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David (Dave) Murphy has been an intrinsic part of CHEO’s Mental Health department for over 25 years. “I knew at an early age that I wanted to work with kids and youth,” says Dave. When an opportunity presented itself to come work at CHEO, Dave jumped on it. He started as a Child and Youth Counselor in the inpatient psychiatric unit in 1996 and never looked back.
Reflecting on his decades at CHEO, Dave shares with a laugh, “We’ve gotten bigger!” Change is inevitable over the course of several decades, especially at a hospital dedicated to the best life for every child and youth. “The demand in mental health services has only grown,” says Dave, “There is a greater awareness of child and youth mental health – not to mention an increase in the complexity and acuity of the issues we’re presented with today.”
Inspired to expand his horizons beyond mental health, Dave became CHEO’s first CHEOWorks fellow in 2014. In its tenth year, CHEOWorks fellowships allow staff to serve as members of various cross-functional teams to redesign processes and implement measurable and sustainable improvements. “For a one-year period, I had the opportunity to work with a variety of different teams to help them improve how they deliver healthcare to our young population,” says Dave.
These learnings lead to actionable change. Following his fellowship, Dave, along with Dr. Marjorie Robb, co-led the development and implementation of CHEO's mental health outpatient programs approach to care called the Choice and Partnership Approach (CAPA), which puts patients and families at the center of their own care. “I will never look at a problem the same way,” says Dave, “I continue to use many of the tools and approaches I learned 10 years ago, to this day.”
At CHEO, we value professional development and innovation because we know that’s what contributes to better care for children and youth.
CHEO is filled with committed and driven people like Dave Murphy. Join us.