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Description
The purpose of this funding opportunity is to support catalyst grants for new investigators working in infection and immunity or provide seed money to stimulate targeted research on HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C. It is expected that this targeted investment will enable researchers to generate preliminary data, validate methodology or tools, and/or explore novel (high risk) research ideas towards enhancing the success of subsequent applications to the CIHR open and strategic competitions. Four areas of research have been targeted for this funding opportunity and eight funding pools have been identified.
Background
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity has a mandate to promote and support excellence in internationally recognized research in the areas of infection and immunity. The Institute interacts with scientists, community groups, non-governmental health organizations and international researchers to identify research priorities, establish partnerships and undertake collaborative research initiatives.
New Investigator Catalyst Grants
The purpose of this funding pool is to support innovative, pilot or feasibility research in the area of infection and immunity by new investigators who are within five years of their first independent academic research appointment. Grants will enable new investigators with novel ideas and observations to conduct pilot studies and/or gather evidence necessary to determine the viability of new research directions. It is anticipated that applicants who validate their pilot hypotheses will then continue their research by applying to regular funding opportunities.
CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
The purpose of these funding pools is to encourage and stimulate all investigators to undertake new, high priority research challenges in the field of HIV/AIDS. It is expected that this targeted investment will enable researchers to generate preliminary data, validate methodology or tools, and/or explore novel (high risk) research ideas towards enhancing the success of subsequent applications to the CIHR open and strategic competitions focused on priority areas in HIV/AIDS.
Within the context of the CIHR overall mandate and strategic priorities, the mission of the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative is to provide national leadership in the support and facilitation of HIV/AIDS research, research capacity building, research partnerships and knowledge translation that contributes to ending the spread of HIV and improves the lives of people living with or susceptible to HIV/AIDS. This fundiing opportunity responds to a need identified by the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Advisory Committee (CHARAC) to encourage novel and innovative approaches to HIV/AIDS research.
Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative
III is also responsible for implementing the research component of the Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative (CHVI), a collaborative initiative between the Government of Canada and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The CHVI represents a significant Canadian contribution to global efforts to develop a safe, effective, affordable and globally accessible HIV vaccine. As a partner of the CHVI, CIHR is responsible for Discovery and Social Research program area of the initiative in collaboration with the Canadian International Development Agency.
PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative
The purpose of these funding pools is to fund hepatitis C research focused on biomedical, clinical, psychosocial, behavioural and epidemiological areas as part of the new PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative.
The goal of the PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative is to support on-going epidemiological, clinical and biomedical hepatitis C research and to promote, support and enhance a socio-behavioural research focus. It also includes support for an inter-disciplinary training program component allowing for continued momentum and enhanced research capacity to combat hepatitis C through a process of education and research programs, as well as collaborative knowledge translation and dissemination.
The CIHR Catalyst Grant program provides seed money, on a short-term basis, to support health research activities which represent a first step towards the pursuit of more comprehensive funding opportunities (e.g. operating grants, team grants), such as:
- the planning and execution of pilot projects or feasibility studies aiming to generate preliminary data, observations, or knowledge;
- the planning and execution of novel projects which clearly demonstrate the potential for significant impact, but which are considered high risk in nature in that they may be unsupported by proof of concept / preliminary data;
- development and / or validation of new inventions, tools, methodologies, protocols, theoretical models or frameworks;
- planning and / or development activities of expert teams (multi-disciplinary, trans-disciplinary, etc…) coming together to address health research priorities.
Funds Available
CIHR's contribution to the amount available for this initiative is subject to availability of funds voted annually to CIHR by parliamentary appropriations, and the conditions that may be attached to them.
- The total amount available for this funding opportunity is $ 2.5 million. This amount may increase if additional funding partners decide to participate. These funds will be divided into seven funding pools related to the four areas of research, as described in the Objectives section:
- $700,000 for new investigator catalyst grant applications.
- $600,000 for applications related to the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
- $300,000 for biomedical/clinical applications
- $300,000 for health services/population health applications
- $400,000 for applications related to the Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative
- $200,000 for applications in Discovery Research
- $200,000 for applications in Social Research
- $800,000 for applications related to the PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative
- $400,000 for biomedical/clinical applications
- $400,000 for psychosocial/behavioural/epidemiological applications
- The maximum amount awarded for a single grant is $ 100,000 per annum for up to one year. Requests for equipment will be considered as part of the applications.
Partner/Collaborator Participation
CIHR is dedicated to identifying and developing collaborations with other funding organizations and stakeholders to enhance the availability of funding for this strategic initiative, and to create, where appropriate, opportunities for knowledge exchange and translation related to the scope of this particular initiative. Applicants are invited to visit the Partner/Collaborator Description section to find a list of partners/collaborators and their respective mandates and/or strategic interests. This list will continue to evolve as new partners/collaborators join in this initiative. The specific research foci and requirements for each partner/collaborator are outlined in the "Objectives" section.
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Objectives
The primary objectives of the Catalyst Grant program are to:
- Generate preliminary observations, data or knowledge, or to facilitate team formation, as a first step towards the pursuit of more comprehensive funding opportunities (e.g., operating grants, team grants) by researchers or teams of researchers
- Support original, high quality projects which have the potential to generate high impact results and/or innovative research proposals, research tools, techniques, devices, inventions, or methodologies.
The Catalyst Grant program is further expected to contribute to:
- Providing new or established investigators with funding to pursue new areas of investigation
- Providing investigators the opportunity to pursue high risk health research questions with the potential for high impact
- Providing the opportunity for a unique combination (e.g. multi-disciplinary, trans-disciplinary, international) of individual researchers to develop as a team
- Development of a culture of invention and innovation in Canada
- Mobilization of research communities to develop research agendas and/or action plans to advance research in specific priority areas.
Within the framework of the overall objectives of the CIHR Catalyst Grant Program, the specific objectives of this funding opportunity are:
New Investigator Catalyst Grants
- Encourage new investigators, i.e., those within five years of their first independent academic research appointment, who are currently working in the field of infection and immunity, to further develop their research program with a goal of obtaining future long term funding;
- Promote innovative pilot or feasibility studies in the area in infection and immunity; and
- Allow new researchers to develop the evidence necessary to determine the viability of new research directions in the area of infection and immunity.
CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
- To stimulate research within the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative six priority theme areas, particularly areas where there are significant knowledge gaps or that have the potential for significant scientific advance;
- To enable Canadian basic science and clinical investigators to explore unique/novel opportunities in HIV/AIDS research; and
- To build capacity in the HIV/AIDS health services and population health research community in Canada.
Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative (CHVI)
- To stimulate research within the CHVI priority theme areas (both social and discovery), particularly areas where there are significant knowledge gaps or that have the potential for significant scientific advance; and
- To build capacity for HIV social research in Canada in such areas as: issues related to the design and implementation of vaccine trials; impact assessment of trials on risk behaviour in communities affected by HIV; social issues surrounding HIV vaccines such as acceptability and access; ethical issues related to studying vulnerable populations; and patent law and intellectual property issues.
PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative
- To support hepatitis C epidemiological, clinical and biomedical research;
- To promote, support and enhance a socio-behavioural research focus;
- To provide seed money to support health research activities which represent a first step towards the pursuit of more comprehensive funding opportunities; and
- To stimulate research in strategic priority areas where there is low capacity and significant knowledge gaps.
Relevant Research Areas:
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity and partners will provide support for applications that are determined to be relevant to one of the following research areas. The top ranked applications in each of the four areas will be supported. It is anticipated that seven new investigator projects, six HIV/AIDS projects, four CHVI projects and eight hepatitis C projects will be funded.
New Investigator Catalyst Grants
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity supports research to enhance immune-mediated health and to reduce the burden of infectious disease, immune-mediated disease, and allergy through prevention strategies, screening, diagnosis, treatment, support systems, and palliation.
It is anticipated that seven grants from new principal investigators will be funded in this category. Applications that address one or more of the following areas are encouraged, but applicants are not limited to these areas:
- Human immune systems;
- Systems biology approaches leading to innovation in addressing microbial resistance, allergy, or immunotherapy;
- Innovative strategies for enhancing organ retrieval and transplantation;
- Research on access to health services, ethics issues or health inequities in the area of infectious disease.
CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
Applications that address one or more of the six CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative's priority themes will be considered:
- Health systems, services and policy;
- Resilience, vulnerability and determinants of health;
- Prevention technologies and interventions;
- Drug development, toxicities and resistance;
- Pathogenesis;
- Issues of co-infection and co-morbidity.
Within these priority themes, research that focuses on at risk populations outlined in the Federal Initiative to Address HIV/AIDS in Canada including people living with HIV/AIDS, men who have sex with men, injection drug users, Aboriginal peoples, prison inmates, youth at risk, women at risk and people from countries where HIV is endemic, is particularly encouraged.
Applications to the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative are sought in two distinct funding streams - Biomedical/Clinical Research and Health Services/Population Health Research. Although projects which display a multidisciplinary approach across all four research pillars are strongly encouraged and accepted, applicants must clearly indicate the most relevant funding stream in the relevance field of their ResearchNet application. The top ranked applications in each of the two streams will be considered for funding and it is anticipated that three projects will be funded in each stream.
More information on these research priorities, and other background information on the Initiative, can be found on the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative website.
Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative
The CHVI invites applications for Catalyst Grants from individuals or small teams of Canadian researchers interested in contributing toward the development of an HIV vaccine in the CHVI relevant research areas as listed below. Funding will be provided for applications that are determined to be relevant to one of the following two research areas. The top ranked applications in each of two streams will be considered and it is anticipated that two projects will be funded in each relevant research stream.
Discovery Research
- Novel approaches to induction and long-term maintenance of mucosal innate and adaptive immune responses;
- Novel approaches to developing prophylactic vaccines aimed at induction of broadly neutralizing antibodies and B cell responses to HIV;
- Development and testing of therapeutic HIV vaccines;
- Development of studies aimed at better understanding the correlates of immune protection relating to HIV;
- Development and testing of novel vaccine adjuvants.
Social Research
- Development and evaluation of targeted communication strategies to ensure the participation of at-risk groups in the design and implementation of vaccine trials;
- Monitoring the attitudes and behaviour of trial participants to assess the impact of trials on risk behaviour in communities affected by HIV;
- Investigation of social issues surrounding HIV vaccines, including knowledge, acceptability and access;
- Ethical issues related to studying vulnerable populations (e.g. adolescents, people who use injection drugs, sex workers);
- Patent law and intellectual property issues related to HIV vaccines and related research;
- Knowledge translation and risk communication relating to HIV vaccine research.
PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative
CIHR and PHAC-CAID will provide funding for applications that are determined to be relevant to one of the following two research areas. The top ranked applications in each of two streams will be considered and it is anticipated that four projects will be funded in each relevant research stream.
Biomedical/Clinical
- Biomedical aspects of HCV, including disease progression, vaccine research, and treatment issues including links with associated Sexually Transmitted/Blood Borne Infections (STBBI) and tuberculosis (TB).
Psychosocial/Behavioural/Epidemiology
- Prevention research into risky behaviours and harm reduction strategies including research linking determinants of health and psychosocial factors with the presence of behaviours/practices that put people at risk for HCV and related STBBI and TB;
- Population health research, including research on the determinants of health, with a focus on the populations that are most at risk for HCV and related STBBI and TB, and of those most marginalized;
- Research into health-care delivery models including access to care and treatment, and examination of barriers to access to such services for high risk populations;
- Research on Canadian-based data related to the current and future economic burden of HCV;
- Research using epidemiology/surveillance data, including monitoring incidence, prevalence and behaviours, and focusing on high risk populations and practices linked to HCV and related STBBI and TB transmission;
- Investigation of different modes of transmission, such as sharing of injection needles and drug inhalation equipment.
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Eligibility
Eligibility criteria for all CIHR research funding programs apply. The business office of the institution of an eligible Nominated Principal Applicant generally administers CIHR funds. Please refer to the Eligibility Requirements for CIHR Grants and Awards regarding the eligibility requirements for individuals and institutions.
Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) will not be considered under this funding opportunity.
Specific Eligibility Requirements for New Investigators
- To be eligible for funds under the new investigator funding pool, the applicant must be within five years of their first independent academic appointment (in which they were actively engaged in research) at the time of application and the new investigator must apply as the Nominated Principal Investigator.
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Guidelines
General CIHR Guidelines
This funding opportunity will follow the General Guidelines for Grant Programs. Applicants are encouraged to demonstrate the use of Gender and Sex-Based Analysis in applications.
Allowable Costs
Applicants should review the Use of Grant Funds section of the Tri-Agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC) Financial Administration Guide for a complete listing and description of allowable costs and activities.
The full application must provide a detailed justification of all costs.
Conditions of Funding
All conditions specified in CIHR General Grants and Awards Policies shall apply to applications funded through this Funding opportunity. Conditions cover areas such as Applicant and Institutional Responsibilities, Ethics, Official languages policy, Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Acknowledgement of CIHR's Support. Successful applicants will be informed of any special financial requirements prior to the release of funds or when they receive CIHR's Authorization for Funding (AFF) document.
In addition to CIHR standard guidelines and requirements, the following special requirements shall apply:
- Within six months after the end of the grant's term, the Nominated Principal Applicant is required to submit a final performance report, summarizing the results and describing how the grant funds were used. A form will be provided by CIHR.
Access to Information Act and Privacy Act, and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)
All personal information collected by CIHR about applicants is used to review applications, to recruit reviewers, to administer and monitor grants and awards, to compile statistics, and to promote and support health research in Canada. Consistent with these purposes, applicants should also expect that information collected by CIHR may be shared as described in Use and Disclosure of Personal Information Provided to CIHR for Peer Review.
CIHR as a federal entity is subject to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, therefore the requirements of these two statutes will apply to all information located in CIHR's premises including, without limitation, cost-sharing agreements related to this Funding opportunity and all matters pertaining thereto.
While respecting the application of the Privacy Act to federal entities, all signing parties involved in a collaborative agreement will also be bound by the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). All personal information (as identified by the PIPEDA) collected, used or disclosed in the course of any commercial activity under collaborative agreements related to the Funding opportunity will be collected, used and disclosed in compliance with the PIPEDA.
CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People
The CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People came into effect as policy for CIHR-funded research on July 1, 2008. Applicants whose proposed research will involve Aboriginal People are strongly encouraged to familiarise themselves with these guidelines and in particular with the section "Application of the Guidelines," which outlines the situations in which these guidelines apply.
Policy on Access to Research Outputs
CIHR believes that greater access to research publications and data will promote the ability of researchers and knowledge users in Canada and abroad to use and build on the knowledge needed to address significant health challenges. Open access will promote accessibility to CIHR-funded research and will serve to increase the international visibility of Canadian research. As of January 1, 2008, CIHR grant recipients are reminded to adhere with the responsibilities outlined in the Policy on Access to Research Outputs. Under this policy, grant recipients must make every effort to ensure that research papers and bio-molecular data generated from CIHR funding are freely accessible online.
Communication Requirements
Grant recipients are required to acknowledge CIHR, its institutes and partners in any communication or publication related to the project. See CIHR General Grants and Awards Policies, Public Communication and Acknowledgement of CIHR's Support for details on CIHR's communication requirements. The contributing institutes/partners will be identified on the Authorization for Funding and decision letter.
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Performance Measurement
CIHR is committed to demonstrating results to Canadians for the money invested in health research. Therefore, processes for monitoring progress and appropriate use of funds, as well as for performance measurement and program evaluation are in place. As a result, funding recipients must:
- contribute to the monitoring, review and evaluation of CIHR's programs, policies and processes by participating in evaluation studies, surveys, workshops, audits and providing data or reports as required for the purpose of collecting information to assess progress and results;
- encourage their associates, trainees and administration to participate in the monitoring, review and evaluation of CIHR's programs, policies and processes as required.
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Review Process and Evaluation
Relevance Review
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity and the Public Health Agency of Canada Community Acquired Infections Division will provide funding for applications that are relevant to (in alignment with) the objectives and research priority areas described in the Objectives section.
Prior to peer review, the CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity and the Public Health Agency of Canada Community Acquired Infections Division will have access to anonymized project titles and summaries of research proposals (page 9) to conduct relevance review.
The following criteria will be used in conducting the relevance review:
- Fit of the application to the objectives and relevant research areas outlined in the funding opportunity.
Only those applications that pass relevance review will proceed to peer review. Upon completion of peer review, the CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity and the Public Health Agency of Canada Community Acquired Infections Division will receive the ranking list, merit scores (ratings) and recommendations on funding level and award term for the applications that fall in the fundable range and have been determined to be relevant to the specific research areas and objectives of the initiative. The list will be used for funding decision-making purposes and will remain anonymous.
Peer Review
A CIHR peer review committee will evaluate the full applications. The committee may be drawn from one of CIHR's pre-existing committees or may be created specifically for this funding opportunity. Committee members are selected based on suggestions from many sources including the institute(s) / portfolio(s) and partner(s), following CIHR's Policy on Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality in the context of Merit, Relevance and Peer Review (CCIP). For information on CIHR's peer review process in general, see the Understand Peer Review section of CIHR's website.
Evaluation Criteria
Peer review will be conducted in accordance with The CIHR Peer Review Process – Policies and Responsibilities of Grants Committee Members. Reviewers will use the following set of criteria for the evaluation of all CIHR grant applications:
- Research Approach
- Originality of the Proposal
- Applicant(s)
- Environment for the Research
- Impact of the Research
A detailed elaboration of these criteria can be found in the Information for Peer Reviewers section of CIHR website.
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How to Apply
Note: This funding opportunity requires the use of ResearchNet to apply for funding.
- The application process for this funding opportunity is comprised of two steps: Registration and Application.
- To complete your Registration and Application, follow the instructions identified in the Catalyst Grants - ResearchNet "Registration" Phase Instructions and the Catalyst Grants - ResearchNet "Application" Phase Instructions.
- An overview of CIHR's application processes can be found under Apply for Funding.
- Reminder to applicants: Please ensure that your application is complete (including all required signatures) and submitted on time to CIHR. Effective September 1, 2008, CIHR will assume no responsibility in following-up with applicants who submit an incomplete application. Incomplete or late applications will not be accepted into the competition.
Additional instructions that must be followed for this funding opportunity:
(Note: These additional instructions supersede all other policies or guidelines published by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, including, but not limited to, the Grants and Awards Guide, the Memorandum of Understanding, etc.)
- Applicants must select only one of the following funding pools that they would like to be considered under and must indicate the selected pool at the top of the summary of research proposal in the application:
- New Investigator Catalyst Grants
- CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative - Biomedical/Clinical Stream
- CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative - Health Services/Population Health Stream
- Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative – Discovery Research Stream
- Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative – Social Research Stream
- PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative - Biomedical/Clinical Stream
- PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative - Psychosocial/Behavioural/Epidemiology Stream
- Include in the summary of research proposal a description of how the proposed research approach aligns with the objectives and identified relevant research area. The anonymized project titles and summaries of research proposals will be used for relevance review; only those applications that pass relevance review will proceed to peer review.
- The Research Proposal in the “Enter Project Information and Supporting Documents” task under “Project Information”, is limited to 5 pages excluding figures or tables.
Your Application will be submitted using ResearchNet. Only the signed Signature Pages must be sent (courier stamped no later than the application deadline date) to:
RE: "Catalyst Grant: Infection and Immunity"
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Room 97, 160 Elgin Street
Address locator: 4809A
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0W9
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Contact Information
For questions on CIHR funding guidelines, how to apply, and the peer review process contact:
Nhung Tomkins (Updated: 2009-08-19)
Program Delivery Coordinator
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-941-0848
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: nhung.tomkins@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
For questions about the New Investigator Catalyst Grants funding and research objectives, contact:
Bruce Moor
Assistant Director
Institute of Infection and Immunity
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 519-661-3228
Fax: 519-661-4226
Email: bmoor@uwo.ca
For questions about the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative and research objectives, contact:
Andrew Matejcic
Associate Director
HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-941-4483
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: andrew.matejcic@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
For questions about the Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative and research objectives, contact:
Nancy Mason MacLellan
Associate Director, Partnerships and Knowledge Translation
HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-952-3564
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: nancy.masonmaclellan@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
For questions about the PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative and research objectives, contact:
Michelle Hume
Associate
Pandemic Preparedness Strategic Research Initiative
CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity
Telephone: 613-948-2692
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: michelle.hume@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
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Partner/Collaborator Description
Note: Additional partners/collaborators, including partners/collaborators from industry and the private sector are expected to join this funding initiative over the coming year.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
CIHR is the Government of Canada's agency for health research. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health-care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to nearly 12,000 health researchers and trainees across Canada.
CIHR – Institute of Infection and Immunity
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity (III) supports research to enhance immune-mediated health and to reduce the burden of infectious disease, immune-mediated disease, and allergy through prevention strategies, screening, diagnosis, treatment, support systems, and palliation.
CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative
III is the lead CIHR Institute for the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative. This initiative, supported by the Federal Initiative to Address HIV/AIDS in Canada, promotes Canadian research and builds research capacity in order to increase our understanding of the virus, the epidemic and effective responses. Further information on the Priorities for the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative is available on the Institute website.
PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity and the Public Health Agency of Canada Community Acquired Infections Division (PHAC-CAID) are working together to stimulate hepatitis C research and capacity building in priority areas to reduce the burden of hepatitis C through the generation and use of new knowledge. The goal of the PHAC-CAID/CIHR Hepatitis C Research Initiative is to support on-going epidemiological, clinical and biomedical hepatitis C research and to promote, support and enhance a socio-behavioural research focus.
Partners
Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative
III is the lead CIHR Institute for the Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative (CHVI). This initiative, Canada's contribution to the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, is a five-year collaborative initiative between the Government of Canada and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and represents a significant Canadian contribution to global efforts to develop a safe, effective, affordable and globally accessible HIV vaccine. Participating federal departments and agencies are the Canadian International Development Agency, the Public Health Agency of Canada, Industry Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Health Canada.
Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)
The creation of the Public Health Agency of Canada in September 2004 marked the beginning of a new approach to federal leadership and collaboration with provinces and territories on efforts to renew the public health system in Canada and support a sustainable health-care. Thus the mission of PHAC is to promote and protect the health of Canadians through leadership, partnership, innovation and action in public health.
Focused on more effective efforts to prevent chronic diseases, like cancer and heart disease, prevent injuries and respond to public health emergencies and infectious disease outbreaks, the PHAC works closely with provinces and territories to keep Canadians healthy and help reduce pressures on the health-care system.
PHAC Community Acquired Infections Division (PHAC-CAID)
The Hepatitis C Prevention, Support and Research Section designs, develops, implements and supports projects that contribute to the prevention of hepatitis C infection; supports people infected with or affected by the disease; and increases public awareness about hepatitis C. In addition, the Community Acquired Infections Division provides the focal point for ensuring a coordinated and integrated federal public health response to hepatitis C.
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