Meet our founder
Manjiah Ockey, BSc, LPN
Founder & Executive Director, Biofeedback Foundation
Helping families move from confusion to clarity — and from navigating alone to having a team beside them.
Why Biofeedback Foundation exists
Help shouldn’t wait for a crisis
People should not have to reach a crisis before they can understand what help is available to them.
Families living with disability, mental-health challenges, neurodevelopmental differences, financial pressures or complex care needs are often expected to navigate multiple systems at the same time.
They may be dealing with healthcare providers, schools, disability programs, government benefits, respite services, community agencies, assessments, paperwork and referrals, often without anyone helping them connect the pieces.
Manjiah founded Biofeedback Foundation to help change that experience. The Foundation exists to provide education, navigation, resource connection, advocacy and practical support so individuals and families can better understand their options and take the next step forward.
Manjiah’s story
From nursing to connecting systems
Manjiah was born in Sierra Leone and came to Canada as a child.
Her professional journey began in healthcare, where she trained and worked as a Licensed Practical Nurse. Over time, her work expanded beyond direct healthcare into mental health, neurodevelopment, nervous-system regulation, disability support, business leadership, community education and systems navigation.
She later completed a Bachelor of Science in Applied Business Management, combining her healthcare background with organizational leadership and program development.
“The services existed — but families often did not know how to find them, qualify for them, organize the paperwork, or move successfully from one system to another.”
That experience shaped the direction of Biofeedback Foundation.
From providing services to connecting systems
Where Manjiah’s work has helped families
Manjiah’s work has involved helping individuals and families navigate challenges across six areas.
Disability supports
DTC, FSCD, PDD, AISH and related community resources.
Mental health
Helping families identify appropriate professionals and understand where to seek additional support.
Children and schools
Supporting families as they navigate school concerns, accommodations, professional recommendations and community resources.
Family support
Connecting families with respite, community programs and appropriate service providers.
Healthcare navigation
Helping families organize concerns, understand next steps and reconnect with regulated professionals when additional medical or mental-health follow-up is needed.
Administrative barriers
Helping people understand complicated processes, organize information and move through paperwork that can otherwise become overwhelming.
A different kind of support
One Door. One Navigator. One Coordinated Pathway.
Biofeedback Foundation is not designed to replace doctors, psychologists, social workers, schools, government programs or disability agencies. Its role is to help people navigate between them.
Instead of asking a family to become their own case manager, researcher and systems navigator, BFF helps them work through six questions.
- What do I need?
- What support might be available?
- Who should I contact?
- What paperwork do I need?
- What happens next?
- Who follows up if I get stuck?
Community is at the centre
Support should reflect the people receiving it
BFF is building a team with different cultural backgrounds, languages, professional experiences and lived perspectives.
BFF’s growing multilingual capacity includes:
- English
- Krio
- Farsi / Persian
- Spanish
- Nepali
- Russian
- Ukrainian (intermediate, where appropriate)
French access can be supported through translated materials, technology-assisted communication and human interpretation where appropriate. Additional interpretation support is arranged when needed.
Building partnerships, not another silo
Better connections, not another service
“We do not need another disconnected service. We need better connections between the services that already exist.”
BFF’s growing community network includes organizations working with newcomers, Black and African communities, families affected by violence, individuals experiencing homelessness, adults with developmental disabilities, disability-support providers, and health and mental-health professionals.
The vision
Come with a problem, even if you don’t know what service you need
Manjiah’s long-term vision is an accessible community organization where an individual or family can come with a problem and get help figuring out the next step.
- “My child has been diagnosed. What do I do now?”
- “Can we qualify for the Disability Tax Credit?”
- “I need respite, but I don’t know where to start.”
- “I have been told to apply for AISH, but I don’t understand the paperwork.”
The response should not simply be: “Here is another phone number.”
Instead: “Tell us what is happening. We will help you understand the pathway.”
A message from Manjiah
I believe people are capable of extraordinary things when they have the right information, support and opportunities around them.
Too often, families are asked to navigate complicated systems while they are already carrying the emotional, financial and practical responsibilities of supporting someone they love.
Biofeedback Foundation was created to make that journey a little easier — to help people understand their options, connect with the right resources, and know that they do not have to figure everything out by themselves.
Our job is not to take away a person’s voice. Our job is to help make sure their voice can be heard.
— Manjiah Ockey
Connect with Biofeedback Foundation
Need help understanding disability, mental-health or community supports? We can help you identify your next step.