Speakers

Samantha Hallgren RN, GNC(C), CHPCN(C)

Samantha Hallgren, RN, GNC(C), CHPCN(C), Psychogeriatric and Palliative Care Nurse at Perley Health, recently earned the Hospice and Palliative Care Nursing Certification from the Canadian Nurses Association. With over 25 years in nursing, she's dedicated to geriatrics, palliative and end-of-life care. Samantha is a Certified Coach in Gentle Persuasive Approaches in Dementia Care (GPA) and achieved her Gerontological Nursing Certification in 2014. Samantha supported the implementation of SeeMe®, focusing on frailty and understanding whole person care. Samantha and the team at Perley Health aim to improve the quality of palliative and end-of-life care. The Psychogeriatric and Palliative Care team at Perley Health supports knowledge translation by providing education to external community members and students on Dementia Care Strategies, Creating a meaningful visit and the implementation of the RNAO Best Practice Guidelines to support palliative and end-of-life care.

Jessie Stephenson, MDiv, CSCP (CASC)

Jessie is a Spiritual Care Practitioner, certified by the Canadian Association for Spiritual Care. Working with those at end-of-life, Jessie values trauma-informed narrative and palliative approaches to spiritual care. She holds a Masters of Divinity from Emmanuel College of Victoria University in the University of Toronto.

Yetunde Temi Adegbunrin, RN, MScN

Temi Adegbunrin is a Registered Nurse serving as the Collaborative Practice Leader. She has a profound passion for teaching and supporting the older population. Temi's extensive experience involves community work, bedside care, public health, and continuous long-term care. This passion for education and mentorship in the healthcare field inspired her to complete a master's degree in nursing, specializing in leadership and education. Temi finds it crucial to give back to the elderly community, ensuring they receive the best-informed care possible.

Rachel Gibson RN, CHPCN(C)

Rachel Gibson is a Registered Nurse at Perley Health and the Best-Practice Spotlight Organization Liaison to the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario for the home. Rachel’s nursing experience includes home care, long-term care, teaching and supporting quality improvement initiatives. She has completed multiple continuing education courses related to palliative care and earned the certification for Hospice and Palliative Care from the Canadian Nursing Association in 2023. Rachel finds meaning in sharing her knowledge and experience with her peers to support residents and their families who choose a palliative approach to their care.

Susan Shea, NP-PHC, MScN

Susan has been a Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner (NP) for over twenty years. Her areas of specialty are Palliative Care, Geriatrics and Chronic Disease Management. Susan has held the position of NP Consultant with the Ottawa Regional Palliative Consultation Team for nine years. She has been an active Facilitator for Pallium Canada’s Learning Essential Approaches to Palliative Care (LEAP) for the past five years. Susan has held the position as Clinical Lead for Group Medical Visits, in a Congestive Heart Failure Clinic, with Inpatient Cardiology and with a Community Cardiac Rehabilitation Program. Previously, Susan has held nursing management positions of Director of Training and Education, Nursing Educator, Medical-Surgical Nurse Manager and Coordinator of Cardiac Rehabilitation. She has worked as an Adjunct Professor and Preceptor for the BScN, MScN and NP programs with Ottawa, Queens, Laurentian and McMaster University. Since March 2023, Susan has acted as the Nurse Practitioner-Lead for the Convalescent Program and within Long Term Care at Perley Health.

Samantha Boulerice RN, NSWOC, WOCC(C)

Samantha Boulerice has been dedicated to nursing in long-term care for over 15 years with experience in both bedside and leadership roles. Samantha is specialized in wound, ostomy and continence certified by the Canadian Nursing Association and has completed the Infection Prevention and Control Professional Development Course from Queen’s University. Her work on advancing Perley Health’s skin and wound program has lead to significant improvements in care at Perley Health over, including significant decreases in worsening pressure injuries within the home. Samantha is passionate about using evidenced-based practice to care for Seniors and Veteran’s in long-term care, especially supporting staff to address skin failure at end-of-life. Recently, she has started in a new role as Perley Health IPAC Specialist.

Jennifer Parker BHK, MSc.OT

Jennifer Parker is the Allied Health Lead at Perley Health and an Occupational Therapist (OT) in the Convalescent Care Program. Jennifer received her Bachelors in Human Kinetics from the University of Windsor. She then went on to pursue her Masters in Occupational Therapy at Dalhousie University. Jennifer has over 16 years of combined experience working as an OT in long-term care and the community setting. Jennifer co-leads Perley Health’s Palliative Quality Improvement Team which is dedicated to ensuring that 100% of our residents experience a good death. Jennifer has a passion for working with the older adult population, with the main goal of optimizing independence and quality of life for the residents we serve, while using a person-centered care approach.

Daniela Acosta, RN, BScN, GNC(C)

Daniela Acosta is a Registered Nurse in the role of Manager of Education and Knowledge Translation at Perley Health with certifications in Gerontological Nursing, Simulation Based Learning and Knowledge Translation. With over 10 years experience in long-term care, Daniela’s resume includes bedside nursing, clinical education, leadership in many organization-wide quality improvement initiatives and authoring two published, peer-reviewed articles. She enjoys finding ways to integrate unique and engaging experiential learning opportunities into professional settings and corporate education plans. Daniela is passionate about transforming care for Veterans and Seniors in long-term care and inspiring other healthcare leader’s to join the movement.