Province Increases Investment in Population Health Research

Posted May 14, 2003


Release: May 14, 2003

(This is a joint release of the University of Saskatchewan, University of
Regina, and Saskatchewan Health.)

PROVINCE INCREASES INVESTMENT IN POPULATION HEALTH RESEARCH

Provincial funding for Saskatchewan population health research at
Saskatchewan's two universities will be $1.5 million over three years
starting in 2004, Saskatchewan Health Minister John Nilson announced today.

The province currently provides the Saskatchewan Population Health and
Evaluation Research Unit (SPHERU) with $250,000 in core funding, along with
additional funding through a competitive application process. Beginning in
2004-05, the province will provide guaranteed core funding of $500,000
through to 2006-07. The newly established Saskatchewan Health Research
Foundation allocates provincial funding to SPHERU, a research partnership
between the University of Regina and the University of Saskatchewan.

"Through the Action Plan for Saskatchewan Health Care, our government is
providing increased funding for health research to improve the quality of
our health system and create economic opportunities in our province," Nilson
said. "I am pleased to support this worthwhile initiative and I
congratulate SPHERU members for their achievements in health research."

SPHERU conducts collaborative research and policy evaluation relating to
determinants of population health such as early childhood development,
economic globalization, community and environment, indigenous peoples'
health, gender and socio-economic status. Multi-disciplinary teams of
faculty, community groups, policy analysts, and researchers from other
universities are involved.

"Without the Saskatchewan government's long-term funding commitment,
re-affirmed today to 2007, and the commitment of our other partners, SPHERU
would not be the success it is today," said SPHERU director Ron Labonte.

SPHERU's partners include Saskatchewan Health, the Saskatchewan Association
of Health Organizations, the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation, the
University of Regina (U of R) and the University of Saskatchewan (U of S),
all of which have representation on the SPHERU board of directors.

At today's news conference at the U of R, the first nine students supported
by scholarships through SPHERU's new Community and Population Health
Research (CPHR) Training Program were recognized.

"Their work will help set the agenda for future health research in
Saskatchewan," said Labonte.
Among the student projects (see backgrounder for more details):

- Flavia Bianchi, a U of S PhD student in geography, will explore the health
needs and challenges of First Nations children (birth to age five) living in
Canada's low socio-economic communities.

- Allisson Quine, a U of R PhD student next year in clinical psychology,
will study the patient-provider relationships of Aboriginal people with Type
2 diabetes to determine factors that influence healthcare services for these
patients.

- Karen Lynch, a master's student from the U of S department of community
health and epidemiology, will investigate how green spaces such as parks and
schoolyards contribute to a population's health.

- Jodi Burnett, a U of R educational psychology master's student, will
examine the effects of problem gambling on Aboriginal family members
including impacts on the family's economic, social, psychological,
community, and health status.

Funding for the CPHR training program comes from a six-year, $1.8-million
grant awarded last year by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, as
well as a total of almost $1.3 million in cash and 'in-kind' support from
the U of S and the U of R. Up to 40 individuals will undertake graduate
studies, post-doctoral fellowships, work sabbaticals and internships.

Including this training program money, SPHERU researchers have attracted a
total of close to $5.5 million in faculty research grants and contracts over
the past year, Labonte said.

"When collaborative projects with other organizations are included, that
figure jumps to almost $7.5 million," Labonte said. "It is an exceptional
figure that is cause for celebration by SPHERU, the universities, and the
province. This success rate is due to the quality of SPHERU's faculty and
staff, and the successful collaboration among researchers and between the
two universities."

For more information about SPHERU and the CPHR training program, visit
www.spheru.ca and www.cphr.ca.

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For more information, contact:

Ronald Labonte
SPHERU Director
(306) 966-2349

Therese Stecyk
U of R University Relations
(306) 585-4683

Kathryn Warden
U of S Research Communications
(306) 966-2506