Download the presenters' bios here.
Erin O’Shaughnessy
Erin is a nurse practitioner with 35 years experience in a variety of healthcare settings. She holds an undergraduate nursing degree from the University of Manitoba and a master’s degree from York University. She completed her nurse practitioner diploma at the University of Ottawa. After over 20 years in a tertiary care oncology setting, Erin transitioned to primary care in 2014. A long time advocate for alternative therapies, Erin began authorizing medical cannabis in 2017, following expansion of Ontario NP scope to include controlled substances prescribing. She currently works full time for Apollo Applied Research - a medical cannabis clinic offering both in-person and telemedicine assessments. She follows several hundred patients, all of whom use cannabis to treat various health conditions. Erin has an extensive background in clinical practice education and has presented at numerous national and international conferences. She presents frequently on the topic of medical cannabis, both to healthcare professionals and the lay public.
Dr. Chris Parker
Dr. Parker is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Critical Care Medicine, and Biomedical Sciences at Queen’s. After completing medical training in Kingston, Dr. Parker pursued fellowships in Internal Medicine, Respirology, and Critical Care Medicine, and is a Harvard Macy Scholar. In his current role at the Kingston Health Sciences Centre, Dr. Parker is a staff Respirologist and a co-director of the Intensive Care Unit at Kingston General Hospital. He has led the development of a new diagnostic program for lung cancer using endobronchial ultrasound, and is one of the primary physicians in the Lung Diagnostic Assessment Program which strives to provide timely access to diagnostic and therapeutic intervention for patients with suspected lung malignancy. He is a respected educator and has held a variety of leadership positions in both undergraduate and postgraduate medical education, and continues to be actively involved in the training of future physicians.
Romney Pierog
Romney is a Certified Compassion Fatigue Educator and a Registered Nurse at Kingston Health Sciences Centre's Kingston General Hospital site, with over 21 years of clinical experience. In 2014, Romney trained with Francoise Mathieu, a pioneer in the work of Compassion Fatigue and earned a certificate in Compassion Fatigue education. Currently, she is working within the front lines of the Cardiac Program with past experience in all of the ICUs and ER. Over the last 6 years, Romney has initiated and delivered over 65 presentations at the KHSC on the topics of Compassion Fatigue, Burnout, Vicarious Trauma, Stress Management, Work/Life Balance, Empathy Management, PTSD/PTSI, Secondary Traumatic Stress, Trauma Informed Care, Reducing Stigma in the Workplace and Improving Morale, all which have generated much interest and repeated requests from across all clinical programs.
