The CHUM's JAP Clinic was founded in 1999 by Dr. Béatrice Granger with a small team of occupational therapists and social workers to provide young people struggling with early psychosis with better opportunities for recovery through a specialized, early, intensive interdisciplinary intervention, focused mainly on services in the community. This innovative approach, which has been shown to be the most effective in enabling remission of symptoms and reintegration of young people into a social role, was developed in the early 1990s in Australia and is now widespread throughout the world. Over the years, the clinic has grown and now offers services to more than 300 young people in downtown Montreal each year. The JAP Clinic is one of the founding members of the Association of Programs for First Psychotic Episodes (AQPPEP).

Meeting with Dr. Amal Abdel-Baki, psychiatrist at the CHUM's JAP Clinic

Since 1999, the JAP Clinic has set itself the following mission:

- Provide easy and timely access to treatment for young adults with psychosis
- Offer treatment based on collaboration with both the young adult and his or her loved ones, in a climate of realistic hope
- Achieve remission of psychosis symptoms and reintegration of the patient into his or her environment and meaningful social roles
- To offer a wide range of services at the cutting edge of current knowledge
- Promote the importance of early and intensive care of young people suffering from a psychotic episode at the first signs

Early detection of psychosis in collaboration with the CHUM's community partner organizations.
- Early and intensive intervention with the patient and his or her loved ones in an approach of collaboration and continuity of care.
- Training and education 

The JAP Clinic is part of the Department of Psychiatry at the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM). As a teaching hospital, it welcomes and trains student interns and residents from various disciplines (medicine, psychiatry, occupational therapy, social work, nursing, etc.) interested in developing their knowledge and skills in this area of care.

In addition to scientific conferences offered to physicians, psychiatrists and other health professionals, the JAP Clinic also offers training and educational conferences within community or school organizations; youth workers or support associations for the loved ones of people with mental illness, in order to raise awareness of the importance of early intervention for psychosis.

- Young adults aged 18 to 35
- Youth with affective or non-affective psychosis as their primary diagnosis
- Youth who have never been treated or have been treated for psychosis for less than a year
- Young people living in the territory served by the CSSS Jeanne-Mance and coeur de l'île. Your postal code must have one of the following three letters: H2H, H2K, H2L, H2T, H2V, H2W, H2X, H2Y, H2Z, H3B, H5B or H2J.

Young people can be referred by mental health professionals, doctors, psychologists or workers working with young people. Family, school, friends or individuals themselves can also submit a referral by contacting the JAP Clinic.

Dr. Amal Abdel-Baki completed her medical training and residency in psychiatry at Laval University in 2001. She completed a master's degree in biomedical sciences at the University of Montreal on the predictors of the long-term evolution of schizophrenia in Quebec. She completed a year of fellowship in research and clinical training at EPPIC, Melbourne, Australia with the team of Prof. Patrick McGorry (leader of the international movement for early detection and intervention for psychosis). For several years, she has been interested in the detection and early intervention for psychosis in youth, as well as in psychosocial treatment approaches, cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy specific to psychosis, and the return to productive activity (work-study) in youth with psychosis. She has been working at the JAP Clinic since 2002 as a psychiatrist and head of the Clinic and Research.

Dr. Artaud has been working as a psychiatrist and clinical professor at the CHUM's JAP Clinic since 2006.

Dr. Clairélaine Ouellet-Plamondon is a psychiatrist in the Department of Psychiatry at the CHUM. She is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Université de Montréal and a researcher at the CR-CHUM.

After training in biomedical sciences, Dr. Ouellet-Plamondon completed her medical studies and, concomitantly, a master's degree in biomedical sciences (MD/MSc program) at the Université de Montréal. Subsequently, she completed her residency in psychiatry at the same institution. After her specialization, she joined the Centre of Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto for additional training in Clinical Fellowship in Addiction Psychiatry and Schizophrenia. Since 2013, she has been working at the CHUM as a psychiatrist within the teams of the JAP Clinic (Young Psychotic Adults) and the Addiction Psychiatry Unit (UPT). Her clinical and research interests focus on early psychosis and substance use disorders. She is also interested in innovative practices such as intervention through nature and adventure.

Dr. Prometheas Constantinides has been a psychiatrist and psychotherapist since 2005. He is also a clinical assistant professor at the Université de Montréal, where he teaches analytical psychotherapy and works as a supervisor of this approach with psychiatry residents and other health professionals.

After medical studies and a specialization in psychiatry at the Université de Montréal, in 2007 he completed additional research training at the Jewish General Hospital of Montreal (McGill University Network) on the processes of change associated with psychotherapy.

From 2005 to 2021, he worked at the Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal (IUSMM) with patients suffering from psychosis at Intensive Environmental Follow-up (IMS), in outpatient clinics and in hospitalization. During this same period, Dr. Constantinides worked on the development of an innovative psychotherapy, mentalization-based therapy for psychosis, while pursuing a psychoanalytic practice in his office.

He joined the CHUM's JAP Clinic in 2022 where he continues his research on psychotherapy for psychosis.

Marilyn Paquet completed a master's degree in occupational therapy at the University of Montreal in 2009 on the recovery of people with serious mental disorders in the Quebec context. The continuum of care for youth-adult mental health services remains one of his interests, as well as the vocational case manager. In 2016, she completed her certificate in health and social services management at the University of Montreal. She has been working at the JAP Clinic since 2010 and has been a team leader since 2019. She contributes to the training of the team's stakeholders and external partners.

Marie-Pier has been working in psychiatry since her arrival at the CHUM in 2010. It was in 2012 that she began her expertise at the JAP Clinic. A clinical nurse by training, she wonderfully appropriated the role of pivot worker after having fulfilled the role of nurse at the clinic. Six years later, she has become a go-to source on the team. Marie-Pier became head of EQIIP Sol, a team for homeless, psychotic and drug-addicted youth. As team leader, she coordinates a discussion table (community of practice) that meets monthly to discuss the issues of detection and early intervention for psychosis and comorbid disorders among street youth.

Over the years, she has been involved in many groups (CBT anxiety, regular groups, outdoor group, parent support group and training for future first episode clinics) but has also taken on responsibilities in facilitating meetings and supervising/mentoring new workers. Known for her good mood, Marie-Pier loves working with young people, she is committed to the recovery of young people and the smooth running of the team.

Erhel Diard completed his nursing studies in France in 2010. She has a varied background: several years in mental health in various hospitalization and emergency units, both in France and in Montreal, in research (Avatar therapy), as well as in physical care and a 6-month international solidarity mission in India. She was part of the first cohort trained to be a nurse practitioner specializing in mental health at UdeM. Since 2019, she has been working in these new functions of IPSSM at the CHUM, at the JAP clinic, with young people with a first episode of psychosis. She particularly enjoys being creative in adapting her approaches to the needs of young people. She is also involved in the training component of the AQPPEP (Association Québécoise des Programmes des Premiers Épisode de Psychose).

Marie-Pascale graduated in occupational therapy from the University of Montreal in 2017. During her academic career, she has been able to open her horizons on mental health through the exploration of various cultures and approaches, having completed an internship at a private mental health clinic in France, and then volunteering at the Instituto de psicatria Gregorio Pacheco in Bolivia. She then began her career in an intensive community follow-up (IM) team at the Institut universitaire de santé mentale de Montréal, which advocates community intervention, interdisciplinary work and autonomy for adults with chronic mental health problems. She joined the CHUM's JAP team in 2020. Through all these experiences, she puts a prominent place on the young person's experience in her interventions, advocating a partnership approach with him or her and integrating the promotion of physical activity for recovery.

Mathieu has been an occupational therapist since 2011, a graduate of the University of Montreal. He worked for 4 years in general psychiatry (inpatient units) as well as in medicine-addiction psychiatry (internal component) and has developed a particular interest in substance abuse issues. At JAP since the end of 2015, he believes in activity as a therapeutic medium, he loves to PLAY in his life (board games, individual and team sports, music) and understands the importance of a well-balanced life! He likes teamwork, likes to create a bond with young people, even if this bond is sometimes a challenge; diagnosis and help that are difficult to accept when you don't perceive the situation in the same way as the treatment team! In addition, he has been involved in teaching (occupational therapy program - mental health component, receives trainees) since his graduation. Healso holds the role of occupational therapy coordinator for mental health programs at the CHUM.

As an occupational therapist, he is interested in the person as a whole and wants him or her to be able to develop his or her potential and maximize as many opportunities for occupation as possible, because sometimes the psychotic episode plays on important projects such as school or work.

Léa Léveillée Elbariz began her career working in psychiatry at Notre-Dame Hospital after completing a nursing technique. She then continued her studies while maintaining her job as a psychiatric nurse and has since completed her bachelor's degree in nursing (2019). She has developed her clinical expertise by working in various mental health departments. These experiences allowed her to become an outpatient patient navigator at ÉQIIP-SOL. She is committed to working in partnership with young people and the various actors who enable their recovery. One of his primary interests is to intervene directly with the person in his or her environment.

Edith Maisonneuve completed a Bachelor's degree in Social Work at the University of Sherbrooke in 2011. She has been working at the CHUM since her graduation and has accumulated experience in several specialties including neurology for 4 years. She has been working at the JAP Clinic since 2016 and joined EQIIP Sol in 2017. She is interested in systemic issues related to homelessness and mental health. She is regularly seen in the sports group, which she considers to be a lever to get young people to take action.

Marie-Pier Proulx joined the EQIIP SOL at the JAP Clinic as a social worker in June 2021, just after obtaining her bachelor's degree in social work at the Université du Québec à Montréal. Before working with the EQIIP SOL, Marie-Pier spent several years working in the community sector, particularly with girls and women in difficulty. Also an artist, she completed professional training at the École de danse contemporaine de Montréal (2016) and a diploma of collegial studies in contemporary dance at the Cégep de Saint-Laurent (2013). For Marie-Pier, dance and social work have always been intrinsically linked. Her social commitment is felt throughout her artistic career, where she leads several community art projects, including the forum play Le contrôle du corps des femmes created in collaboration with the participants of the Centre des femmes d'ici et d'ailleurs and the members of Vichama Collectif. Resolutely inventive and committed, Marie-Pier is committed to the well-being of the young people she works with. She will be able to listen, support and accompany young people on the road to recovery.

Carmela Schiraldi has been a mental health occupational therapist since 2009. She worked for eleven years at the Institut Universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal (IUSMM), working with a varied clientele (anxiety and mood disorders, psychotic disorders, addiction and forensic psychiatry). She develops various partnerships with the community to create recovery opportunities through various mediums for patients (e.g., theatre troupe, adaptive sports group). In addition, she is developing a private practice with an adult clientele struggling with various mental health-related problems. She also actively participates in the teaching mission advocated by the discipline, in particular by supervising university interns and participating in events to promote occupational therapy in mental health. Since 2020, she has been returning to her first love and joining the team at the JAP clinic at the CHUM. As an occupational therapist, she advocates the whole person at the center of her interventions, and relies on the dreams and desires of young people to engage them in their recovery process.

An occupational therapist by training, Audrey has worked in neurology since graduating in occupational therapy (master's) in 2013 at the University of Montreal. However, Audrey has always had an interest in mental health since a significant internship at Notre-Dame Hospital in psychiatry as part of her academic career, where patient advocacy and empowerment were put forward. Her arrival at the JAP Clinic in 2017 was a professional challenge, but also an opportunity to rediscover the helping relationship from a different angle.

Following her specialized studies in surgery, Dr. Granger worked as a surgeon in Val-D'Or for a few months, after which she completed a 2nd specialization in psychiatry. She founded the JAP Clinic in 1999, seeing the need for this type of care for this clientele. A dynamic and innovative woman, she also founded the day hospital for psychotic disorders at the CHUM.