The 12th IAB meeting was a one-day one as the Annual Meeting of INMHA followed thereafter. We were successful in covering most important issues and topics despite the short time, starting with a well deserved recognition of the contribution of outgoing IAB members (Bruce McEwen, Jack Jhamandas and Robert Ladouceur - many thanks to you guys for your exceptional contribution in the early days of INMHA) and welcoming new members including Patrice Roy from Pfizer, Douglas Zochodne from University of Calgary, Kathryn Bennett from McMaster University, and Jane Stewart from Concordia University. The bar has been set very high by former IAB members but we are convinced that you will as well be key in the life of INMHA.
INMHA staff then provided and update of their respective activities in regard to partnerships, budget, participation and organization of workshops and meetings, etc. Summaries of these brief presentations by the SD and staff are available upon request. Dr Bruce McManus, SD Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health then summarized the current activities of his Institute focusing on areas of current and potential joint interest with INMHA including stroke, sleep disorders, regenerative medicine and nanotechnologies, NIH initiatives, etc. He also reviewed for us the cross-cutting initiative on Clinician-Scientists and Clinical Research that he is championing at CIHR. The ensuing discussion focused on ways for INMHA to have direct inputs on this important initiative, and a proposal will be made to involve hospital and regional boards in the development of an initiative related to clinical research in mental health and addiction. Bruce's presentation stimulated much interest and it was proposed that the two Institutes could hold a joint IAB meeting in the coming year.
INMHA's budget was reviewed next. A small deficit is likely to occur in the Strategic Initiatives budget for FY 03-04 offsetting last year small surplus. Budget for FY 04-05 is likely to increase by at least one million allowing us to support initiatives currently underway such as tobacco abuse and nicotine addiction, neuroethics and regenerative medicine.
Peer-review was discussed next. Drs Barbara Woodside, Wayne Sossin & Kathryn Murphy , Scientific Officers and Chair (respectively) of three peer-review panels related to INMHA (Behavioral Sciences A & B, Neuroscience A) participated to the discussion, as well as Barbara Beckett, CIHR staff person involved with these panels. All recognized the overall excellence of peer-review at CIHR and thanked the SOs and all panel members. Alignment of peer-review panels with the Institute was then discussed, a full day retreat being planned by CIHR on this very topic. While Institutes are at arms length with peer-review panels, better relationships must be considered in the form of suggestion of potential panel members by the SD, IAB members and INMHA staff. The composition of the panels should be posted on CIHR Web site optimally few months before grant deadlines and participation on peer-review panels should be appropriately rewarded and recognized not only by CIHR but universities, hospitals and research institutes. Moreover, the peer-review panel selected by a grant applicant should always be respected. If this cannot be done on the basis of panel expertise or other reasons, the applicant must be contacted for approval. If denied, the submitted grant should be reviewed by the selected panel. While putting this recommendation into place may need additional resources, it was viewed by all as essential. Discussion as to the creation of new panels should also involve Institutes and their staff
Performance and Evaluation of CIHR and its Institutes was discussed next by Peggy Borbey from CIHR and the Richard Brière (INMHA Assistant Director). Progress is made at the Head Office to develop a common framework of evaluation (key indicators, impact, etc) for all Institutes. This should hopefully be completed in the next 6 months. Additionally, the SD recommended an independent evaluation of INMHA to be undertaken in mid 2004. This item will be discussed in more details at the next IAB meeting.
The various Focus groups of the IAB then reviewed their activities over the past few months in regard to International Affairs and Partnerships, Ethics, Industry and Biotechnologies, NGO and Government Affairs, and Training and Education. Highlights included the development of a training program involving the industry, meetings with future Prime Minister's staff, funding for research on ethics at CIHR and INMHA, focus on our international activities and improvement of linkage with CIHR proposals will be made and discussed at our next meeting. A brief description of up-coming events followed-up with a focus on Early Life Events-First Episodes (Feb. 9-10, 2004) and Mental Health in the Workplace (Apr. 28-29, 2004) workshops led by S. Kutcher, R. Briere, and A. Lesage and JY Savoie (Chair, Institute of Population Health), respectively. The 2nd Annual meeting was discussed next and updates were given by M. Steinbach and E. Beaucage (the meeting proved to be most successful-see Brain Brief, vol 1 No2, INMHA Web site for details). Future IAB meetings were discussed; next one to be held in Calgary (Mar. 5-6, 2004), the other in Quebec City (May 7-8, 2004) possibly as a joint meeting with another Institute and with special guests from WHO and PAHO. In other business, the SD asked IAB members to begin thinking beyond 2005, the end date of INMHA's first Strategic Plan. Our most effective Chair then proposed the adjournment of the meeting.
