I am very proud to announce the launch of a refreshed WHRI website which features new hubs focused on the WHRI’s digital health and grant facilitation resources. I am grateful to our team for collating these very useful resources for our membership, and to Melissa Nelson and Nicole Prestley for their vision and creativity in improving our website! Please take time to peruse our resources and news at www.whri.org and share this site with any colleagues or trainees who may be interested in joining the WHRI community!

Lori A Brotto PhD, R Psych
Executive Director, WHRI
Professor | Department of OBGYN, UBC
Canada Research Chair | Women’s Sexual Health

A refreshed WHRI website

We are excited to share a project we've been working on for the past few months: the launch of three resource hubs at whri.org.

Our first hub is a general resources hub, broken down by categories like Plain + Inclusive Language, Media + Communications, and Knowledge Translation. These sections will continue to evolve, so check back for updates! Have a resource you think we should share? Send it to whri.communications@cw.bc.ca.

The second is our Digital Health Hub, championed by Candice Taguibao, our Digital Health Manager. This hub is the home for all of WHRI's digital health work, and includes resources and the results of our Digital Health Survey.

Finally, our Funding Hub is managed by Eric Lussier, our Research Development Facilitator. It includes current funding opportunities, funding news, and a wealth of advice and resources to improve your grant writing. 

How can we apply feminist intersectionality to digital health research?

Telemedicine, mobile health apps, and other digital tools have made health care more accessible and convenient for many. But has the technological revolution in health care benefitted all groups equitably?

A recent viewpoint paper published in the Lancet suggests not. Women, particularly low-income women of colour, seem to be unfairly excluded from the full benefits of innovation.

Read a summary of the gaps and potential solutions for researchers here.

Special CST Virtual Town Hall from October 6 is online now

On October 6, the BC Children’s Hospital and BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre (C&W) research institutes jointly hosted a special CST Virtual Town Hall for the local research community.

From the CST team, Kate Saunders, Clinical Informatics Lead, Research and Clinical Trials, provided a summary of how CST implementation will impact the work of researchers on site and described the work that is currently underway to prepare for CST go-live in February 2022.

The presentation was then followed by a question and answer session with representatives from the C&W research institutes and the CST team. We’ve shared a summary of the town hall and the questions and answers from this session on ResearchHub.

The next town hall is not yet scheduled but if you have any questions between now and the next town hall, please email comm@bcchr.ca.

Catch up on @WomensResearch

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November 25th is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and we encourage you to listen and share two of our previous episodes of @WomensResearch.

The first features Drs. Jila Mirlashari, Ann Pederson, and Janet Lyons, whose work aims to help healthcare providers break the silence on perinatal violence in BC. 

The second features Dr. Paul van Donkelaar, Karen Mason, Quinn Boyle, and Dr. Kathryn Dewar discussing SOAR, or Supporting Survivors of Abuse and Brain Injury through Research.

Clinical Trial Monitoring On-Site at C&W

• All Monitors or Sponsor/CRO staff be required to have had at least one SARS-CoV-2 vaccine by October 26, 2021, or they will not be able to access our site or facilities.
• All staff and visitors on site must use hospital provided masks available at the entrances.

UBC Announces 2021 Faculty of Medicine Award Recipients

The University of British Columbia has announced the recipients of the 2021 Faculty of Medicine Awards, which recognize “faculty and staff members for excellence in teaching, research, administration, innovation and public service.”

We invite you to join us in congratulating this year’s recipients, which include ten WHRI members!

Congratulations, Kate!

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Congratulations to Kate Wahl who has been named a 2021 CIHR & Michael Smith Health Research BC co-funded Health System Impact Fellows.

Kate’s work is in support of equitable access to contraception, and will contribute to the policy roll out of free prescription contraception in British Columbia.

You can learn more about Kate’s work here.

Trainee Spotlight

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Kendra Zadravec is a PhD and Master of Physical Therapy student at the University of British Columbia under the supervision of Dr. Kristin Campbell. Her research focuses on identifying and managing shoulder and arm problems people may experience related to treatment for breast cancer through physiotherapy treatment.

Kendra's background includes a BSc in Kinesiology (2018) from the University of Victoria and MSc in Rehabilitation Sciences (2020) from the University of British Columbia. Her MSc thesis work involved a mixed methods study aiming to understand what characteristics of physiotherapy treatment (e.g., frequency and mode of treatment) people who have had breast cancer think are most important.

Currently, Kendra is completing her first year of UBC's Master of Physical Therapy program. She hopes to combine her research interests and clinical training in physiotherapy to identify and pursue meaningful research questions to improve the accessibility of physiotherapy services for people who have had breast cancer.

Digital Health Week: Register Now

We are excited to announce that the Women’s Health Research Institute is collaborating with the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute (BCCHR) to host various activities for Digital Health Week between November 29 and December 3. Join us as we discuss the future of digital health research and implementation and celebrate innovation in women’s, newborn, and children’s health in BC.

You won’t want to miss it! Learn more about the various activities during the week on the Eventbrite page and register today.

Call for Abstracts:
Digital Health Week

As part of Digital Health Week activities, we will be hosting virtual posters and a trainee poster competition!

The trainee poster award winner will receive a prize of $300.

Virtual Poster Presentation Details:

Date: Ongoing throughout the week of November 29 – December 3
Place: Single slide with five-minute video explanation to be hosted on YouTube
Eligibility to Submit: Trainees, investigators, clinicians, care-providers, and industry partners with an active digital health research or implementation project operating in BC.

Abstracts should be submitted using this online form by November 5th, 2021.

The full call for abstracts can be found here.

Women's health research funding update

The new WHRI Research Funding Hub is up, check out the newest features:

• Find Funding Opportunities
• Get grant development support
• Update your grant writing skills
• #WHRIfunding: a new space on Twitter for WHRI members to stay up to date and share funding news and resources

WOMEN’S HEALTH RESEARCH FUNDING NEWS

• CIHR Announces Support for SSHRC Race, Gender and Diversity initiative: 11/15, $450K, 3 yrs
• CIHR Pre-announces Health System Impact (HSI) Fellowship Funding Opportunity

Find your funding by downloading the Funding Opportunities and Deadlines List for all upcoming Women’s Health funding opportunities

Email Eric Lussier for assistance with developing a research idea, finding funding, grants applications or grants revisions. I am available every Tuesday from 8am-4pm for virtual office hour meetings with WHRI researchers, or at other times by appointment.

How do you set up a research program within a faculty?

Dr. Aline Talhouk, Dr. Michael Anglesio, and Dr. Paul Yong are here to answer your questions! Panelists will discuss how to set up a research program, how to find and apply for the most appropriate grants, budget your program, and work with human resources.

Register for this seminar of the Transitioning to an Academic Career Series, taking place on January 19, 2022 from 12 – 1pm PST! >> https://bit.ly/3FnaEcV   

Data Science and Health CPD

Building on momentum from last year's UBC CPD event, this year’s theme will focus on Impact and Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic. The program will serve as an accessible introduction to data science for clinicians, while reflecting on lessons learned from the COVID-19 response.

Designed to address the need for health care providers to improve their understanding of data science concepts, this interactive event will enable engagement and collaboration, and provide participants a practical roadmap for applying data science in healthcare research.  Participants will receive 9.0 MOC Section 1 & Mainpro+ Group Learning credits by joining our live Zoom session on Nov 9th and completing our self-paced Canvas modules.

Registration will provide access to:

●     1-year access to complimentary course content and online presentations from leading UBC data scientists and health researchers for self-paced learning on Canvas.

●     Our virtual event featuring prominent speakers like Dr. Muhammad Mamdani, VP of Data Science at Unity Health Toronto and Dr. Al Ozonoff, Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School! The event will take place on November 9th, 2021, 12:00 pm – 4:30 pm (PST) via Zoom.

●     Access to workshop series in collaboration with the Biomedical Imaging and AI cluster to help keep the momentum going. Partner with engineers to apply what you've learned and move your data science project forward.

For more information, and to access the full agenda with speaker bios, please visit the DASH website.

Registration is free for students and residents. For more information, please contact dash.coordinator@ubc.ca.

Assertiveness: Speaking Up for Yourself in Difficult Conversation

Are you looking for ways to build confidence and be assertive in challenging situations?

You may find yourself in conflict situations where there is a difference of power or unclear expectations but you lack the courage or tools to address the situation. This practical course will give you the skills necessary to engage in difficult conversations and express yourself with conviction.

This workshop will support you in:

• Clearly defining assertiveness
• Communicating with self-confidence
• Using assertiveness skills to prepare and deliver your message

The workshop curriculum has been tailored specifically for trainees involved in research and health sciences.

Registration: To create a safe space for learning and discussion, registration for this workshop is restricted to trainees and students affiliated with research on the Oak Street Campus. Space is limited.

To register, please submit this form.

Presented by Sherri Calder, MA, RCC, Cert.ConRes, Registered Clinical Counsellor and Communications Consultant. Sherri draws on her unique blend of experience as a counsellor, facilitator, educator, and coach to help individuals, couples, and groups face challenges in their personal or professional lives. Sherri has developed courses on a variety of topics and prides herself in delivering engaging and practical sessions. In addition to maintaining a private counselling practice, Sherri is a faculty member with the Centre for Conflict Resolution and the Public Safety Division at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.