Research Committee
The Mental Health Partners Research Committee (Research Committee) was established to support and advance research, innovation and care across MHP organizations and position MHP as research experts to support the Government of Ontario, Ontario Health (OH) and OH’s Mental Health and Addictions Centre of Excellence in building a comprehensive mental health and substance use system of care for people across the province.
The Research Committee aims to collaborate, share resources, expertise and information amongst the MHP sites to advance mental health and addictions research.
Research Committee Members
Dr. Bernard Le Foll, Vice President, Research and Academics/Chief Scientific Officer, Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care; Chair, MHP Research Committee
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Dr. Aristotle Voineskos, Vice President, Research; Director, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, CAMH
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Dr. Valerie Primeau, Medical Director, Psychiatry, North Bay Regional Health Centre
Dr. Phil Klassen, Vice President, Medical Affairs and Research, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences
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Dr. Roumen Milev, Vice President, Medical and Academic Affairs; Chair, Medical Advisory, Providence Care
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Andrea Docherty, Vice President, Clinical and Community Health, St. Joseph’s Care Group
Dr. Lisa Porter, Vice President, Research and Scientific Director, St. Joseph’s Health Care London
Dr. Randi McCabe, Interim Vice President, Mental Health and Addictions, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton
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Dr. Florence Dzierszinski, Vice President, Research, The Royal; President, Institute of Mental Health Research (University of Ottawa)
Our Work – Research Updates
Suicide reduction was identified as an initial research priority at MHP’s inaugural Research Retreat on May 31, 2024. The initiative is led by Dr. Bernard Le Foll (Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care) and Dr. Maiko Schneider (St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton), with oversight from the MHP Research Committee. The goal is to advance research, innovation, and care across MHP organizations and support system-wide improvements in suicide reduction.
Key Gaps Identified
The following were identified as critical gaps in care:
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Variance in screening processes leading to inconsistent identification of suicide risk.
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No centralized registry to track suicidal behaviours, attempts, and incidents.
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Limited data collection and reporting, restricting cross-hospital learning and best practice sharing.
The Suicide Reduction Working Group
In July 2024, MHP convened a Suicide Reduction Working Group to activate a system-wide plan. Its priorities include:
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Shared data infrastructure to enable large-scale research and rapid knowledge exchange.
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Collaborative best practice development across hospitals and communities.
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Privacy-compliant innovation to balance data sharing with patient safety.
Root Cause Analysis (RCA) Approach
The Working Group recommended adopting an RCA model to strengthen suicide reduction efforts:
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Standardizing System Reviews across all MHP organizations.
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Improving patient care through evidence-informed, data-driven interventions.
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Analyzing inpatient deaths and near misses to identify systemic issues and actionable solutions to mitigate suicide risk.
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Utilizing retrospective data from MHP hospitals to also focus on process improvement for System Reviews.
Community-Hospital Co-Leadership
A defining feature of this initiative is the Persons with Lived/Living Experience Co-Leadership Group. By integrating community voices alongside hospital expertise, MHP ensures strategies are grounded in compassion, relevance, and real-world impact.
Next Steps
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Define timeframes for analysis, leveraging past RCAs.
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Cluster findings around common themes to drive system-wide learning.
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Standardize processes to improve consistency and care quality across all partner sites.
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