Neuropsychology & Cognitive Health

The Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health program provides clinical services, education and training and clinical research related to the assessment and treatment of memory and other cognitive abilities in older adults. The mission of our program is to provide excellence and leadership in clinical neuropsychological services.

Clinical Services

• Clinical Services:
  The program provides neuropsychological assessment, intervention, and consultation across Baycrest programs and to external organizations.
   

  • Neuropsychological Evaluation Services contribute to the diagnosis of cognitive disorders and treatment planning.

  • Neuropsychological intervention is offered to clients with mild to severe cognitive changes.

    • The Mira and Saul Koschitsky Neuropsychology Treatment Programs provide training and support for clients with memory concerns and their families. These include the following programs:

      • The Memory and Aging Program serves older adults with age-normal memory changes.

      • Learning the Ropes for Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) serves clients with MCI and their family members.

      • Memory-Link targets clients with moderate to severe memory impairment and their family members.

    • Goal Management Training is a cognitive rehabilitation program designed to help individuals with impairments in executive functioning improve their ability to plan and achieve goals.

  • External neuropsychological consultation services are provided to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences.

  • Behavioural consultation helps Baycrest teams manage responsive behaviours in patients with cognitive disorders

Education and training

Clinical research

Ruth Brickman

MSW, RSW

Ruth is a social worker in the Memory-Link program, an internship supervisor of the Memory Intervention rotation, and a practicum supervisor. She practices within an inter-professional team to provide psychosocial support to Memory-Link program clients and their families. This includes individual counselling, facilitation of psychoeducational support groups, and assistance for clients in accessing a variety of resources in their communities.

Keera Fishman

PHD, CPSYCH

Keera provides neuropsychological assessment services to ambulatory clinics, facilitates the Memory and Aging Program, and is an internship supervisor at Baycrest. She provides consultation services to the geriatrics units at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences. In addition, she is completing a postdoctoral fellowship as the Neuropsychology Lead at the Ontario Neurodegenerative Disease Research Initiative. Her primary research interests involve exploring the impact of neuropsychiatric symptoms on memory and executive function, as well as further understanding how neurodegenerative diseases evolve over time.

Yael Goldberg

PhD, CPsych

Yael is a psychologist in Austin Centre Virtual Behavioural Medicine program, the director of training for our Pre-doctoral Internship in Clinical Neuropsychology, internship supervisor of the Behaviour Management and Psychotherapy rotation, and a practicum supervisor.  Her primary clinical and research interests focus on behavioural and emotional disturbances associated with CNS dysfunction, and evaluating the effectiveness of intervention strategies aimed at reducing behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia. Her other interests include evidence-based assessment of responsive behaviour, and family caregiver support.

Morris Moscovitch

PhD, CPsych

Morris is a consulting psychologist in Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health, a senior scientist at the Rotman Research Institute, and professor at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on cognition and memory with a particular emphasis on the neural mechanisms mediating explicit and implicit memory, face recognition, and attention across the lifespan in healthy people and in people with neurological disorders.

Kelly Murphy

PhD, CPsych

Kelly is a psychologist in the Learning the Ropes for Living with MCI® program, internship supervisor of Memory Intervention rotation, a practicum supervisor, assistant professor at the University of Toronto, adjunct faculty member at York University, and adjunct assistant professor at Queen’s University. Her primary clinical and research interests focus on cognitive changes and memory intervention in mild cognitive impairment. As co-creater of ArtontheBrain™, Kelly is engaged in research examining the intersection between arts and health for promoting well being and brain health in older adults.

Ruby Nishioka

Admin Assistant

Ruby is the administrative assistant for Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health. Her key roles include assisting with all aspects of administrative management and logistics, scheduling and registering client appointments, managing inventory of tests and supplies, managing psychology health records, and managing day-to-day operation matters.

Farena Pinnock

PHD, CPSYCH

Farena’s clinical and research interests focus on psychological and neuropsychological assessment and intervention with older adults, individuals with severe psychiatric illness, and acquired brain injury, as well as program development.

Jill Rich

PhD, CPsych

Jill is a visiting researcher with Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health and an associate professor of psychology at York University. Her research interests focus primarily on normal and abnormal memory and cognition (e.g., associative memory, semantic memory, implicit memory, prospective memory), particularly in older adults. She and her students are currently examining factors that impact cognition in neurodegenerative disorders.

Gillian Rowe

PhD, CPsych

Gillian is a psychologist in the Memory-Link program and Learning the Ropes for Living with MCI® program, a course instructor at the University of Toronto, and a psychologist at West Park Healthcare Centre. Her clinical work focuses on the assessment and treatment of cognitive changes related to mild cognitive impairment and acquired brain injury. Gillian’s research interests include cognitive changes with aging.

Komal Shaikh

PHD, CPSYCH

Komal is a psychologist in the Goal Management Training® Program and Mental Health Programs, an internship supervisor for the Mental Health rotation, and a practicum supervisor. Her clinical interests include psychological and neuropsychological assessment and intervention with older adults, individuals with severe psychiatric illness, and acquired brain injury. Research interests include everyday impact of cognitive changes in older adults.

Prathiba Shammi

PhD, CPsych

Prathiba is a consulting psychologist in the Brain Sciences Program at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, and a practicum supervisor. Her role includes clinical neuropsychological diagnostic assessment and consultation, teaching, and clinical supervision. Prathiba’s clinical and research interests include multiple sclerosis and cognition in normal aging.

Kathryn Stokes

PhD, CPsych

Kathryn is a psychologist in the Sam and Ida Ross Memory Clinic, an internship supervisor of the Neuropsychological Assessment rotation, and a practicum supervisor. She runs outpatient clinical neuropsychology services and is involved in student training. Kathryn’s primary research interests are validation of tools for early detection of cognitive impairment and neuropsychological profiles within neurodegenerative disorders such as posterior cortical atrophy syndromes.

Angela Troyer

PhD, CPsych

Angie is the program director of Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health, professional practice chief of psychology, speech-language pathology, and dietetics, manager of hospital dietitians, research supervisor, assistant professor at the University of Toronto, and an adjunct faculty member at York University. Her primary clinical interest is neuropsychological evaluation of MCI and dementia, and memory intervention in normal aging and MCI. Angie’s research interests focus on memory changes across the spectrum of aging, test development, and effectiveness of memory interventions in aging.

Susan Vandermorris

PhD, CPsych

Susan is a psychologist in the Memory and Aging Program® and the Neuropsychological Evaluation services. She supervises clinical trainees at Baycrest, and serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Psychology Department at York University. In clinical, teaching, and research roles, she works to assess, educate, and empower individuals and families facing changes in memory and thinking skills.

Brandon Vasquez

PHD, CPSYCH

Brandon is a psychologist in the Memory Link program, an internship supervisor for the Memory Intervention rotation, a practicum supervisor, and assistant professor at the University of Toronto. His clinical interests include neuropsychological assessment of acquired brain injury and cognitive rehabilitation. Brandon’s research interests focus on implicit learning in amnesia, the integration of technology into assessment and intervention of cognitive dysfunction, as well as intraindividual variability in response time.