Mind Matters a Panel on Navigating Mental Health and Wellness
Discover pathways to resilience and hope, at a free mental health panel discussion featuring experts from York University and Mackenzie Health. Ask questions of the experts. Learn about valuable community supports while connecting with local organizations offering mental health resources. Light refreshments provided. Registration is not required, but preferred.
- Tuesday, April 22, 2025 | 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
- Vaughan City Hall, 2141 Major Mackenzie Drive
- Vaughan Room, first floor
Please register here: yorku.ca/go/communityhealthlecture2025
Panelists
Jessica (Schroeder) Abrams
Jessica (Schroeder) Abrams, Ph.D., C.Psych., is the Director of the York University Psychology Clinic, an on-campus training clinic that provides services to individuals in the community across the lifespan. She is a registered clinical and school psychologist who received her doctorate from York University. Before her position as Clinic Director, Abrams served as the Chief Psychologist at a school board and she has continually worked directly with clients, providing assessment and intervention services to children, adolescents, and adults.
Tolu Faromika
Tolu Faromika is a clinical psychology MA Student at York University whose research explores spatial memory and the many factors that can impede our ability to navigate around the world. She has worked with different clinical populations and age groups from infants to seniors.
Sarah Payne
Sarah Payne, M.D., is a psychiatrist at Mackenzie Health specializing in geriatric psychiatry. She joined the organization in 2021 after completing her geriatric psychiatry training at McMaster University. Payne holds both an undergraduate degree and a Master of Science from York University. She is committed to providing compassionate, evidence-based care to older adults and supporting the mental health needs of the aging population in western York Region.
Steven Youssoufian
Steven Youssoufian, M.D., is the Chief and Medical Director of the Mental Health Program at Mackenzie Health. He joined the organization as a psychiatrist in 2012 after completing his education and residency at the University of Toronto. Since becoming Chief in 2017, Youssoufian has led the expansion of the program, including opening a state-of-the-art mental health unit at Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital in 2021 and enhancing services provided at Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital. He is dedicated to improving access to high-quality, patient-centred mental health care for residents across western York Region and beyond.
Panelists from left to right: Jessica (Schroeder) Abrams, Toluwanimi Faromika, Sarah Payne and Steven Youssoufian.
Christopher Perry (moderator)
Christopher Petty, Ph.D., is Director of York University’s Muscle Health Research Centre (MHRC), Special Advisor to the Dean of Health on Strategic Research Partnerships and professor in the School of Kinesiology & Health Science. His work, and that of the centre, identifies how broad diseases affect muscle health. These discoveries are used to develop new therapies using exercise, nutrition and pharmacology in order to promote healthy muscles throughout the lifespan.
