Dr. Ayan Dey is a soon-to-be graduating Psychiatrist and Clinician Scientist with a diverse clinical background and specialized interests in the intersection of sleep disorders, ADHD, and treatment-resistant mood and anxiety disorders. His passion extends to leveraging technology for quality improvement and innovation in mental health care delivery.
Dr. Dey’s career path has been shaped by his dual MD-PhD training from the University of Toronto, positioning him uniquely as both a clinician and scientist. He completed his PhD in cognitive neuroscience at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest under the supervision of renowned neuroscientists. Following medical school, Dr. Dey pursued Psychiatry residency training at the University of Toronto as part of the Clinician Scientist Program. Through this program, he gained extensive experience in measurement-based care, neuromodulation, and sleep medicine. He served as Chief Resident of the Clinician Scientist Program from 2023 to 2025. He will soon be joining the faculty at North York General Hospital while pursuing additional training in sleep medicine.
Leveraging Technology in Mental Healthcare
Dr. Dey recognizes the potential of technology to revolutionize mental healthcare and is interested in harnessing AI and digital tools to enhance both patient care and clinician well-being:
1. Ambient AI Technology: Exploring the use of advanced voice recognition and large language models to automate clinical documentation, allowing clinicians to focus more on patient care and less on administrative tasks.
2. Measurement-Based Care: Implementing data-driven approaches to track patient progress and inform treatment decisions, potentially reducing the cognitive load on clinicians. Dr. Dey has actively contributed to this area, with publications and several national and international presentations and workshops on the topic of Implementation of Measurement Based Care in Mental Health.
3. Optimizing EHR Systems: Advocating for user-friendly electronic health record systems to streamline workflows and reduce time spent on data entry. Dr. Dey has experience with multiple EMR systems, including Epic, Powerchart, Meditech, and Accuro EMR.
4. AI-Powered Clinical Decision Support: Leveraging AI to analyze aggregated patient data, generating insights to optimize clinical outcomes and support evidence-based decision-making.
5. Digital Phenotyping: Employing wearable technologies to monitor behavioural patterns and identify potential mental health concerns.
- Chief Resident, Clinician Scientist Program University of Toronto
- Duty Doctor, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences
- Junior Consultant, Moonlighting Resident, Psychotherapy Matters
- Junior Consultant, Moonlighting Resident, Possibilities Clinic
- Teresa Mak Memorial Award for research in the role of sleep in mental disorders
- Dr. Harvey Moldofsky Postgraduate Research Fellowship Award
- MD Program Teaching Award of Excellence
- Canadian Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award Nomination
- Canadian Psychiatric Association Certificate of Academic Excellence (Top Undergraduate Psychology Thesis)
- Graduated with Distinction, Summa Cum Laude (McMaster)
- Dey, A., Do, L, & Almagor, D. (In Press, 2025). Managing comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and sleep problems. Canadian Medical Association Journal.
- Mollica A, Dey A, Cairncross M, Silverberg N, Burke MJ. Neuropsychiatric Treatment for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Nonpharmacological Approaches. Semin Neurol. 2022 Apr;42(2):168-181. doi: 10.1055/s-0041-1742143. Epub 2022 Feb 3. PMID: 35114694.
- Dey A, Kam A, Tam A, Bayley M, Guo M. Sleep disturbance and length of stay in the setting of acquired brain injury rehabilitation. Brain Inj. 2021 Jul 29;35(9):1022-1027. doi: 10.1080/02699052.2021.1945144. Epub 2021 Jul 5. PMID: 34224280.
- Dey AK, Stamenova V, Bacopulos A, Jeyakumar N, Turner GR, Black SE, Levine B. Cognitive heterogeneity among community-dwelling older adults with cerebral small vessel disease. Neurobiol Aging. 2019 May;77:183-193. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2018.12.011. Epub 2019 Jan 5. PMID: 30875655.
- Dey AK, Stamenova V, Turner G, Black SE, Levine B. Pathoconnectomics of cognitive impairment in small vessel disease: A systematic review. Alzheimers Dement. 2016 Jul;12(7):831-45. doi: 10.1016/j.jalz.2016.01.007. Epub 2016 Mar 31. PMID: 26923464.
- Dey AK, Alyass A, Muir RT, Black SE, Swartz RH, Murray BJ, Boulos MI. Validity of Self-Report of Cardiovascular Risk Factors in a Population at High Risk for Stroke. J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis. 2015 Dec;24(12):2860-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jstrokecerebrovasdis.2015.08.022. Epub 2015 Sep 26. PMID: 26411693.