Research Community

Dr. Melissa Elgie completed her PhD at the University of Waterloo in Public Health, Epidemiology, and Biostatistics where her research focused on the mental health of children with chronic physical illness and their parents. Now as a postdoctoral research fellow Dr. Elgie has joined the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto and the McCain Centre for Child, Youth & Family Mental Health at CAMH, under the supervision of Dr. Kristin Cleverley. Dr. Elgie has expertise in child and youth mental health research, mental and physical illness comorbidity, and family-centred healthcare. The focus of her postdoctoral research is (1) the post-secondary school experience for youth with mental illness and (2) the psychosocial outcomes for youth transitioning from child and adolescent to adult mental health services. Across her research, Dr. Elgie is driven by a scholarly commitment to contributing clear, actionable insights to support evidence-based youth mental healthcare.

Dr. Jordana McMurray completed her PhD from the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto in 2025. Her research is centered at the intersection of sleep and mental health in youth populations. Her doctoral thesis examined actigraphic and self-reported sleep outcomes and relationships to anxiety and depression symptoms in adolescents and young adults with and without cystic fibrosis. Her postdoctoral fellowship began in 2025 under the supervision of Dean Robyn Stremler (primary supervisor) and Dr. Kristin Cleverly (co-supervisor). Dr. McMurray’s postdoctoral research is focused on conducting a randomized controlled trial using wearable sleep trackers to test an app-based sleep promotion intervention to improve sleep duration and mental health outcomes in adolescents. As she moves forward in her career, she is committed to advancing a research program focused on enhancing sleep, mental health, and well-being for young people.

Dr. Julie Simard completed her PhD in Health Services Research from the Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto where her dissertation focused on better understanding how to optimize hospital-physician relationships. Dr. Simard is a Registered Nurse and holds an MBA, specializing in Health Industry Management, from the Schulich School of Business, York University. She has extensive experience in healthcare and has worked in multiple settings including hospitals and healthcare consulting. Dr. Simard joined Bloomberg Nursing in January of 2026, working under the supervision of Dr. Lisa Cranley, and will be extending her research work on Health Human Resources by exploring the emerging role of personal support workers.