Message from the National Conference Bursary Winner Kelsey Chawla

I sincerely thank the Ontario Chapter for the support provided to attend my first CES national conference. It was a great opportunity to connect with colleagues I had met two weeks prior at the May Essential Skills Series and CES Ontario Networking Social, as well as mentors from my graduate training. The keynotes, presentations and workshops provided a wealth of practical learning that I look forward to applying as a new health sector evaluation consultant in southwestern Ontario. It was a privilege to learn from so many seasoned evaluators.

One of the highlights in attending the conference was the warm welcome from so many colleagues as a new entrant to the evaluation society. I sincerely appreciate the many offers for ongoing mentorship. Attending the conference has helped to better connect me with colleagues, practical evaluation knowledge, resources and the society in general. This will be instrumental in supporting my development as an evaluator. I look forward to connecting with evaluation colleagues at the national conferences for years to come.

-- Kelsey Chawla

Kelsey Chawla is a registered nurse with six years of health sector research experience working on projects related to primary care quality improvement, public health maternity and newborn care, the impact of the 2003 BSE outbreak, social inclusion and health promotion programs for young adults. For her graduate practicum Kelsey completed a situational assessment in her local rural health unit and for her final research project, she completed a process evaluation of one of the Canadian Cancer Society’s national information and support services. This spring, in her first evaluation consulting role, Kelsey will be working with workHORSE Consulting Group in London, Ontario on several health sector evaluations within the Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs).

Kelsey holds a BA in Psychology from Memorial University, a BN from the University of Calgary and recently completed a MPH from the University of Alberta.