John C. Sheehan, M.Sc., Ph.D. Candidate

John is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Department of Population Health Sciences, Division of Health Systems Innovation and Research, at the University of Utah School of Medicine. He works across the Translational Neurotherapeutics Lab, the Delaney Lab, and the Therapeutic Games and Applications Lab. His research bridges digital health, implementation science, and serious games, with a focus on community co-development and scaling of interventions that improve cognitive and behavioral health outcomes for children, adults, and families.

John has been affiliated with KBHN since the beginning of his graduate training at the University of Victoria and credits the network with shaping his research trajectory and professional growth. He co-developed the KBHN-funded Dino Island Parent-Child Cognitive and Communication Training Program with his graduate mentor (Dr. Sarah Macoun), a systems-based gamified intervention designed to strengthen executive functioning (EF), flexibility, and family communication. This program has been implemented across healthcare, school, telehealth, and in-home settings, reaching hundreds of families across Canada and internationally. In addition, John co-developed the Computerized Preschool Executive Function Battery (CPEF), a tablet-based tool for assessing preschoolers’ attention and EF that is now used in research and clinical settings.

John is committed to building bridges between academia and industry to accelerate the translation of evidence-based tools into practice for real-world impact.