research analyst

registered nurse

registered practical nurse

nurse team leader

social worker

CAMH

I was an employee at CAMH within the last 2 years. I was attracted by the specialized type of research work and the compensation. Once I was hired I realized what CAMH was an employer that should be avoided for any unexperienced or experienced people in research.

You'll be stuck in your position and there is no room for career advancement. The managers fail to adhere to Good Clinical Practice and other regulatory guidelines which endangers the patients registered in this hospital. For example, I was pressured into encouraging high risk patients to come into the office for research during flu seasons and the COVID pandemic.

You will also have difficulties functioning in your role. The managers send copious amounts of e-mails and interrupt you while you're trying to input data or schedule patients. Please keep in mind that the amount of time that it takes to do all of this work will average 5-20 extra hours per week on top of the FTE contract that you are expected to work. You will not be compensated for this time and if you ask for compensation the managers will say that you didn't consult them and that you volunteered to do it. The managers will ensure that they bombard you with questions they don't have the answers for at meetings in front of the study investigators as a way to off-load responsibility of the burden onto you. You will be isolated from the scientists whose studies your working on and in your absence the managers damage your reputation in private meetings followed by the question bombardment at lab meetings.

Your career trajectory within CAMH will look like the following: Within the first month of being hired the management works with HR to create a file on your "misgivings" so that they can fire you for not passing probation (3-6months) if you question their breech of ethical research standards such as GCP. If you want to pass probations you'll need to do your work, fix the work that the managers mismanaged, take on the manager's new work, work overtime on all of this, answer a barrage of e-mails intended on micromanaging your time, and not claim any of the extra hours that you work on all of this which for me and my associates spanned from an extra 5-20 hours per week on top of the contract FTE. 

Also a note of caution, reach out to the union early on and ask them how to conduct yourself around the PIs and managers. There are nefarious individuals in some departments who are known to make inappropriate advancements which escalate so it's important that you have them identified so that you can take your meetings over the phone or with other co-workers whenever possible.

If you made it past your 6 month probation congratulations! You definitely earned it and you seem to really want to work there! Enjoy your contract for what it's worth for the next 2 years. Anticipate at the 3 year mark that file that the managers set up with HR has grown to the point where you'll need to be relocated and you'll need to restart this entire process. Why? So that by the 4 year point you don't transfer over into a full-time permanent employee with retirement benefits.


What is the best part of working at the company?
That company allowed me to feel part of the community and contribute with my technical experience, to the support that medical staff provided to the customers that came seeking mental health assistance. Amazing experience that helped me to grow as a human being.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
It was a huge amount of users/devices per technician that surpassed industry standards, organizing my time was difficult but it never felt stressful as the medical staff supported were very understanding and cooperative with the technical support staff, it was really a team work effort.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The environment is amazing, the way all staff there treat their customers and patients, and the good and positive energy and vibe while doing their work, is contagious and encourage the technical staff to complete the tasks with promptness and quality. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
After arrival and checking my most immediate tasks, I was ready to do a lot of walking while bringing all equipment and tools needed to complete my work, the place is a campus and so the requirements to complete a lots of rounds providing the needed support, that helped to feel like it was not work at all but a physical and mental challenge to stay on top of the capacities a wonderful feeling once all issues where addressed and solved in a timely fashion.

CAMH has been taken over by the medical mafia, becoming a center of punitive psychiatry, for the staff included. Mandated science, and mandated medicine is through the roof. The place is rapidly going downhill, it is noticeable especially for someone who has worked there for 20+ years. Woke ideology and identity politics govern most aspects of the hospital. Upper management is unfit for the job in its majority. CAMH neither values its staff, nor makes patient care a priority. They might be able to stabilize a patient at ER, but please avoid inpatient admission at all costs. Many doctors who were able to actually treat patients either retired or left the organization. Staff is severely underpaid, overworked and is stressed constantly. HR constantly comes up with ridiculous non-working policies, crisis and financial management is beyond any criticism. No wonder that the organization is so much in debt, wasting public money and not meeting stakeholder's expectations.  

Overall
CAMH is a great place to start off a career in mental health services. Lots of experience can be gained from working in general and acute areas. They also offer Forensic mental health services which is a unique area of nursing,  where law and mental health overlap. Lots of opportunities to learn and upgrade your skills. Co-workers are mostly supportive and professional.  Management is hit & miss. I've had terrible managers and excellent ones... the type of manager you have will greatly impact your experience at CAMH. Overall it's a decent place to work, and the client base is diverse so very rarely boring. The pace depends on the type of unit you work on. The general and acute areas can be wild, but very rewarding. Just be sure to follow policies to the letter, as I've known amazing nurses who have lost their jobs over incidents due to their documentation review post-incident. Besides that, the institution is full of opportunities once inside with lots of horizontal mobility, and fair career advancement opportunities.

I worked on two different units during my stay at CAMH. On the 3rd Floor of the CCC building, despite my efforts, I was barely noticed by 80% of the staff. On the 7th floor of the CCC building I was welcomed with open arms, I was actively included in case consultations, my opinion clearly mattered to other team members, I was given numerous opportunities for growth and development, and overall, people genuinely cared about who I was and what I was doing for client care. The floor culture on the 7th floor gave me the confidence to be a better therapist. Doctors, nurses, and allied health were also a lot more accessible on this unit. 

My experience in an outpatient clinic was lovely. My experience in inpatient has been a nightmare. For an organization that is often publically viewed as a leader in the mental health field and prides itself in putting forth much research and literature on the importance of psychological safety in the workplace, it certainly has a long ways to go in creating a healthy work environment for its own employees. 

CAMH is one of Canada's leading mental health hospitals, but despite their focus on mental health they seem unable to manage the mental health and wellness of their staff and clients. They area always promoting a new campaign strategy, or workshop, or intention but the actual work environment at CAMH is poor.  At the end of the day there is too much work and not enough funding (which to be fair CAMH has little control over). As well, many in their HR department and executive have no real experience working with mental health clients. Ive heard some pretty ignorant comments from HR and management staff. 

I worked in a specific unit that was related safety and security. The tasks and responsibilities were straightforward. No issues with job itself. 

I cannot comment on the company as a whole, but what I will say, the unit I have worked in. It was not the best work environment. To say in short, it's very polarizing and being neutral is viewed as siding with one "clique". Many team members takes things too personally on this unit, which makes it challenging to collaborate and trust each other. Additionally, the polarization had made it quite difficult for the team to trust each other.

Depending on the administration's office staff, I would either be very busy with a lot of responsibility or just working as an assistant sending fax's or photocopying or arranging employee training. I learned how to use Outlook to arrange meetings and catering for said meetings.  I arranged hotel, travel and car rentals to the US.  Co-workers were wonderful even though we ususally just communicated through Outlook! The hardest part of the job, that at times there wasn't a lot of assignments.  The most enjoyable part of the job was when I was busy and took over for the Administrative Assistant on Sick leave, when I would be busy again.

A great place to work. Pay is really good and the management and coworkers are exceptionally welcoming, positive and support for the most part. It's a small team, so theres not many positions available or too much opportunity to advance. But being small gives the opportunity to learn each others roles and duties in order to cover each others shifts for days off etc. Most roles/shifts are taken by permanent, full time employees but theres a few casual staff that get some shifts. CAMH is building and expanding at Queen/Ossington so maybe there will be new positions opening if they expand the team.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Research analyst 13 salaries reported	$32.61 per hour
Registered nurse 3 salaries reported	$50.07 per hour
Registered practical nurse 9 salaries reported	$35.32 per hour
Nurse team leader 3 salaries reported	$54.40 per hour
Social worker 6 salaries reported	$47.25 per hour

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