Research Members

Annette Schumann, PhD, MSc, Research Coordinator

Annette Schumann is a research coordinator with the Sam Katz Community Health & Aging Research Unit. She obtained a PhD in medical science and worked for over seven years in healthcare focusing on gerontological research. With her background as a Speech-Language-Pathologist with a German Master's Degree in Special Education, she developed a strong interest to improve communication difficulties in vulnerable populations. She has previously worked in auditory rehabilitation, where she provided listening and communication training, and developed and evaluated listening training interventions for older adults. She is committed to use her research and clinical experience and skills to help optimize high-quality care and improve quality of life for people living with dementia. 

Denise Bedard, PhD Student

With 45 years of experience in the Long-term Care sector, Denise has always strived to enhance the quality of life for seniors. Denise has a deep understanding of geriatric care dynamics, LTC policies, and Regulations and has been involved in various initiatives and projects to improve the quality of care and services for residents and their families. She is passionate about meeting residents' unique needs and challenges and providing them with tailored and compassionate care that respects their dignity, preferences, and autonomy. She strongly believes every senior deserves to live a fulfilling and meaningful life, regardless of physical or cognitive limitations. Denise is also committed to advancing her knowledge and skills in the field of aging and is doing her Ph.D. program at the University of Western Ontario, focusing on resident-centered care and biopsychosocial factors impacting quality of life and care for residents in Ontario. Her research interests include innovative models of care, digital technologies, and best practices in LTC and one of the reasons for joining the CARE Lab because it is so progressive and so needed today in long term care today and towards the future. Denise is a visionary leader passionate about the culture change movement and transforming long-term care homes from traditionalized to more homelike environments.  

George Philip, PhD Student

George Philip is a PhD student in the Health and Rehabilitation Sciences program at Western University. He obtained his MSc in Translational Medicine from Queen’s University and his BSc with Honours in Medical Sciences from Brock University. His prior experiences of volunteering at Sunnybrook Veterans Centre and The Alzheimer Society have led him to pursue dementia-related research. Specifically, George’s research aims to understand dementia-related stigma among racialized persons living with dementia, their care partners, and community. Recognizing the expression of stigmatizing behaviour and language can provide insight into effective education, training, and knowledge translation efforts. George aspires to have his research findings contribute to the improvement of dementia care, diagnosis, and treatment, particularly among racialized communities. 

Sierra Jacqueline Crocker, Master's Student

Sierra J. Crocker is an MSc student in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Western University in the Health & Rehabilitation Sciences Program. Sierra completed her Honours BA degree in 2022 with a major in psychology and a minor in criminology. Since graduating in 2022 from King’s University College, Sierra has been working with multiple research teams to examine moral injury. Sierra is very passionate about caregiver health, mental health, and wellbeing and will focus her master’s thesis on this subject.

Grace Moniz Malheiro, Undergraduate Research Assistant

Grace Malheiro is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Health Sciences with an Honours Specialization in Biology at Western University. Her interest in dementia care began through personal family experiences and volunteering at Parkwood Institute in the Veterans Dementia Care Program. Her current research interest focuses on virtual reality as a training tool for health care providers. She hopes to gain a better understanding of person-centered communication between people living with dementia and their caregivers. 

Julie Vo, Undergraduate Research Assistant

Julie Vo is a third year Honours Specialization in Computer Science. Julie has always had an interest in the application of Computer Science and how it can help people, especially in the healthcare field. Hearing firsthand experiences from her sister, who is a nursing student, has provided her with valuable insights into the vital role of healthcare professionals. What stood out to Julie about CARE Lab was not just the way their Be EPIC-VR program aids healthcare professionals in learning skills necessary to provide quality care, but also how their training enables participant to directly apply those skills in realistic scenarios in VR. Julie is eager to learn more about person-centred communication and apply her technical skills to assist in solving their solution to optimize their qualitative data analysis. 

Vishnu Sripathi, Undergraduate Research Assistant

Vishnu Sripathi is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing an Honours Bachelor of Medical Sciences at Western University. His interest in dementia care began as a volunteer at the Freedom Psychiatry Clinic in Wilson, North Carolina where his interactions with family members of persons living with dementia inspired him to learn more about the field of long-term care. His current research interest focuses on the commercialization and spread of virtual reality training tools for personal support workers. Through this, Vishnu aspires to learn more about challenges in long-term care and help improve the quality of life for older adults and their caregivers.

Noura Awad, Undergraduate Research Assistant

Noura Awad is a third-year medical science student pursuing an Honours Bachelor of Medical Science at Western University. Her interest in dementia care began after witnessing firsthand how Alzheimer’s affected her great-grandmother and the impact it had on her daughters, who took on the responsibility of caregiving. Without proper training, they struggled to understand her needs, and over time, Noura saw how emotionally and physically exhausting the experience became for them. Seeing these challenges sparked her interest in finding ways to better support family caregivers, which is what drew her to the CARElab. She hopes to contribute to improving resources and strategies that make dementia care more manageable for families. 

Everett Janes, Undergraduate Research Assistant

Everett Janes is a second-year undergraduate student in the Medical Sciences program at Western University. Everett's interest in dementia care stemmed from his grandfather who had vascular dementia. Everett currently volunteers at McCormick Care group where he interacts with persons living with dementia at a day program and assists with various events and activities they run. He is interested in the research being performed at the CareLab as it addresses interactions between persons living with dementia and their caregivers, and how this can be improved through Be EPIC.

Nicole Elizabeth Kakozhayil, Undergraduate Research Assistant

Nicole Elizabeth Kakozhayil is a fifth-year undergraduate student pursuing an Honours Bachelor of Health Sciences at Western University. Her interest in dementia care commenced once she decided to intertwine her education centred on gerontology with her family history. Nicole is currently completing her placement at McCormick Care Group, which has primarily motivated her passion to be the change she wants to see in the provision of dementia care practices. Her current research interest focuses on embedding cultural humility in person-centred care approaches. She intends on using her connections to immerse herself into a dialogue concentrated on how to emphasize intersectionality in home care, long-term care, and day program settings.