McGill.CA / McGill Mindfulness Research Lab / Our Team / Graduate Students

Christina Rigas

Program

MA Year 1, Counselling Psychology

Supervisors

Dr. Bassam El-Khoury

Previous Education

MSc Psychiatry, McGill, 2023

BA Pyschology (minors in anthropology and in behavioural sciences), McGill, 2021

Connect On

ResearchGate

Christina is an MA1 student in the Counselling Psychology program (project stream), and she holds a BA in Psychology and an MSc in Psychiatry, both from McGill University. Over the course of her CIHR-funded Master's degree, Christina conducted clinical research on mindfulness- and tech-based interventions for older adults in a geriatric psychiatry lab at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal. Her current research interests include mindfulness and the development of mindfulness- and compassion-based interventions for emotion regulation, self-harm, and suicidality in adolescents and young adults.

Research Publications

  • Dikaios, E., Sekhon, H., Allard, A., Vacaflor, B., Goodman, A., Dwyer, E., Lavin-Gonzalez, P., Mahdanian, A., Park, H., Walsh, C., Sasi, N., Nazar, R., Gruber, J., Su, C.-L., Hanganu, C., Royal, I., Schiavetto, A., Cinalioglu, K., Rigas, C., … Bukhari, S. N. (2020). Connecting during COVID-19: A protocol of a volunteer-based telehealth program for supporting older adults’ health. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11, 598356.
  • Elbaz, S., Cinalioglu, K., Sekhon, K., Gruber, J., Rigas, C., Bodenstein, K., Naghi, K., Lavin, P., Greenway, K. T., Vahia, I., Rej, S., & Sekhon, H. (2021). A systematic review of telemedicine for older adults with dementia during COVID-19: An alternative to in-person health services? Frontiers in Neurology, 12, 761965.
  • Garel, N.*, Rigas,C.*, Ben m’rad,M., Bodenstein,K., Joober,R., Sekhon,H.,** & Rej,S.**. (2023). Psychopharmacology for the Clinician: Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Benzodiazepine de-prescription in hemodialysis patients suffering from anxiety and depressive symptoms. Journal of Psychiatry And Neuroscience.
  • Moussaoui, G.*, Rigas, C.*, Escobar, S., Torres-Platas, S. G., Castel, S., Yang, M., Inhaber, J., Novielli, J., Van Amsterdam, J., Sasi, N., Potes, A., Nikolitch, K., Penheiro, R., Looper, K., Segal, M., Elie, D., Kiss, A., Selchen, S., Hermann, N., … Rej, S. (2022). Brief mindfulness-oriented interventions (MOIs) to improve psychiatric symptoms in a psychiatric inpatient unit: a randomized controlled feasibility trial. Psychosis, 14(4), 368–377.
  • Park,H.*, Rigas, C.*, Ibrahim,M.*, Su,C., Eyler,L., Thomas,Z., Nassim, M., Beaulieu,S., Buck,G.**, Rej,S.**. (2023). Efficacy of Virtually-Delivered Qigong/Tai Chi for Depression in Middle- and Older-Age Adults with Bipolar Disorder (QT-BD): A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Affective Disorders Reports.
  • Rigas, C., Park, H., Nassim, M., Su, C.-L., Greenway, K., Lipman, M., McVeigh, C., Novak, M., Trinh, E., Alam, A., Suri, R. S., Mucsi, I., Torres-Platas, S. G., Noble, H., Sekhon, H., Rej, S., & Lifshitz, M. (2022). Long-term effects of a Brief Mindfulness Intervention versus a Health Enhancement Program for treating depression and anxiety in patients undergoing hemodialysis: A randomized controlled trial. Canadian Journal of Kidney Health and Disease, 9, 20543581221074560.
  • Sekhon, H.*, Lavin, P.*, Vacaflor, B.*, Rigas, C., Cinalioglu, K., Su, C.-L., Bodenstein, K., Dikaios, E., Goodman, A., Raymond, F. C., Ibrahim, M., Bein, M., Gruber, J., Se, J., Sasi, N., Walsh, C., Nazar, R., Hanganu, C., Berkani, S., … Rej, S. (2022). Isolating together during COVID-19: Results from the Telehealth Intervention Program for older adults. Frontiers in Medicine, 9, 948506.
     

 

Conference Presentations

  • Klil-Drori, S., Rigas, C., Gruber, J., et al. (2022, October 14-15). Aging and Technology: If a Virtual Tool is Good for Online Shopping Does it Mean It Is Good for a Virtual Medical Appointment? [Poster presentation]. Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Scientific Meeting. Montreal, Qc, Canada.
  • Rigas, C., Klil-Drori,S., Sekhon, H., & Rej, S. (2022, October 14-15). Virtual Healthcare for All: Accessibility and Use of Telehealth Among Canadian Older Adults. [Poster presentation]. Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Scientific Meeting. Montreal, Qc, Canada.
  • Rigas, C., Lavin, P., Sekhon, H., & Rej, S. (2022, October 14-15). A Friendly Ear for Mental Health: Predictors of Response to a Novel Telehealth Intervention for Older Adults (TIP-OA) for Stress and Mental Health Symptoms. [Poster presentation]. Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Scientific Meeting. Montreal, Qc, Canada.
  • Rigas, C., Sekhon, H. & Rej, S. (2022, March 18-21). Predictors of response to a Telehealth Intervention Program for Older Adults (TIP-OA) for Stress and Mental Health. [Poster presentation]. American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Meeting. Orlando, FL, United States.
  • Rigas, C., Rej, S., Sekhon, H., & Vahia, I. (2022, June 17-19). Telehealth Intervention Program for Older Adults (TIP-OA) for Stress and Mental Health Symptoms: Predictors of Treatment Response. [Online poster presentation]. Canadian Psychological Association Annual General Meeting and National Convention. Calgary, AB, Canada.
  • Rigas, C., Sekhon, H. & Rej, S. (2022, March 18-21). Predictors of response to a Telehealth Intervention Program for Older Adults (TIP-OA) for Stress and Mental Health. [Poster presentation]. American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Meeting. Orlando, FL, United States.
  • Rigas, C., Klil-Drori,S., Sekhon, H., & Rej, S. (2023, March 3-6). Virtual Healthcare for Older Adults: Accessibility, Perceptions and Benefits . [Poster presentation].American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Meeting. New Orleans, LA, United States.
  • Rigas, C., Lavin, P., Sajatovic, M., & Rej, S. (2023, June 23-25). Antidepressant Prescription in Older Adult Bipolar Disorder (OABD). [Poster presentation]. Canadian Psychological Association Annual General Meeting and National Convention. Toronto, ON, Canada.
  • Rigas, C*., Park, H.*, Ibrahim, M.*, Buck, G.,& Rej, S. (2023, June 23-25). Efficacy of Qigong/Tai Chi for Depression and Cognition in Middle and Older Age Bipolar Patients During COVID-19: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial. [Poster presentation]. Canadian Psychological Association Annual General Meeting and National Convention. Toronto, ON, Canada.
  • Sekhon, H.*, Lavin, P.*, Vacaflor, B.*, Rigas, C.,…,Rej,S. (2022, October 14-15). Isolating together during COVID-19: Mental Health Effects of a Telehealth Intervention Program for older adults. [Poster presentation]. Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry Annual Scientific Meeting. Montreal, Qc, Canada.
     

Funding

  • Canada Graduate Scholarship-Master’s, Canadian Institute of Health and Research (2022)

 

Awards

  • Graduate Excellence Fellowship, McGill Education and Counselling Psychology, McGill University (2023)
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