Executive Team

Nominations are now open to join the Executive Team!

Please follow this link for more information on how to apply for the following positions:

• Chair (2-year term)
• Chair-Elect (2-year term)
• Finance ENO (2-year term)
• 1 Membership and Education ENO (2-year term)
• Region 8 Rep (1-year term)
• Region 9 Rep (2-year term)
• Region 11 Rep (2-year term)
• Region 12 Rep (1-year term)

The deadline to apply is Friday, August 4th at 2 pm!

Kaitlin Marriner Brulotte began working as a health care aide in long-term care as a junior in high school, realizing her passion in mental health. Graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Laurentian University in 2012, she continued to specialize working with people over 65, experiencing complex chronic physical, psychological and social challenges. She graduated from Yorkville University with a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology in 2018 and started a private psychotherapy practice: KMB Counselling & Psychotherapy, which provides online therapy to people. She holds professional practice licenses with the College of Nurses of Ontario, and the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Integral Transpersonal Psychology. 

Kaitlin is a published author; Stepmom Survival Guide: Simple Secrets to Belonging in a Blended Family (2015) uses family systems theories to help stepparents find belonging in their blended family. Kaitlin volunteers for various organizations including Ottawa Girls Hockey Association; Registered Nurses Association of Ontario; Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association; the Women’s Mental Health Foundation (Royal Ottawa Hospital); and the Canadian Nurses Foundation. She lives in Chelsea, QC with her husband, two stepdaughters and 3 dogs. 

Shauna Graf graduated from Western University in 2013. She has ten years of nursing experience at St. Joseph’s Health Care in London, Ontario including roles in the Veteran’s Care Program, Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatry, and Adult Ambulatory Mental Health Care programs. Shauna has a passion for mental health nursing including providing direct patient care, knowledge translation/staff education, and quality improvement at a leadership level. She served as a co-chair for St. Joseph’s Nursing Council from 2017-2020.

Her current role is Project Lead with the Quality, Strategy, and Innovation Team, with a focus on implementing the Zero Suicide framework of best practices in suicide prevention within St. Joseph’s, the local community, and beyond. Shauna is committed to adapting to the needs of our population, supporting our workforce of skilled mental health nurses, and leading change in mental health care in Ontario.            

Outside of work, Shauna has two major passions. Spending time outdoors- camping, hiking, and taking day trips with her partner and three dogs, and music- attending concerts, playing guitar, and singing.

Joan Denley graduated from the Collaborative Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at Sault College in 2015. During nursing school, she was an active member of many nursing organizations and activities. She served in the role of secretary for her class's BScN Student Chapter. She was a student member of RNAO and attended the AGMs in Toronto. She was also very involved with the Canadian Nursing Student Association (CNSA), serving as an associate delegate representing Sault College at CNSA activities and conferences. In addition, during 2013, she was the director of the planning committee for the CNSA Ontario Regional Conference which was hosted at Sault College. The CNSA Conference Planning Committee, under her leadership, won the Regional Excellence award at the CNSA National Conference that year. Following that success, she was elected to the CNSA Board of Directors for 2014/2015 as the Director of Career and Leadership Development. 

After graduation, she began her nursing career in long-term care, and then transitioned to Sault Area Hospital, working in inpatient Mental Health and Additions in March of 2016. In 2019, it was announced that the hospital would be transitioning to an updated version of our EMR as part of a Regional initiative they have called the "ONE Project '', which stands for Ontario North East Project. The objective of the project is to have a single EMR system that is used by health institutions in the region to support the seamless portability of patient health records, regardless of where a patient may go to seek care. During this transition phase, she volunteered to be trained as a "Super User'' for the system, which allowed me to provide "at the elbow" support to my colleagues and peers during training and after "go live". 

In 2020, she transitioned away from bedside nursing and into the role of MDS Assessment RN. Currently, her scope of work includes: the collection and management of patient data using the RAI MDS-MH tool; submission of the data to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI); and analysis of quarterly comparative reports from CIHI for quality improvement and transformation. In 2021, she successfully obtained CNA Certification in Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing. 

When not at work, Joan enjoys watching movies and anime with her partner Jordan, biking and cross country skijoring with her dogs Tuck and Auggie, cuddling her cats Leon and Lilith, and crocheting with her ball python Lindie. She is an avid gamer, spending time playing Animal Crossing New Horizons, New World and Destiny 2, and joining friends for board game nights on the weekends. She also plays Dungeons and Dragons 5e, and her current group has been playing together, twice a week, for over four years. 

Lisa Crawley has been a nurse for thirty years. Initially drawn to work in HIV/AIDS and predominantly hospice, she developed a passion for mental health and addictions. She holds a Masters Nursing from the University of Victoria and has been a certified Psychiatric and Mental Health Nurse through the CNA for twenty years. Lisa has worked as a nurse manager in a variety of settings including forensics, family practice and most recently on an acute general psychiatric inpatient service. While holding the position of manager, Lisa has concurrently worked in the direct care role in sexual/domestic violence and psychiatric emergency. Her previous board experience includes being the Past-President of the Canadian Federation of Mental Health Nurses (CFMHN), Past-President of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health (CAMIMH) as well as past board member of the Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada in addition to two terms on the MHNIG board 2007-2011. She is currently serving her second term as Secretary, Executive Board for Fife House. Lisa is excited to return to MHNIG as the Ontario Representative to CFMHN and to support the work of the board and members.

Andrew has completed a BScN at McMaster University, an MN at Western University, and is currently completing an MBA at the Royal Military College of Canada. He has spent almost a decade working in a variety of mental health nursing roles including as a frontline RN in Forensic Psychiatry, a clinical nurse educator, and teaching with a variety of post-secondary nursing programs in Ontario. He is currently a Professional Practice Consultant at London Health Sciences Centre focusing on prevention of violence in the workplace; and an after-hours supervisor at Parkwood Institute- Mental Health.

Andrew is passionate about education, policy design, and violence prevention.

I am a registered Nurse working in an acute psychiatric mental health unit at Windsor Regional Hospital. I graduated from the University of Windsor where my passion for psychiatry grew during my clinical placement at Windsor Regional Hospital’s Mental health unit. I am fascinated by all topics related to mental health. I hope to continue my education further and work towards  a masters in Nursing. I am hopeful to make some changes and implement some good where I can. My interest spans the opioid crisis which is currently growing in Greater Essex County. I am also passionate about Public health and decreasing the stigma that continues to cling to Mental Health.

Archna’s career pathway began with her interest in the field of Neurosciences. She completed her BSc in Neurosciences at the University of Western Ontario and worked as a child therapist and research assistant after her graduation. Archna felt drawn to nursing and so she pursued her second degree at Ryerson University. She has been a practicing nurse for the past fifteen years with experience in pediatric nursing and mental health and addictions. Her affiliation with nursing associations, ONA central and local community groups instilled a desire to address human rights, diversity, and equity issues within the nursing profession and the health care delivery system. 

Archna joined the MHNIG executive in 2005 until 2011. She took a brief leave of absence to live in the Himalayan mountains for several months to study and practice the ancient eastern philosophies of yoga and meditation. She was fortunate to study the philosophies attached to yoga with a world-renowned Guru in the Himalayan mountains. She rejoined the MHNIG executive in 2015 to present serving in various roles and is currently one of our Policy and Political Action Executive Network Officer. 

As a nurse, she incorporates her training and studies in trauma-informed care, psychotherapy, meditation, mindfulness, and yoga to those who struggle with movement disorders, pain, anxiety, depression, and PTSD. 

Archna completed her Masters in Nursing at the University of Toronto in 2016 and is currently employed as a Clinical Practice Leader at Humber River Hospital. Archna is motivated by her nursing goals of integrating holistic practices in building, helping, and healing the communities she serves. 

Her passions exist in helping empower others in reaching their full potential, discovering their true nature, and finding their joy in everyday life.

Sophia Coulter-English is a graduate of Nipissing University with a background in inpatient, community and emergency psychiatric care. She is passionate about harm reduction and is extremely fortunate to be part of one of Ontario’s revolutionary Safer Opioid Supply programs.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the disparities faced by marginalized groups in Ontario. Through her role as policy and political action executive officer, Sophia hopes to advocate for better services and supports for these groups.

Ugochi is a fourth-year nursing student at Humber College, Ontario. She has a master’s degree in Environmental Management and has previously worked as an environmental project manager before deciding to study nursing because of a life-long passion to positively impact
people’s lives.

In the past, she has participated in several projects that were geared towards promoting safe biological, social-economic, and political environments for rural communities in Nigeria. She hopes that the nursing profession will provide her with more opportunities to make a real difference in the lives of others through direct care, knowledge sharing, and advocacy. Her interest in mental health was sparked during her clinical placement at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. She hopes to gain more knowledge, skills, and resources to help
her better advocate for mental health issues in Canada, as well as her home country, Nigeria.

Hoodo Abdi Ibrahim obtained her Ontario high school diploma from St. Charles adult school. She received a personal support worker (PSW) certificate and registered practical nursing (RPN) diploma from Mohawk College. She obtained a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BScN) from McMaster University and a Master of Science in Nursing with a Family Nurse Practitioner degree from D’Youville College in Buffalo New York. Hoodo is a Board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner with the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). She is a Certified Psychiatric and Mental Health Nurse through the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA). Hoodo holds Addiction Medicine certification from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)/the University of Toronto.

Hoodo currently holds a full-time nurse practitioner position at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton in the Schizophrenia Outpatient clinic and RN in the Acquired Brain Injury Program at Hamilton Health Sciences. Hoodo’s Past experiences include: Partial Load Clinical Faculty in the Department of Nursing at Mohawk College of Applied Art and Technology; NP positions in RAAM clinics at the Peel-Dufferin Canadian Mental Health Association and Good Shepherd Homes/ Shelter Health Network. Hoodo previously held RNAO- Mental Health Nursing Interest Group (MHNIG) policy and political action chief officer, and Nurse Practitioner Interest Group (NPIG) communication/media ENO. Currently, Hoodo is the chair of the RNAO-MHNIG; a member of the RNAO-NP Task Force; St. Joseph’s Nursing Advisory Council; the Advanced Practice Nursing Council and St. Joseph’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Council.    

Hoodo dedicated much of her nursing career supporting and advocating for marginalized populations including individuals with mental illness and addiction. She is passionate about promoting evidence-driven knowledge transition, individual capacity building, social justice, and stigma-free healthcare services for all.