McMaster University played host to the 18th INMHA Institute Advisory Board meeting on May 13th and 14th 2005. Many thanks to IAB member Kathy Bennett, Peter Szatmari (Division of Child Psychiatry, Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences), and David Andrews (CIHR University Delegate at McMaster) at McMaster who arranged a great welcome for us, and a number of special events that showcased McMaster's outstanding talent in INMHA-related areas of research. Thanks also to Dr. John Capone, Associate Dean of Research at the Faculty of Health Sciences, who gave us a warm welcome at the start of our meeting, and used his influence to arrange a presentation by the Hon. Tony Valeri, Liberal MP for the riding of Hamilton East and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, at our dinner on the evening of May 13th.
The meeting started on a high note with a presentation by Senator Michael Kirby on the November 2004 Mental Health, Mental Illness & Addiction report of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology which he co-chairs with Sen.Wilbert Keon. Sen. Kirby outlined the scope of the problem and the disconnect between the enormous burden of illness and the relatively small percentage of CIHR's funding that goes into research in mental health. Sen. Kirby promised that as he develops his final report, he will keep the public debate going and will continue to lobby for increased funding for research in this area and for an increase in the number of health professionals working in this area. At the end of his presentation, Sen. Kirby challenged INMHA to consider developing a multi-year mental health research agenda. Rémi Quirion pledged to provide more complete information on CIHR funding in the area of mental health research as a first step in this process.
Updates:
A spirited discussion followed Sen. Kirby's presentation, during which the critical importance of developing an action plan was recognized by all. The difficult issues of obtaining more funding for research, getting the commitment of provincial governments, combating stigma and improving service delivery were acknowledged. The group also noted the importance of keeping the Canadian Community Health Survey on Mental Health and Addiction current and easily available to researchers, the importance of the voluntary sector as a resource, the need for more applied research, the urgent need for better and broader dissemination of knowledge to decision makers and the public, and better sharing of best practices in clinical treatment.
At the end of Sen. Kirby's presentation, Rémi Quirion and Tony Phillips congratulated him and his committee on their work and assured him that he had INMHA's full support.
The Institute evaluation process was another major topic of discussion at the meeting. Dr. Céline Pinsent from Goss Gilroy Inc., which has been contracted to EKOS Research Associates to assist with the evaluation process, talked about the process and methods that are being used. Angus O'Leary (Senior Advisor, Evaluation & Analysis, CIHR) participated by teleconference. Methods chosen include document and data review, researcher surveys, key informant interviews, case studies, and a survey of non-researcher stakeholders. Key informants will include the IAB and staff, researchers, trainees, CIHR management, and stakeholders. The design report that has just been completed has built on the work done by INMHA's Evaluation Focus Group, along with several additional lines of evidence. In the discussion that followed, some concern was expressed that the process is very inward looking and unlikely to uncover new perspectives. There was also concern that some of the questions were difficult to answer, even for those who know INMHA very well. The group also noted the importance of including information about the reach and awareness of INMHA.
Peter Scholefield, Lead of the IAB Focus Group on Performance Evaluation and Budget, discussed the approach that guided the Focus Group in preparing its report, and summarized some questions that need to be answered in the Institute evaluation process:
This presentation sparked some lively discussion about the need to disseminate lay-language information about the research INMHA has funded in order to get it to patients and other lay groups. It was also decided that the Focus Group report should have an executive summary. This and issues of possible re-organization of the report will be discussed at a meeting of the Focus Group in Montreal in June.
The third major topic of discussion was updating INMHA's strategic plan, which dates from 2001 and needs to be reviewed to ensure that it is still current and relevant.
There was extensive discussion on the vision and mission statements of INMHA and there was consensus on some concepts for revision that will clarify their intent. Rémi Quirion will circulate drafts of the revised statements for comment.
Several IAB members indicated that they thought it was important that INMHA respond to Sen. Kirby's challenge to take leadership in developing a national research agenda for mental health. It is important that this be done soon in order to take advantage of the momentum generated by the Senate committee. The recommendations would have to be provided to the Senate committee by November 2005. Phil Upshall noted that the Minister of Health has committed to a national action plan for mental health, including research. We could provide him with a blueprint for action on research in mental health and addiction. Dedicated funding would hopefully follow the development of a national agenda. Ideally this would take the form of a separate commitment that CIHR/INMHA could manage along the lines of the HIV-AIDS model.
It was agreed that addiction should be included under the mental health umbrella, that a costing of the burden of mental illness must be done, and that a research agenda must include a focus on applied research in pillars 3 and 4.
International Focus Group - Astrid Eberhart
An RFA for a joint funding program in neuroscience has just been issued in conjunction with the Academy of Finland, and discussions are ongoing regarding an addictions program with the Academy of Finland and a neuroethics network with the Swedish Research Council. A conference on manual therapies, co-sponsored by INMHA and several other branches of CIHR, Health Canada and NIH, will take place in Washington in June, and the first meeting of the International Partnership on Mental Health Research will be held September 12th in Toronto. Joint announcements with NIH and numerous other partners have been launched in the areas of autism genetics, the shared neurobiology of fragile X and autism, and brain disorders in the developing world. Six grants have been approved through the joint CIHR-Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science program, of which 3 are relevant to INMHA. Dr. Elizabeth Thériault, Science & Technology Counsellor at the Canadian Embassy in Japan, made a brief presentation on the value of partnership with Japan. She noted that Japan, which has the world's second largest economy, has a strong focus on technology development and is aggressively seeking international partners.
Industry Focus Group - Lisa McKerracher
Dr. McKerracher noted that the trainee-industry program that has been proposed by the Focus Group should be launched by CIHR's RX&D Branch in September. She also proposed the establishment of a cross-Institute working group with IMHA and IA to begin building long-term relationships with industry and to lay the groundwork for exchanging information with industry.
Training and Education Focus Group - Mike Salter
Dr. Salter described plans for a November meeting in Montreal of all Strategic Training in Health Research (STIHR) programs that are fully or partially supported by INMHA. The IAB responded enthusiastically to a video that Dr. Salter showed that explained synaptic transmission and had been prepared as a knowledge translation tool by the STIHR that he leads. Dr. Salter noted that the future of STIHR programs will be discussed by the Research Planning and Priorities Committee (RPPC) at CIHR in the fall. The expectation that most STIHR programs would be self-sustaining does not seem to be panning out.
Ethics and Law Focus Group - Judy Illes
The Focus Group has several suggestions regarding neuroethics. Firstly, future RFA launches might generate more interest by using a program tool other than NETs. Secondly, setting up a neuroethics training program might have value. The group has also been discussing conflict of interest and has several concerns that they will discuss with CIHR staff responsible for CIHR' Confidentiality and Conflict of Interest policy.
NGO Partnership Focus Group - Mary Jardine
Ms. Jardine and Barb Beckett have been leading a project to re-connect with all the Canadian NGOs that have had dealings with INMHA in the past. Changes in INMHA staff and recent INMHA activities will be described and updated information will be gathered about all the NGOs and their activities. This will inform the review of INMHA's strategic plan and the evaluation of partnership activities. The Focus Group will also be developing an agenda for the NGO program at the annual INMHA meeting in Vancouver on October 14th and 15th. Knowledge translation (providing information about research results in lay language) will be a major topic of discussion. The group also plans to work on an information package for NGOs to use in advocating on INMHA's behalf with Parliamentarians.
Government Affairs & Networking Focus Group - Phil Upshall
Mr. Upshall reported on his activities with the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health. These include planning for the Champions of Mental Health dinner which will be held October 5th 2005, in conjunction with Mental Illness Awareness week. A blue-ribbon panel including Don Mazankowski, Michael Wilson, Jake Epp and Rémi Quirion will select this year's winner. CAMIMH will also undertake a mental health and literacy study that will include consideration of stigma. Mr. Upshall also reported that the provincial Ministers of Health have agreed to meet to discuss a possible mental health accord.
Clinical Research Focus Group - Rémi Quirion
This is a new Focus Group formed to help our experts in clinical research to be fully competitive with other disciplines in future research funding competitions of the Clinical Research Initiative of CIHR, now led by Bruce McManus. Lack of funds has been an ongoing problem for the Clinical Research Initiative but it is hoped this can be alleviated through a co-funding arrangement with CFI and possibly additional funding from the federal government. The Focus Group will concentrate initially on clinician-scientist training, including the need for release time. The group will also study data from CIHR on grants and awards funding in clinical research within INMHA's mandate.
From CIHR's Governing Council
Dr. Stephanie Atkinson, a CIHR Governing Council member from McMaster, described the work of CIHR's Standing Committee on Grants and Awards Committees (SCOGAC), which she co-chairs with Dr. Martin Schechter. SCOGAC serves a critical role at CIHR - it provides oversight for the peer review process, ensuring that a high standard of excellence is maintained for CIHR-funded research while at the same time allowing for capacity building in areas of strategic interest. SCOGAC provides direction for changes and improvements in the peer review system by examining grant allocation policies, the rating scale, the community reviewer program, etc. The ensuing discussion focused on reviewer fatigue, the increased pressure on training programs, the need for trainees to be informed about non-academic career options, and the role of the priority announcement program in capacity building.
McMaster research showcase
Lunchtime presentations by McMaster researcher included talks on knowledge translation by Dr. John Lavis (Canada Research Chair in Knowledge Uptake and Director of the Program for Policy Development) and Dr. Brian Haynes (Chair of the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics). They described the role of research in the area of health policy and described the many steps involved in knowledge transfer and uptake, including incorporation into decision making. It is critical that research knowledge be synthesized into high-level actionable messages suitable for the public, clinicians and decision makers, and that researchers be given information from end-users so that research is relevant to their needs - i.e. there must be a two-way exchange of information so that solutions effective for real-world situations are developed. There is a lot of knowledge already "out there" that has not yet been synthesized into a form that is useful for end-users.
McMaster young investigators Dr. Valerie Taylor (Mood Disorders Program) and Dr. Jane Foster (Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences) described their research. Dr. Taylor spoke about medical co-morbidities of mood disorders and the need to understand the causes of physical changes associated with some mood disorders. Dr. Foster discussed the unique role of immune molecules in the central nervous system, where they affect neuronal viability and function.
Following the first day's activities, McMaster hosted a reception for researchers, trainees and INMHA IAB members and staff. This set a receptive atmosphere for the excellent poster session organized by Dr. Peter Szatmari, Head of Division of Child Psychiatry, Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences at McMaster.
CIHR and INMHA updates
Rémi Quirion described ongoing discussions on the allocation of additional funds from this year's CIHR budget to the Institutes, and the status of the IAB renewal process. New IAB members are expected to be named by July 2005.
INMHA programs with current activity include the following:
INMHA updates:
