CIHR, with the lead of its Ethics Office and its Institute of Muskuloskeletal Health and Arthritis, is pleased to honour Dr. Kinsella's accomplishments in bioethics and his lifelong promotion of the ethical treatment of humans in research, by offering a Doctoral Research Award in his name. This award is offered to an outstanding individual whose research focuses on ethical issues related to health and/or health research.
The Douglas Kinsella Award consists of a supplement to a regular Doctoral Research Award in the amount of $15,000 for the stipend and $5,000 for the research allowance, or in the event that the awardee qualifies for a Canada Graduate Scholarships Doctoral Award, the supplement would consist of an additional $10,000 stipend and $5,000 research allowance. The supplement to the research allowance is intended to be used mainly for travel to national or international conferences, workshops or meetings related to ethical issues related to health and/or health research.
One such Doctoral Research Award will be available each year. It will be awarded to the highest ranking candidate who applies to the Doctoral Research Award competition, whose research focuses on ethical issues related to health and/or health research and who is ranked highly enough to be approved for a regular CIHR Doctoral Research Award or a Canada Graduate Scholarships Doctoral Award. Note that students funded currently through CIHR grants, including CIHR Strategic Training Program Grants, are also eligible to apply for this award through the CIHR Doctoral Research Award competition.
Please refer to the program description for Doctoral Research Awards for general application procedures. Eligible candidates who wish to be considered for the Douglas Kinsella Doctoral Award for Research in Bioethics should indicate the name of the program, under the Special Program section, on page three of the Training Module. Please note that indicating this award does not restrict an applicant's chances of being approved for a regular CIHR Doctoral Research Award or a Canada Graduate Scholarships Doctoral Award.
T. Douglas Kinsella, CM, MD, FRPC (February, 15, 1932 - June 15, 2004) dedicated much of his life to the field of bioethics, including research on ethical, legal and medical issues involved in assisted suicide, non-voluntary euthanasia, and genetics research. He was also a champion of research ethics, in particular, governance and ethical issues involved with human experimentation.
Dr. Kinsella left his mark on the medical and research community in many ways, through such roles as the Director of Medical Bioethics and Professor of Medicine, the University of Calgary; President, Canadian Rheumatism Association; Chairman, The Canadian Arthritis Society's Medical and Scientific Committee; Member, Royal College Biomedical Ethics Committee; Member, Clinical Investigation Committee, and Standing Committee on Ethics in Experimentation, Medical Research Council of Canada; Visiting Scholar, Centre for Medical Ethics, University of Chicago; Founding Member and President, National Council on Bioethics in Human Research; Member, Editorial Committee and Tri-Council Working Group for the Canadian Code of Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans; Founding Member and President, Canadian Bioethics Society; Founding Member and Chair, Implementation Committee and Vice-Chair Research Ethics Review Committee, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta; Founding Member of the Board of Directors, Member and Chairman of the Safety, Science and Ethics Committee; and Member of the Human Resources Committee of the Canadian Blood Services. Even in retirement Dr. Kinsella remained actively involved in community affairs through activities such as the Community Editorial Board of The Kingston Whig Standard.
Until his death Dr. Kinsella continued to have an impact in the world of bioethics as the Ethics Designate of CIHR's Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis Advisory Board.
