A new way of doing things...
Our Multi-Disciplinary Team
(MDT)
Elizabeth Cairns
Registered Psychologist
Elizabeth (“Liz”) has been a registered child and family psychologist with her own practice for 13 ½ years and specializes in working with kids with developmental disabilities and mental health challenges. She has vast experience coordinating teams and providing Psych services (including Counselling) to FSCD-funded families in Calgary & surrounding regions. She is always exploring unique, creative, fun and inspiring ways to help children and family’s grow, learn and acquire the needed skills. She has many side projects, including, training her Siberian Husky to be a therapy dog, and co-authoring children's books (https://taycairbooks.com). Overall, working with special needs children and their families is her passion and truly makes her “heart sing”. The “icing on the cake” is also learning so much from others (i.e. children, families, therapists) every single day. Being this type of therapist is a constant, and truly satisfying, journey of discovery that is ever unfolding. Liz prides herself in being a ‘multi-sensory’ psychologist, as well as a genuine, unwavering and strong advocate for all clients she has the privildege of serving.
Grace is an energetic Registered Psychologist from Calgary, Alberta, who likes to push the boundaries of what therapy can look like virtually by keeping things fun and engaging. In 2017, she received her Bachelor’s in Behavioural Science and in 2021 she completed her Master in Counselling Psychology. Over the past 5 years she has worked closely with families receiving FSCD funding and providing behaviour interventions through a collaborative lens and creating flexible plans for each unique situation. Her passions are based in working with children, youths, and families to understand more deeply where their challenges may be stemming from and what they can do to achieve their goals. Overall, she feels very fortunate to be a partner and collaborator with this supportive team, and with the families she works with.
Grace Gignac
Registered Psychologist
Bola Adebisi-Akinbile is a highly skilled and passionate physiotherapist with over 23 years experience in delivering safe, quality, and patient-centered physiotherapy services. Achieving this through a commitment to service availability, accessibility, and excellence. She completed her undergraduate and Masters degree in Physiotherapy (Neurology), at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. She has practical experience in orthopedic, neurological rehabilitation, acute care and pediatric settings. Bola is the owner of Playworks physiotherapy services, providing play-based interventions to children in a safe and stimulating environment, as well as education to their caregivers for optimal rehabilitation outcomes. She believes that every child has the potential to overcome challenges and be great, and should therefore be supported to achieve functional independence and be empowered to thrive in their community. Bola loves to maintain a healthy work life balance and so loves to cook, spend time with her family and also travel to experience different cultures.
Bola Adebisi-Akinbile
Physiotherapist
Dawn has lived her life with a strong passion for sports which has carried into her career path as a pediatric physiotherapist. She competed at the varsity level in softball at both the University of Guelph and University of Western Ontario then went on to a placement in Cape Town, South Africa and there began her love for pediatrics. She graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a Master degree in physiotherapy in 2011 and then went onto complete a certificate of sports physiotherapy. She has worked with high level athletes including The Ringette World Championships and Hockey Canada Women’s U18/U22 training camp. In 2014 she really focused her career toward pediatrics both in orthopaedic injury and physical developmental delay when she moved to Alberta with her partner. Dawn is a play-based therapist and believes that physiotherapy session should be fun for everyone involved!
Dawn Armstrong
Physiotherapist
Fatima Hussain is a pediatric Occupational Therapist and Owner of Sahaara Therapy Services Ltd. She is extremely passionate about all things OT and believes in empowering and supporting individuals to meet their goals and engage in those activities that are most meaningful to them. She completed both her undergraduate degree in Kinesiology and her Masters degree in Occupational Therapy at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta. After getting married, she moved to Calgary, Alberta. Her expertise are in feeding and swallowing, seating and positioning, fine motor skills, sensory regulation and upper extremity rehabilitation. Fatima lives in Cochrane, Alberta with her husband and their baby girl. When not working, you’ll find Fatima baking up a storm or out for a hike!
Fatima Hussain
Occupational Therapist
Marta, a bilingual (Spanish-English) graduate of the SLP and Audiologist School at the National University of Cordoba, Argentina, holds a Master's in Neuropsychology and boasts over 40 years of experience in communication, language, and social-cognitive disorders. Passionate about mentoring young therapists, she emphasizes serving families with openness, respect, compassion, and belief. Having lived in Canada for 23 years, Marta is driven by her dedication to Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), supporting those facing speech, language, and communication challenges. Her practice is dedicated to improving their Quality of Life (QOL), as Marta firmly believes that communication is a fundamental human right.
Marta Aragon-Humphrey
Speech Language Pathologist
Shaun is a registered Speech-Language Pathologist in multiple Canadian provinces. He obtained his Masters degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from McGill University. He is passionate about helping his clients of all ages improve their communication skills. Shaun is a fun, energetic, and dedicated clinician, who loves to “think outside the box” during therapy to motivate his clients to communicate. Shaun has worked with a variety of populations over the past decade but has a particular fondness for working with those who use AAC and those who support AAC users. Shaun is internationally recognized for his work with users of AAC, as well as providing education and professional development on topics related to AAC.
Shaun Pearson
Speech Language Pathologist
Kathleen is a Registered Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) with over a decade of experience working with children of all ages in Alberta. She completed an undergraduate degree in Behavioural Neuroscience (with a minor in French) in her home province of Newfoundland, prior to obtaining her Master's in Speech-Language Pathology from McGill University. Kathleen is a generalist SLP who enjoys supporting families and helping children to improve all facets of their communication skills. As a mother of two, Kathleen recognizes that all children are different, and she values the opportunity to learn, grow, and connect with each client.
Kathleen House
Speech Language Pathologist
