Scientific Advisory Committee on Mental Health Disorders: Overview

Dr. Jess Fiedorowicz is Head of Mental Health at The Ottawa Hospital and Professor and Tier 1 Clinical Research Chair at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Medicine. He holds a BA in psychology from Marquette University and an MD with honors in research from the Medical College of Wisconsin. After completing a medicine internship, he completed residency in psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital and then a fellowship in clinical neurobiology at the University of Iowa. Here he obtained an MSc in clinical investigation, a PhD in translational biomedicine and a graduate certificate in biostatistics. Dr. Fiedorowicz is board-certified in psychiatry and obesity medicine. His research focuses on morbidity and mortality in mood disorders, and he has authored more than 190 peer-reviewed publications. He has served on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Psychopharmacologic Advisory Committee since 2016 and was Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Psychosomatic Research from 2014 to 2018.

Dr. Omar Ghaffar practices consultation-liaison psychiatry and geriatric psychiatry at Sinai Health in Toronto, where he is Physician Lead of Mental Health at Hennick Bridgepoint Hospital. He is also Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. Dr. Ghaffar holds accreditation in psychiatry and geriatric psychiatry from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and in behavioral neurology and neuropsychiatry from the United Council of Neurologic Subspecialities.

Previously, he served as Staff Psychiatrist in the neuropsychiatry program and traumatic brain injury clinic at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, from 2010 to 2014, and as Medical Head of Neuropsychiatry Services at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, from 2010 to 2018.

Dr. Ghaffar holds a BSc and MSc from McGill University and an MD from the University of Toronto, where he also completed his psychiatry residency and neuropsychiatry fellowship. He is a member of the Council of the American Neuropsychiatric Association, Associate Editor of the Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences and serves on the Examination Committee for Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry for the United Council of Neurologic Subspecialties.

His research includes peer-reviewed articles in the neuropsychiatric aspect of multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, functional neurological disorder, and allergic diseases/clinical immunology. He is a Fellow of the American Neuropsychiatric Association and recipient of its career development and young investigator awards. He also received a CIHR fellowship and Michael Bisby Award.

Dr. Abraham (Rami) Rudnick, MD, PhD, FRCPC, CCPE, MCIL, DFCPA, mMBA, is a psychiatrist and a philosopher/ethicist. He is Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Bioethics in the Faculty of Medicine and in the School of Occupational Therapy in the Faculty of Health at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. Dr. Rudnick serves as Clinical Director of the Nova Scotia Operational Stress Injury Clinic at the Nova Scotia Health Authority and a Canadian Certified Physician Executive.

He is Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Journal of Physician Leadership and has chaired various health policy committees across Canada, including serving as inaugural Chair of Research Canada’s Task Force on Racial and Indigenous Justice in Health Research and Related Innovation. Dr. Rudnick has received Canadian and international awards for health research and leadership. His research and leadership prioritize person-centered, evidence-informed and socially responsible and responsive mental and other health services.

Dr. Amina Othmani, is a fourth-year resident in psychiatry at Laval University since July 2022. She also completed her medical training at Laval University. Since the beginning of her residency, she has been supporting her fellow residents as a sentinel resident. In addition, she has held teaching positions in various training workshops for medical students at Laval University. Previously, she worked as a community pharmacist starting in 2016, which she continued during her medical studies until 2022. Amina Othmani holds a doctorate in medicine and a doctorate in pharmacy from Laval University, as well as a bachelor's degree in medical biology from the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières. She currently holds a residency card from the Collège des médecins du Québec and was registered with the Ordre des pharmaciens du Québec from 2016 to 2022. Finally, she is a member of the member-in-training subcommittee of the Canadian Psychiatric Association.

Dr. Jacques Bradwejn is a full clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine at the University of Montreal and professor emeritus of medicine at the University of Ottawa. He is internationally recognized for his research on the biological and psychological causes and treatments of anxiety and mood disorders. He has served as Chief of Psychiatric Services at the Royal Ottawa Hospital and the Ottawa Hospital, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, and Founding Co-Dean of the Ottawa-Shanghai Joint School of Medicine at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. He has also served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada. He holds a Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Sherbrooke, a diploma in psychiatry from McGill University, and a fellowship in neuropsychopharmacology research from the University of Montreal.

Dr. Gail Beck, O. Ont., MD, CM, FRCPC, is Clinical Director of Youth Mental Health at The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre in Ottawa. She completed her medical degree and psychiatry residency at McGill University. Her career has focused on championing the health needs of children and youth.

Dr. Beck is a Past President of the Academy of Medicine Ottawa and of the Federation of Medical Women of Canada and a former Chair of the Board of the Ontario Medical Association. She has represented Canada and the Medical Women’s International Association at the World Health Assembly, the annual meeting of the World Health Organization, and the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.

She is an internationally known speaker and writer. Her contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012, and the King Charles III Coronation Medal in 2024 for her work with children and youth. In 2011, Dr. Beck was named to the Order of Ontario, the province’s highest honor.

Dr. Rose Geist is a senior staff member in the Department of Psychiatry at SickKids Hospital and an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. She has extensive local and provincial experience in developing new models of mental health care for youth with both medical and psychiatric comorbidities. She has held administrative and clinical leadership positions in adult and child psychiatry, at academic and community centers. She was the inaugural director of the pediatric medical psychiatry program (University of Toronto) and a founding director of the Medical Psychiatry Alliance (public private partnership). She has consulted extensively on models of collaborative care and has been a longstanding member of the Provincial Consent and Capacity Board. Dr. Geist is a member of the Canadian Psychiatric Association, the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent psychiatry, and the American College of Psychiatrists.

Dr. Matthew Haaland is a Clinical Leader and Psychiatrist with the Canadian Armed Forces in Ottawa, where he leads outpatient mental health services for military personnel. He earned his MD from Queen’s University and completed his psychiatry residency and fellowship in 2SLGBTQ mental health and addictions at the University of Toronto. A Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada, Dr. Haaland has held diverse clinical roles across urban and rural settings, including work with underserved and remote communities. His clinical practice includes trauma care, concurrent disorders, occupational assessment, and gender-affirming treatment. He has extensive experience in clinical leadership and interdisciplinary collaboration and is currently focused on enhancing the delivery and accessibility of mental health care in the military occupational setting. His work continues to prioritize improving outcomes for marginalized populations.

Dr. Dennis Wardman is an Indigenous person of Saulteaux/Cree descent and a member of the Key First Nation in Saskatchewan. He completed Medical School at the University of Alberta and specialized in Community Medicine at the University of Calgary, with a Special Interest in Addiction Medicine. Dr. Wardman is a Fellow in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and is Board Certified in Addiction Medicine. He has numerous publications in peer-reviewed journals, namely in the area of Indigenous addictions. He has served on several health-related Boards and Committees, including the Board of Directors for the Fraser Health Authority and the Aboriginal Healing Foundation (an Indian Resident School Organization), the Prescription Review Panel for the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC, and the National Native Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program Expert Panel for Modernization of the file.

Dr. Wardman presently works at Addiction Medicine clinics and Residential Addiction Treatment Centres in the Fraser Health region of BC and Regina, SK.

After training and working in Germany and the United States, he joined the Department of Psychiatry of the Cumming School of Medicine of the University of Calgary in 2007. HI currently provides outpatient services through the Early Psychosis Intervention Program at Foothills Medical Centre and Pathways to Housing through the Alex Community Health Centre. He currently serves as Medical Director of the Mental Health Clinical Trials Unit (MHCTU) and CPD-Director for the Department of Psychiatry of the Cumming School of Medicine. On January 1, 2020, he was appointed as Site-chief of the Department of Psychiatry at Foothills Medical Centre. Since January 1, 2022, he has been serving as Associate Dean CME&PD for the Cumming School of Medicine of the University of Calgary. He is a former President of the Alberta Psychiatric Association and a past President of the Board of the Schizophrenia Society of Alberta.

Timothy Moran, PhD, MD, FRCPC is a staff physician at The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre, Ottawa, ON, Canada. He divides his clinical time between the Community Mental Health Program and the Substance Use and Concurrent Disorders Program.

He is an Indigenous person (Métis) and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa. He obtained his PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Alberta in 2003 and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at SickKids Hospital in Toronto and at Dalhousie University in Halifax. This was followed by an MD from the University of Ottawa in 2011 where he was enrolled in the Indigenous Program. He completed Psychiatry residency training at the University of Ottawa in 2016. His clinical and research interests include addiction psychiatry, neuropsychiatry/neuroscience and psychotherapy.

He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and a member of the Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine, The Canadian Academy for Addiction Psychiatry, The American Society of Addiction Medicine and the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.

He gives back to his community and currently serves as a Board of Director for Ottawa Salus which provides adults with mental health and substance use health challenges, as well as behavioral addictions, to live independently by improving access to housing and a community of integrated support services.