Lisa Purdy is enhancing and expanding resources and supports for graduate students in the Office of Advocacy and Wellbeing.
With a recent study finding graduate students more than six times as likely to experience depression and anxiety than those in the general population, Purdy's mission to achieve better mental health outcomes for the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry's graduate trainee population is critical.
"We all know that work life balance isn't always an emphasis during graduate school but the evidence is mounting that the stress graduate students face can lead to significant mental health issues" said Purdy.
"We have to look at the full picture of academic culture to create environments that support the wellbeing of learners. My goal is to help graduate learners strike a better work-life balance and that includes creating strong communities of support, and shifting the focus slightly to faculty development, so that faculty members, PIs and supervisors are better equipped to respond to graduate students' needs."