About the Hosts
Dr. Mary Simmering Mcdonald, C.Psych is a registered Clinical Child Psychologist who completed her Ph.D. in Child Clinical Psychology at the University of Windsor in 2012. She has worked in many settings including children’s mental health centres (e.g., Windsor Regional Children’s Centre, Children First, The Teen Health Centre), university clinics (e.g., University of Windsor Student Counselling Centre), a sexual assault crisis centre, schools (e.g., a preschool for children who are autistic, local high schools), and pediatric hospitals. She completed a pre-doctoral residency at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) in Ottawa. She has co-authored publications in the areas of computer-mediated communication (e.g., Facebook), online partner aggression, adaptive and maladaptive coping, and help-seeking behaviours. She currently works in private practice at Centrepointe Professional Services in Ottawa. She is particularly interested in helping children and teens develop adaptive coping skills and healthy relationships.
Dr. Laila Din Osmun, C.Psych. is a registered Clinical Child Psychologist who completed a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Clinical Developmental Psychology at York University (Toronto, Ontario) in 2012. She has co-authored several publications in the areas of pediatric pain, parent-child relationships (e.g. caregiver emotional availability) and infant emotion regulation. She has experience working in a variety of settings including children’s mental health centres (e.g. Thistletown Regional Centre, Reach Out Centre for Kids and Mothercraft - Breaking the Cycle), university clinics (e.g. York University Psychology Clinic) and children’s hospitals (e.g. Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital) in Toronto, Ontario. In addition, she completed a pre-doctoral internship in Clinical Child Psychology at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) in Ottawa, Ontario. She currently works in private practice at Centrepointe Professional Services in Ottawa. She is passionate about parent-child mental health and working with children, teens and families.
Dr. Jennifer Vriend, C.Psych. is a registered Clinical Child Psychologist who completed a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Clinical Psychology at Dalhousie University (Halifax, Nova Scotia) in 2012. She completed her pre-doctoral internship in Clinical Child Psychology at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) in Ottawa, Ontario. Dr. Jenn co-authored several publications in areas including Sleep, ADHD, Autism, Perfectionism, and Body Image. She has worked in various hospitals, including CHEO (Ottawa), Hotel Dieu Hospital (Kingston), the IWK Health Centre (Halifax), and Bradley Hospital (Providence, Rhode Island). Dr. Jenn works in private practice in Ottawa, and she is a co-owner of Queensview Professional Services. She is passionate about working with children and youth. She enjoys working with the media as well as giving community presentations on various topics, including anxiety, sleep, resilience, and parenting strategies.
They were honoured to have their podcast profiled by the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) during Psychology Month: https://cpa.ca/psychology-month-profile-dr-jenn-dr-laila-dr-mary-and-the-coping-toolbox-podcast/