September 2026
E. Kemunto Matini is awarded the One Summer Research Program award for an outstanding clinical project. Congratulations Kemunto!
The ANCHOR Lab: Advancing Nurturing Care for Health Outcomes and Recovery
We work to make mental health and substance use treatment easier to access, and more effective, through digital interventions and equity-centered models of care built into everyday healthcare.
Four areas, one aim: care that reaches people
Digital Treatments
Developing and evaluating digital mental health treatments, like app-based mental health and substance use programs, that reduce barriers to accessing care.
Perinatal Mental Health and Substance Use
Improving mental health and substance use outcomes across pregnancy and the postpartum period through family-focused, equity centered models of care.
Substance Use
Understanding patterns of alcohol, cannabis, and other substance use, and developing treatments that meet people where they are.
Implementation Science
Studying how treatments can be built into everyday healthcare in ways that are practical, sustainable, and equitable.
Care without judgment
We believe everyone deserves mental health and substance use care that is effective, compassionate, and within reach. Mental health and substance use challenges are health issues, not moral failings, and we approach them without judgment or stigma. We are committed to listening to the experiences of patients, families, and communities, learning from feedback, and continually improving how we support those we serve.
Equity is not an add-on
Since the people most affected by gaps in healthcare are often also navigating facing barriers related to poverty, racism, colonialism, gender-based inequalities, geography, and other forms of disadvantage, equity is not an add-on to our research. It shapes the questions we ask, how we conduct our work, who we partner with, and how we share what we learn.
Examining power
We recognize that research and healthcare are embedded within systems of power and inequity. We are committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment for equity-deserving communities and trainees, and to continually examining how our practices can either reinforce or challenge inequities.
News
June 2026
Dr. Joyce and her colleagues are awarded a Health Sciences Centre Foundation grant to evaluate Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine (RAAM) services in Manitoba.
April 2026
Christina Simms (MSc Psychiatry Research, Dalhousie University) receives a CRISM Cross Node Research Placement Award to work under the supervision of Dr. Joyce and Dr. Natalie Riediger, studying the growing ‘cannamom’ community on TikTok. Congratulations Christina!
April 2026
Incoming Master’s student Adi Keynan is awarded a CIHR Canada Graduate Scholarship. Congratulations Adi!
February 2026
Dr. Joyce and her colleagues are awarded a research grant through the University Research Grant Program to study staff and patient needs on inpatient mental health units.
October 2025
The ANCHOR Lab opened.
Land Acknowledgement
Our team respectfully acknowledges that we work and conduct research in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on Treaty 1 Territory, on the original lands of the Anishinaabeg, Ininiwak, Anisininewuk, Dakota Oyate, Dene, and Inuit, and on the National Homeland of the Red River Metis.