Bonnie Kirsh
Bonnie Kirsh, PhD., is Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, cross appointed to the Department of Psychiatry and the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto. She is also a faculty member in the Collaborative Program in Workplace Learning and Social Change in the Faculty of Education, and an Adjunct Professor in the School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health Professions, Dalhousie University. Dr. Kirsh teaches psychosocial perspectives in occupational therapy and supervises graduate students in the Rehabilitation Sciences sector’s clinical and research programs.
Dr. Kirsh was a member of the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s (MHCC) Workforce Advisory Committee, which launched Canada’s National Standard for Psychological Safety in the Workplace as well as the Aspiring Workforce Report, which identifies practices to help people living with serious mental illness to access and maintain meaningful employment or a sustainable income. The committee provided input into Changing Directions, Changing Lives, the first national strategy for mental health, which offers a blueprint for change through six strategic directions to improve mental health care in Canada.
Dr. Kirsh was the recipient of the Muriel Driver Memorial Lectureship Award, the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists’ highest honour, awarded in recognition of outstanding contributions to the profession through research, education and the practice of occupational therapy. She was appointed to the Institute of Work and Health’s Educationally Influential Network and was a recipient of the University of Toronto Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy Alumni Association Achievement Award.
Dr. Kirsh is a reviewer for a number of journals and conferences, and a mentor for occupational therapists practising in mental health.
Research Synopsis
Dr. Kirsh has focused her research on understanding and improving mainstream participation of people living with mental illness. Her particular focus has been on promoting employment, which is known to be a social determinant of health, and to have enormous social and economic impacts on the lives of individuals and on society. She was a principal investigator on the MHCC’s Aspiring Workforce Project which examined best practices in work integration for people with mental illnesses. She is also a principal investigator on the Opening Minds Project, the country’s largest anti-stigma research initiative. Dr. Kirsh has conducted studies examining supported employment in Canada, consumer perspectives on work integration, Canadian principles and practices in the area of work integration, and the relationship of organizational culture to employment. Currently she is leading a SSHRC/CIHR project examining interventions to promote work for people with invisible disabilities, including mental illness. She has published widely on the topic of employment and has been an invited speaker at national and international conferences.
Dr. Kirsh also conducts research in the area of housing and homelessness for people with mental illnesses. She has examined best practices in supported housing, and was a co-investigator on the MHCC’s At Home/Chez Soiproject, the largest study of Housing First to date. Her work has led to a greater focus on the occupational lives of people who are homeless and she is working with other occupational therapists on research in this area as well as a position statement that advances the profession of OT in the areas of advocacy and homelessness.
Dr. Kirsh’s research has been situated at multiple levels: individual, organizational, systems and services, and policy, and has contributed to innovative interventions and policy developments.