Biography

Charlotte is University Professor and Director of the Children’s Health Policy Centre in the Faculty of Health Sciences at SFU. Holder of the Canada Research Chair in Children’s Health Policy from 2007 to 2018, she is a public health child and adolescent psychiatrist with longstanding interests in health policy. After her basic training at UBC, Charlotte worked with First Nations communities across BC for eight years before going on to complete her MD, residencies and research training at McMaster University. She held faculty appointments at McMaster and UBC before joining SFU in 2006. Charlotte’s research focuses on improving social and emotional wellbeing for all children, and on the public policies needed to reach this goal. With academic and policy partners, she co-leads the BC Healthy Connections Project, a randomized controlled trial assessing the effectiveness of the Nurse-Family Partnership program, which aims to improve children’s mental health and development starting early in the lifespan. She also leads a long-term research-policy partnership with the BC Government, providing systematic reviews and talks on the best available prevalence, prevention and treatment evidence to inform policy and practice, through the Children’s Mental Health Research Quarterly. As well, she is working with the Nuu-Chah-Nulth Tribal Council on a new long-term project combining Indigenous and Western scientific knowledge to advance health child development goals, and with McMaster and Statistics Canada on the second iteration of the Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth to assess the impact of the COVID-19 to inform pandemic recovery. In addition to her research, Charlotte teaches at SFU and consults with policymakers and community groups. In her clinical practice, she cares for children and youth who are struggling with serious adversities, including child maltreatment. These young people inform and inspire every aspect of her research, policy consultation and teaching.