Jaylyn Leighton PhD

Jaylyn Leighton, completed her PhD at the University of Waterloo in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies. For her doctoral research, she partnered with Frontline Forward, a wellness centre built for and by first responders, to facilitate a project directed at better understanding the psychosocial supports first responders need amidst the expectations and duties of the job. Prior to returning to graduate school, Jaylyn worked as a recreation therapist at Homewood Health Centre in Guelph, ON in the post-traumatic stress recovery and addictions unit. During her time at Homewood she saw first had a vast gap in care services being directed towards supporting and caring for first responder who step into highly stressful, often traumatic, situations to serve and protect their communities at large. Jaylyn continues to advocate for needed care services for first responders at Frontline Forward where she assists in organizing and facilitating a peer support group for first responders in the Kitchener-Waterloo area.