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Carly Demczyk cares for critically ill children in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at CHEO, and as a pediatric nurse, she sees families in their most difficult moments.
The experiences sit with her, and she takes time to reflect after each shift. They also drive her to make the lives of kids and their families better, both in the unit and through research.
Right now, she’s looking at ways to treat delirium experienced by children in the PICU, without resorting to additional medications. This work is part of the new Nursing Research Internship Program at CHEO.
Children experience delirium because of side effects from life-saving medication. Demczyk wants to help find new ways to address these sudden changes to limit the impact on families.
“Research helps us think differently about clinical questions and how to address them,” said Demczyk, who is also pursuing a Master’s degree in nursing at the University of Ottawa.
Leveraging their unique insight from clinical practice, nurses can use research to investigate how to provide better care now and in the future.
In another area of CHEO’s hospital campus on Smyth Road, Emma Buist has seen the fruits of her own research.
As a registered nurse and lactation consultant, she wanted to find ways to improve feeding practices at CHEO. Her research, through an RNAO fellowship, led to the development of a centralized milk preparation room for newborns receiving care at CHEO.
“Research helps nurses identify gaps and ask why we do the things we do,” said Buist.
“It’s where nursing really shines.”
Her current research, presented at CHEO’s Nursing Research Conference, The Power of Nursing Curiosity, in October 2025, explores how lactation support can be integrated into care plans for children with complex feeding needs.
These nurses are two of many who are proof of a growing partnership between CHEO, the CHEO Research Institute, and the University of Ottawa’s School of Nursing, spearheaded by Dr. Rochelle Einboden, Associate Professor and CHEO’s Nursing Research Chair.
That partnership is a foundation for the opportunities for nurse-led research, including a thriving Nursing Research Community of Practice. Nursing research is integral to excellent care. It reinforces CHEO’s role as a pediatric health-care leader in Canada, and offers a blueprint to support meaningful changes in children’s hospitals nationally and globally.
Dr. Christina Cantin, conference co-chair and Nursing Research Scientist at the CHEO Research Institute, said supporting opportunities for nursing research can help CHEO retain talented young and mid-career nurses, like Demczyk and Buist.
"Nurses are excellent problem solvers, and research is a way for them to explore and address challenges in the health-care system,” said Cantin.
Through research, nurses can help improve family experience, satisfaction with care, and health outcomes in various ways.
Demczyk credits her mentors for helping her do just that, and combining clinical work with research enables nurses like herself to find solutions to challenges they encounter.
All CHEO nurses, including those arriving this fall as new learners, also benefit from ongoing clinical education through best practice guidelines, a key component of CHEO’s designation as a Best Practice Spotlight Organization by the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO).
“The focus on and support of nursing research at CHEO has re-energized nurses, reminding us that our impact goes beyond the bedside,” said Demczyk, who first joined CHEO as a clinical extern.
With plans to further grow nursing research and a vision to establish a Nursing Research Centre, CHEO is combining the creativity of nurses with academic mentorship, to foster research development and nurse-led scholarship – all to create a brighter future for children, youth and families.