synaptic stabilization, thereby limiting neural plasticity. Ultimately, this first human comparison of the molecular programs of PV+ neurons with and without PNNs in the vmPFC could reveal therapeutic targets to cautiously reopen windows of plasticity, restore healthier neural circuits, and inform more effective public policies for the prevention of childhood maltreatment.
DOI
Sierra Codeluppi-Arrowsmith
Postdoctoral Award
"Characterization of raphe nuclei using spatial genomics and investigation of changes associated with depression and the response to antidepressants"
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common and potentially life-threatening mood disorder. Patients with MDD are typically treated with antidepressants, most of which act through serotonergic neurotransmission. Although brain serotonin is produced by the raphe nuclei, little is known about this structure, which includes the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN). Located along the midline of the brainstem, this region consists primarily of serotonergic neurons. By taking a closer look at these regions, we will characterize the different neuronal populations that produce serotonin and understand how they are affected by MDD, as well as by treatment with antidepressant medications such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). We will use spatial genomics and single-cell transcriptomics on sections of the NDRs from healthy individuals compared to those with MDD and those with a history of SSRI use. In general, transcriptomics reflects overall gene activity in tissues, and with the emergence of spatial genomics, we now have the ability to maintain the anatomical context of gene activity in a given cell within its microenvironment. This project will be the first to perform a spatial genomic analysis of human raphe nuclei and to conduct a single-cell transcriptomic study of the changes associated with depression and response to antidepressant treatment in this region. Using single-cell genomic techniques, we will identify which types of DRN neurons are most affected in the DMA. With the knowledge we gain from this study, we hope to identify new targets for antidepressant treatment and better understand the pathology of depression.
DOI
Elizabeth Cuellar
Doctoral Award
"Intergenerational and integrated models of Indigenous youth well-being"
Indigenous youth in Canada are emerging as leaders in the promotion of mental health. Given the historical impacts of colonial policies that have disrupted family ties, an Indigenous approach to well-being—one that recognizes the connection between individual and collective resilience—is essential to improving the lives of Indigenous people. The proposed research aims to explore how Indigenous youth participating in Indigenous and Western mental health programs act as catalysts for well-being, and to identify the additional supports they need to strengthen their role as mental health leaders.
This research will follow a “Two-Eyed Seeing” approach, which integrates Indigenous and Western health promotion, to identify a multigenerational healing framework through participatory community action research. Indigenous youth, Elders, family members, and healthcare providers will share stories about how Indigenous youth’s healing journeys contribute to intergenerational resilience in Indigenous communities.
DOI
Giuseppe D’Andrea
Doctoral Award
"Mapping Inequalities Related to Psychosis: Understanding the Influence of Social and Environmental Factors on the Onset and Course of Psychosis to Improve Mental Health Care and Reduce Inequalities"
Psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia, are serious mental health conditions that often begin in adolescence or early adulthood. They can lead to long-term disability, premature death, and significant challenges for individuals, families, and communities. However, these disorders do not affect everyone in the same way. People facing poverty, discrimination, or social exclusion are more likely to develop psychosis and experience more severe consequences. Understanding why this happens is essential for improving care and reducing health inequalities. T
This research explores how personal factors—such as gender, migration history, and childhood adversity—and social environments—such as living conditions and socioeconomic factors related to the neighborhood or city, or access to services—interact to influence the onset and progression of psychosis. By studying these complex relationships, the project aims to identify those most at risk, their pathways to care, and the supports that promote better recovery. The project comprises four studies: a literature review of existing studies to identify the main social and environmental risk factors; an analysis of European data to explore how different combinations of risk factors are linked to symptom types and clinical outcomes; a population-level study using Danish national health registries to examine how social and environmental factors influence the development of psychotic disorders, access to care, and long-term recovery; and an analysis of clinical data from early intervention clinics for psychosis in Quebec to understand how social determinants influence outcomes among people receiving care. Innovative methods will be used to better understand how intersecting social factors contribute to disparities. By combining data from different countries and socio-political service contexts, this research will help design more equitable and tailored mental health services.
The goal is to improve early detection, ensure rapid and equitable access to care, and support the recovery of all individuals affected by psychosis—thereby improving individual health, population health, and the delivery of mental health services in Canada and beyond.
DOI
Juliette Huot
Masters Award
"Characterization of distinct patterns of musical cognition deficits in variants of primary progressive aphasia"
DOI
Ayla Inja
Masters Award
"Understanding the association between childhood exposure to parental domestic violence and suicide attempts in adolescence: a 14-year longitudinal cohort study"
DOI
Luke Kernan
Postdoctoral Award
"An inclusive approach to mental health based on intergenerational"
This postdoctoral project, titled “An Inclusive Mental Health Praxis Based on Intergenerational Peer Mentoring in Youth Art Hives,” will examine how art can foster mindfulness among young people and help them overcome their mental health challenges. These art workshops will explore and facilitate the transfer of emotional resources and well-being from an older group to a younger group, which may be at risk of psychosis or have already experienced a psychotic episode. To carry out this project, the principal investigators will develop the educational environment and procedures necessary to organize and facilitate these peer groups in accordance with these psychological and community objectives. They will thus develop a detailed plan for creating a support community that fosters understanding of emotions related to psychosis through art.
Furthermore, this initiative, combined with community-based projects, can help provide young people with concrete, effective, and sustainable tools to better understand themselves, improve their interpersonal relationships, and prevent episodes of loneliness and psychotic crises. These processes could help us understand how young people construct their identity, while creatively supporting them and strengthening the emotional dimensions of their recovery following a psychotic episode. As part of this initiative, the principal investigators will establish a national mentoring program for young people, connecting them with a mentor who identifies as someone living with a mental health condition, who has experienced a challenging mental health journey, or who has a disability. These peer-to-peer relationships will then be nurtured and sustained for one year. This arts-based research project will be conducted in collaboration with the Network of Networks – Integrated Services for Youth, a consortium of youth services across Canada, as well as the Youth Mental Health Collective. In addition, SARPEP, a program for first-episode psychosis in Quebec; Aire ouverte, a youth services network in Quebec; and the Early Psychosis Intervention (EPI) program at Island Health in British Columbia will also be collaborators. This project will also yield at least 90 interviews and 90 artistic works, thereby creating an intergenerational dataset to study mechanisms of emotional resilience, reflexivity, and mentoring initiatives within these communities. These data will enable the development of original theories that will lead to a better understanding of the emotional adaptability of individuals affected by psychosis.
The principal investigator will publish their findings in scientific journals, participate in podcasts to present the project, and write a report outlining the artistic interventions and recommendations for community partners, municipalities, and mental health support organizations. The postdoctoral project will culminate in a community art exhibition showcasing the participants’ works. The principal investigator will also host a series of public lectures to present the results of their research.
DOI
Mélodie Leclerc
Masters Award
"Development, validation and standardisation of a facial recognition assessment tool for the differential diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases"
DOI
Saige Power
Postdoctoral Award
"A new dopamine replacement therapy for Parkinson’s disease"
Parkinson’s disease is characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons and remains incurable to this day. Although treatments exist, they lose effectiveness over time and lead to complications that significantly reduce quality of life when the disease reaches advanced stages, where the brain is severely and chronically deprived of dopamine. It is therefore essential to prevent the disease from progressing.
Here, we propose a new gene therapy strategy aimed at replacing the signals normally provided by dopamine. By making the brain “believe” that dopamine is still present, our preliminary data (Liu et al., 2025, Nature Neuroscience) suggest that this strategy could not only prevent complications associated with the chronic use of pharmacological therapies (such as levodopa), but might even cure the symptoms caused by Parkinson’s disease.
We therefore propose to test these two possibilities in mice. Since the motor deficits of Parkinson’s disease result from the loss of dopaminergic signaling, we hypothesize that maintaining these signals using synthetic “dopamine-like” molecules would (a) prevent the pathological changes that occur when the brain is severely deprived of dopamine (Objective 1) and (b) prevent the motor symptoms caused by the disease (Objective 2).
To achieve this, we will deploy a gene therapy approach to introduce synthetic dopaminergic signaling into two preclinical mouse models of Parkinson’s disease. The proposed work describes a completely new strategy that bypasses the limitations of current treatments. Exploring this new therapeutic mechanism could represent a powerful strategy not only for Parkinson’s disease but also for treating other neurodegenerative diseases.
We hypothesize that, in individuals who experienced abuse, PV+ neurons surrounded by PNNs will express higher levels of genes promoting PNN formation and synaptic stabilization, thereby limiting neural plasticity. Ultimately, this first human comparison of the molecular programs of PV+ neurons with and without PNNs in the vmPFC could reveal therapeutic targets to cautiously reopen windows of plasticity, restore healthier neural circuits, and inform more effective public policies for the prevention of childhood maltreatment.
DOI
Shima Raeesi
Doctoral Award
"Education, vascular risk and white matter hyperintensities: a study of cognitive reserve in Alzheimer’s disease across diverse populations."
Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are among the most serious health challenges, affecting millions of people and placing a heavy burden on families and society. One factor that appears to protect against dementia is education. People who have spent more years in school often remain mentally sharper as they age, a concept known as “cognitive reserve.” However, we still do not fully understand how education provides this protection.
One likely explanation lies in its impact on heart and vascular health. Education may promote healthier lifestyles and better access to healthcare, which can reduce risks such as hypertension or diabetes. These risk factors are linked to small lesions in the brain’s connections called white matter hyperintensities (WMH). WMHs, visible on brain MRI scans, are very common in older adults and strongly predict problems with memory and thinking.
This project will combine data from more than 6,000 participants who took part in one of three major research studies in North America. These participants include healthy adults as well as individuals with memory impairment or Alzheimer’s disease, and importantly include people from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. This diversity will allow us to better understand how dementia risk varies across these groups.
My preliminary work has already shown that education reduces the impact of vascular risk factors on brain damage. Building on these findings, I will investigate three key questions:
(1) Do WMHs explain how education helps protect memory and cognitive function?
(2) Are these mechanisms the same across different racial and ethnic groups?
(3) Can we combine results from multiple studies to build a more accurate and equitable model of dementia risk?
By answering these questions, this research will help explain why some individuals remain resilient as they age while others develop dementia. It will also highlight concrete ways to reduce dementia risk by strengthening both education and vascular health, while ensuring that prevention strategies are equitable and adapted to the diversity of the Canadian population.
DOI
Kelly Rosialda
Masters Award
"Parental Factors, Immigration Status, and Suicidal Behaviors: A Study of a Quebec Cohort"
DOI
Marjolaine Rivest-Beauregard
Postdoctoral Award
"Understanding the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on mental health services in Ukraine and the recovery of service users: Community mental health service teams."
The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has had severe consequences for the mental health of populations. In addition to human and material losses, this conflict has led to a significant increase in mental health needs, while many healthcare infrastructures have been destroyed or weakened. To respond to this crisis, the World Health Organization (WHO) established Community Mental Health Teams (CMHTs) as early as 2020. These multidisciplinary teams provide care to Ukrainians living with severe mental health disorders. Recently, these services have already shown promising results: more than 90% of regularly followed patients experienced clinical stabilization or improvement.
However, we still know very little about how the war has affected the capacity of these services to deliver care, and about patients’ recovery processes. Indeed, bombings, forced displacement, the loss of loved ones, and the destruction of hospitals may have a major impact on recovery trajectories and on the ability of services to support individuals.
My postdoctoral research project aims to fill this gap. I focus on two main questions: (1) How does exposure to war influence the recovery trajectories of people living with severe mental illness? (2) How have mental health teams adapted to continue providing care in a context of war?
To address these questions, I will use a mixed-methods approach. First, I will analyze existing follow-up data collected from more than 1,400 service users across 14 CMHTs between 2020 and 2024. These data include information on health, quality of life, and social characteristics of participants, linked to the level of military attack exposure in their region.
Second, I will conduct interviews and focus groups with service users and care providers to better understand, through their narratives, the challenges they faced and the solutions they developed during wartime.
The impact of this project will be multiple. Scientifically, it will improve our understanding of how armed conflicts affect mental health and healthcare systems. Practically, the findings will inform the WHO and other humanitarian organizations on how to improve the organization and continuity of mental health services in crisis settings. Socially, I will co-develop digital narratives and other dissemination tools with service users and practitioners so that their experiences are heard and recognized beyond academia.
Overall, this project aims to support people living with severe mental illness in Ukraine and strengthen health systems in the face of humanitarian emergencies. Beyond Ukraine, the findings will provide concrete guidance for improving community-based services, preparing healthcare systems for future crises, and better supporting vulnerable populations, both locally and globally.
DOI
Jana Totzek
Doctoral Award
"From multimodal connectivity in the hippocampus-memory network to functional outcomes: A neurocognitive model of psychosis"
Hallucinations, feelings of being followed, and reduced sociability: all of these symptoms are characteristic of psychosis. This wide range of symptoms makes psychosis one of the most disabling conditions in the world, associated with high unemployment rates and reduced social relationships. In order to improve the quality of life of these patients, it is essential to understand how these symptoms contribute to such daily functional impairment.
One thing we know about psychosis is that memory is often impaired in affected individuals, which may lead to difficulties in social interactions, more severe symptoms, and greater functional disruption. In addition, we also know that there is a part of the brain that is primarily responsible for memory: the hippocampus. Located in the middle of the brain, the structure and function of the hippocampus have been linked to several aspects of memory. However, the hippocampus does not work alone; it interacts with different brain regions to form a memory network.
In the present project, we aim to determine whether the structure and function of the brain’s memory network can lead to memory impairments, followed by reduced social abilities (which depend on memory), worsening symptoms, and overall functional decline. To address this question, we plan to recruit 300 individuals with psychosis and 150 control participants to take part in our study. At three different sites (Montreal, Ottawa, and Vancouver), we will examine their brain structure and function, memory, social abilities, symptoms, and overall functioning, and then assess the relationships between these factors.
To determine whether the development of psychosis truly begins in the brain and subsequently leads to functional deterioration, we will use machine learning to identify potential subgroups of participants and track their evolution over time. This project will help identify the role of the structure and function of the memory network as key contributors to functioning in psychosis. The results of our analyses will contribute to the development of treatments aimed at improving employment rates and social relationships, and ultimately, quality of life.
DOI
Maria Zimmermann
Doctoral Award
"A study of cell-type-specific changes in DNA methylation in major depressive disorder"
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common and disabling psychiatric illness associated with an increased risk of suicide. Previous research has identified a genetic component to MDD, but genetics alone cannot fully explain the risk of developing MDD over the course of a lifetime.
Cells in our body contain a molecule called DNA, which serves as a template for our genetic code. Many chemical modifications can be made to DNA, and these modifications may play a key role in explaining MDD risk. One such modification, DNA methylation, has been shown to be altered in the brains of individuals with MDD. However, it remains unclear which specific brain cell types are involved, limiting our ability to fully understand the underlying pathology or to design effective treatments.
In this project, we will examine DNA methylation changes across different brain cell types in individuals with MDD compared to individuals with good mental health. We will also investigate whether methylation changes in specific genes are associated with the ability of those genes to be expressed (i.e., the first step in protein production) by integrating our data with previously published work.
Overall, by studying these chemical modifications of DNA across different brain cell types, we aim to better understand the molecular features that contribute to MDD risk over the lifespan and to support the development of more targeted treatments.
DOI
Caetana Dudley
Masters Award
"Identification of ACC and NAc projections’ roles in motivational fatigue of EAE mice"
DOI
Geneveave Barbo
Postgraduate Professional Research Fellowship in Health
"Co-creation and evaluation of AI-VR simulations for equitable and inclusive mental health care for young people and young adults"
Canada is experiencing a youth mental health crisis, with rising rates of illness and persistent barriers to timely care. Integrated Youth Services such as Quebec’s Aire ouverte (AO) have become vital hubs for accessible, community-based support, but the nurses who staff them face role ambiguity, shortages, and limited training to manage complex youth needs.
These challenges compromise the quality of care in everyday practice and are magnified during pandemics and health emergencies, when demand increases and the workforce is further strained by illness, reassignment, and urgent responsibilities. Strengthening nurses’ capacity is therefore both an immediate priority and a cornerstone of preparedness for future crises. This project responds by co-designing and evaluating AI-enhanced immersive virtual reality (IVR) training simulations for AO nurses, directly advancing the CRPPHE mandate. In Phase 2, using community-based research approaches (i.e., participatory action research), nurses and youth will participate in workshops to ensure the simulations reflect lived experiences and real-world service challenges. In Phase 3, these simulations will be evaluated through a pilot randomized controlled trial comparing IVR and standard training to assess feasibility, acceptability, and impact on AO nurses’ core competencies. In doing so, the project contributes to health systems research and advances intervention research and implementation science by generating evidence on how simulation-based learning can strengthen frontline preparedness. Moreover, because the immersive simulations will be remotely accessible, they will provide high-fidelity training that supports professional development in ordinary circumstances and can be rapidly deployed during pandemics and health emergencies.
Their accessibility ensures uninterrupted training and expanded service capacity, even under lockdowns or physical distancing mandates, enabling youth mental health care to continue and reach more youth. By targeting AO and equipping nurses with scalable, evidence-based training, this research strengthens systemic resilience in youth mental health services and establishes a transferable model of workforce innovation that enhances Quebec’s and Canada’s readiness for future crises."
DOI
Congratulations to everyone!