CIHR deliver funding to U of M research initiatives
Projects receive total of $8.5 million
MICHAEL OLSON STAFF
Forty-two research projects at the University of Manitoba will be receiving a total of $8.5 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).
The funded projects will be carried out at the U of M, as well as at partner research institutions such as the Health Sciences Centre and CancerCare Manitoba.
“This is an announcement that covers a variety of operating grant competitions and trainee awards,” said Nancy Klos, research development manager at the faculty of medicine.
“Those 42 [successful candidates] proved to be successful in a very competitive national environment.”
The process of applying for the research grants includes the submission of an application detailing the projects in question. According to Marie-France Poirier, a CIHR spokesperson, applications to CIHR for funding of research projects are then evaluated by peer review, which is composed of diverse committees of experts from various fields of research.
The amount of funding depends on the length of the research project. The trainee awards include graduate scholarships at the master’s, doctoral, and post-doctoral levels, lasting from one to three years. The operating grants for the faculty members last between one and five years.
Student funding is awarded based on factors such as a student's training, transcript, area of study, and supervisor. Faculty member awards are given based on the significance of their research, the issue being addressed, the presentation of research, and the probability that the research will be successful.
“I take tremendous pleasure in seeing how CIHR’s programs are supporting talented and committed Canadian researchers in all areas of health and how their research is leading to important new findings that will benefit all of us,” said Alan Bernstein, president of the CIHR in a news release the day the grants were unveiled.
An example of one of this term’s funding recipients was Maureen Heaman of the faculty of nursing. Heaman’s project seeks to identify factors associated with inadequate prenatal care.
“We’ll also explore inner city women and health care providers’ perceptions of barriers and motivators to obtaining prenatal care,” said Heaman. The project seeks to design better models of prenatal care to meet the needs of inner city women.
“The funding allows us to hire research nurses to collect data which are really important for getting the project accomplished,” explained Heaman.
Another research initiative that received funding was that of Dr. Spencer Gibson. Gibson’s project focuses on the role of protein BNIP3 in cancer progression. Gibson believes that with the assistance of the funding from the CIHR, his project will be better able to “target this protein so that we can have better treatments for cancer.”
CIHR, a federal funding agency for health research, currently provides support to over 10,000 health researchers and trainees Canadawide. The Institute hopes to create new scientific knowledge throughout the country and works towards strengthening Canadian health care.
In addition to Manitoba’s funding, Ontario received over $129 million in funding for 610 research projects on Oct. 13 and Prince Edward Island received $330,000 for two research projects that will be conducted at the University of Prince Edward Island.
