OCFR - Key Persons
Aurela is a Registered Social Worker (RSW) with an interest and experience in providing trauma therapy to adults 18 years and older. Aurela acknowledges that "trauma is a fact of life but it doesn't have to be a life sentence" and with appropriate guidance and support, people can heal and transform their lives.
Carley Marshall is a PhD candidate in the School/Applied Child Psychology program at McGill University and is completing her predoctoral internship in clinical psychology at OCFR, under the supervision of Dr. Catherine Horvath. She has worked with children, adolescents, and families in hospital, school, university, and youth protection settings to support individuals with a range of psychological and social needs. She has experience providing psycho-educational and psychological assessments as well as individual therapy. Her research and clinical training experiences have focused on complex trauma, trauma-informed care, and attachment. Carley uses an integrative and systemic approach to meet the needs of her clients, drawing from psychodynamic, attachment, cognitive-behavioural, and solution-focused interventions. She highly values the importance of a strong therapeutic alliance and is committed to offering a warm, non-judgemental space for clients to share their experiences and work through problems collaboratively.
Carol is a registered social worker who provides counselling services to children and youth. She practices from an eclectic approach that pulls from various evidence-based theoretical models. She has worked with children and youth who have experienced trauma and/or have struggled with depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicidality, grief and bereavement, or who have gone through significant life changes. Carol is particularly interested in working with children and youth with concerning sexual behaviour to prevent future victimization, divert criminogenic behaviour, increase prosocial aspects of life, and support parents' or caregivers' well-being.
Carol holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Calgary. She is a member in good standing with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Services Workers (OCSWSSW) and the Ontario Association of Social Workers (OASW). She has over ten years of social work experience in various clinical positions at local hospitals, including CHEO. Carol has worked as a research assistant for the Royal Ottawa and CHEO. Furthermore, she teaches future social workers in the School of Social Work at Carleton University. In addition to her work at OCFR, Carol continues to work at CHEO and Carleton.
ADDITIONAL TRAINING: Play Therapy, Emotionally Focused Family Therapy (EFFT), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT), and EMDR (Basic Training).
Courtney is the office manager and most likely the first face you will see when you walk into the centre. With over a decade of customer service and administrative experience she strives to make the business of care as pleasant and efficient as possible.
Please contact Courtney by phone at 613-714-0662 or email at admin@ocfr.ca to arrange an initial appointment or to schedule follow-up sessions. Courtney's office hours are Monday to Friday 8:30 am - 4:30 pm.
Dr. Brad Daly is a registered psychologist in supervised practice with the College of Psychologists of Ontario. Brad obtained his doctoral degree from Western University and is supervised by Dr. Horvath. Before joining OCFR, he trained and worked in school, community mental health, day treatment, intensive inpatient, and private practice settings.
Brad provides treatment to children, adolescents, and families managing various challenges, including emotional and behavioural regulation problems, anxiety and depressive disorders, suicidal ideation and self-harm, problematic substance use, and self-esteem issues. Brad has experience supporting clients with neurodevelopmental disabilities (e.g., Attention-Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, Learning Disabilities), developmental trauma, and concurrent mental health challenges.
Brad takes a relationship-driven, trauma-informed, and strengths-based approach to his work. Mainly, Brad draws from dialectical behaviour therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy, applied behaviour analysis, solution-focused therapy, and collaborative problem solving.
Dr. Catherine Horvath is a registered psychologist with competencies in clinical work with children, adolescents, and families, as well as forensic work with adolescents.
Dr. Horvath has experience in working with those struggling with disruptive behaviours, self-regulation, attachment, and sexual behaviour issues related to histories of adverse childhood experiences, complex developmental trauma, adoption related issues, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and involvement with the child welfare and/or criminal justice systems.
Dr. Horvath has a particular interest in offering parenting interventions and family therapy whenever possible because parents are the most influential people in their children's lives, and children and adolescents have a better chance of improvement if the whole family is supported.
ADDITIONAL TRAINING: Somatic Experiencing Practitioner TM (SEP), Circle of Security (COS-P), Attachment, Regulation, Competency framework (ARC) for complex trauma, Sensory Motor Arousal Regulation Treatment (SMART), Adoption and Permanency Curriculum for Child Welfare and Mental Health Professionals (ACT certified therapist), Dialectal Behavior Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), 3-5-7 Model TM, EMDR (Basic Training), EMDR Child and Youth Specialist (Level 1), Emotionally Focused Family Therapy (EFFT, Level 2), Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP)
Dr. Jennifer Hopton is a registered psychologist with competencies in clinical work with children, adolescents, and adults. At OCFR, Dr. Hopton provides clinical supervision, consultation, and NMT assessments.
Dr. Hopton's clinical and research experience includes assessment and treatment of individuals across the lifespan as they struggle with the legacy of adverse childhood experiences, complex developmental trauma, dissociation, and difficulties related to adoption and involvement with the child welfare system. Dr. Hopton also has experience working with traumatic stress responses to experiences such as motor vehicle injury and operational stress.
Erica Chu is a Psychological Associate working with adults.
Erica has experience working with individuals struggling with identity and sense of self, internal conflicts, anxiety, depression, self-regulation difficulties, attachment issues and relationship problems, emotion dysregulation, obsessive and compulsive behaviours, and complex developmental trauma.
She utilizes an integrative evidence-based and strengths-focused approach to tailor treatment within a safe, non-judgmental, and compassionate space. She aims to support clients to heal and grow beyond painful experiences, develop secure and respectful relationships with themselves and others, identify and change behaviours that hold them back from achieving goals and a life worth living. Her main modality blends Emotion-Focused Therapy to explore and process painful experiences and Dialectical-Behaviour Therapy to develop unique strategies to cultivate a way of living consistent with her clients' values. This may include skills training through in-session and between-session exercises.
ADDITIONAL TRAINING: Emotion Focused Therapy for Complex Trauma (EFTT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP)
Jessica is a University of Ottawa graduate in Commerce (Marketing) and previously owned and operated a childcare facility. This background provides Jessica with in-depth understanding of children and child development, which she uses to create a secure, comfortable environment for centre clients.
Jessica wears many hats at OCFR. As a psychometrist she assists psychologists with their assessments and administer standardized tests to clients. As our Clinical Coordinator, Jessica manages our waitlist and coordinates all our assessment activities. Jessica is also a trained Safe and Sound Protocol provider and administers SSP to clients under the supervision of OCFR clinicians as a part of our Well-being & Resilience Clinic.
Mara is a registered social worker with experience working with clients from a variety of backgrounds (minority and at-risk children, youth, and families) and settings (child-welfare, residential treatment, substance abuse treatment, youth criminal justice, and international adoption).
Mara has a passion for supporting youth and families working on issues such as attachment, trans-racial adoption, identity formation, family trauma, and trauma processing.
Mara has a special interest in supporting youth involved with adoption, as well as adoptive parents pre, inter, and post-adoption. Mara has a demonstrated commitment to supporting adoptees as they develop their cultural identities and sense of self, process their feelings and reactions associated with trauma, and their unique adoption stories.
Additional training: Applied Suicide Skills Intervention Training (ASIST), Collaborative Problem Solving™ (CPS, Tier 1), Circle of Security (COS-P), EMDR (Basic Training).
Mara is currently on parental leave.
Matt is a clinician who has been part of the clinical team at OCFR since 2021, first as a clinical and forensic psychology PhD intern and currently working as a therapist under the supervision of Dr. Horvath while awaiting registration in supervised practice with the College of Psychologists of Ontario.
Matt works with children, adolescents, parents, and families. His clinical and research experience include working with survivors of complex trauma. He has been trained and/or worked in community agencies, school boards, and hospitals across Canada. Matt has experience in completing a wide range of psychological assessments and provides treatment with diverse populations (e.g., First Nations, culturally diverse, various socio-economic levels). Regarding his research experience, he investigates the link between child sexual abuse and suicidal ideation among youth in foster care. He has published in this area and has presented his work at national and international conferences.
Matt takes a systems approach to helping families grow and develop whenever possible. He works with individuals and carefully considers how to incorporate the family and other important relationships in the client's life in his interventions
Job Titles:
- Registered Occupational Therapist
Priya is a registered Occupational Therapist who has worked with children, youth, and their families since 2011. Priya graduated from McGill University with a Masters' degree in Occupational Therapy. She offers services in both English and French.
Priya focuses on helping children, youth, and their families gain a sense of control, safety, and stability. This means helping children to be in a more calm, safe, and adaptive state so that they can be kids. That is, that they can play, participate in school, enjoy their lives at home and build better relationships. Part of this process involves supporting caregivers and other important relationships in the child/youth's life. Priya uses sensory- and motor-based approaches to understand how the body and mind copes with adversity and stress. By helping children connect to their senses and inner selves, she helps them to identify feelings, express them, and find solutions to cope with them.
Priya has worked with a variety of children and youth including those with mental health difficulties (e.g., anxiety, depression), attachment difficulties, complex developmental trauma, and interpersonal trauma. She also has experience working with children and youth with neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., autism spectrum disorder (ASD), global developmental disorders, FASD, developmental coordination disorder, intellectual disabilities (ID) and ADHD). She has worked in a broad range of settings including pediatric psychiatry, child-youth protection agencies, and various centers and programs for people with ASD and ID.
ADDITIONAL TRAINING: Occupational Performance Coaching (Fiona Graham NZROT, Ph.D.), Psychosensory Processing Intervention (Kim Bathel, OTR), Building Blocks to Sensory Integration: The Sensory Motor Foundations for Attention and Learning (Sheila Frick, OTR/L), Trauma Informed Approach to Sensory Processing Disorders & Arousal (Sheila Frick, OTR/L), L'Approche d'intégration sensorielle (Marie-Josée Tessier, erg.) TRANSLATION: Sensory Integration Approach, L'univers de la conscience corporelle (Josiane Caron Santha, erg.) TRANSLATION: The World of Body Awareness. Ayres' Sensory Integration (Modules 1, 2, & 3); Sensory Attachment Intervention
Robert Fierro is a registered social worker with competencies in clinical social work with children, adolescents, families, and adults.
Robert has experience working in residential, outpatient, and private practice settings with neurotypical and neurologically diverse clients who are struggling with the sequalae of complex trauma.
Robert's primary focus in therapy is on supporting the development of a greater capacity for awareness and integration in his clients, as this leads naturally to an increased, embodied sense of well-regulated well-being and supports the development and maintenance of healthy connections with others.
Additional Training: Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST); Mindful Awareness Practice (MAP) for Clinicians; Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (Trauma - Level 1)
Job Titles:
- Registered Occupational Therapist
Samantha is a registered Occupational Therapist who has over 17 years of experience evaluating the physical, psychosocial, and cognitive abilities of individuals who are limited in the performance of their activities of daily living.
Samantha is a certified trauma informed yoga teacher. She is a certified clinical facilitator of the Overcome!™ Clinic, a trauma-informed yoga therapy program designed for those experiencing chronic stress, anxiety, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, PTSD, and other stress-based (dis)eases.
Her current practice focuses on body-based therapy that enables clients to increase body awareness and to restore the body to a regulated state. Sessions focus on nourishing the mind and body using stress reduction, self-regulation, and somatic movements. Her approach to therapy is to enable clients with practical tools and strategies that help manage symptoms of stress, anxiety, depression, fatigue, trauma, difficulty sleeping, and chronic pain.
ADDITIONAL TRAINING: Registered Yoga Teacher, Trauma Informed Yoga teacher, Anxiety Certification Course: Integrate CBT and Exposure & Response Prevention for Treatment of GAD, Panic Disorder, OCD, Social Anxiety, & Phobias. Veteran's yoga project: Mindful Resilience, Progressive Goal Attainment Program, The Shanker Method ® 101 (Focusing on the 5 Steps (or Practices) of Shanker Self-Reg®), Self-Reg. 101 for all by Dr. Stuart Shanker, Basic Principles of Somatic Experiencing. Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP).
Tiffany is a registered social worker who provides therapy to children, youth, families, and caregivers.
Tiffany has extensive experience working with individuals involved in the child welfare and youth criminal justice system as well as individuals impacted by trauma, grief/ loss, adverse childhood experiences and attachment-related difficulties. Specifically, Tiffany has expertise in working with attachment, complex developmental trauma, disruptive behaviours, emotional regulation, and with families and individuals touched by adoption.
Tiffany has a special interest working with caregivers and the important adults in children's lives to strengthen connection and foster safety and security as she believes that healing, growth, and resilience occur within the context of healthy relationships.
ADDITIONAL TRAINING: Circle of Security (COS-P), Adoption and Permanency Curriculum for Child Welfare and Mental Health Professionals (ACT Certified Therapist); 3-5-7 Model TM ; Dialectal Behavior Therapy (DBT); Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT); Collaborative Problem Solving TM (CPS, Tier II Certified), Brainspotting Therapy TM (Phases 1 & 2) Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT).