health research data platform saskatchewan

Health data platform will transform research in Saskatchewan

Health Research Data Platform – Saskatchewan (HRDP-SK) has approved its first data access requests, marking a leap forward for health research in that province. Funded by HDRN Canada and the Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR), it is the only platform in Saskatchewan to integrate health data from multiple agencies. HRDP-SK’s secure, cloud-based environment enables secondary data users – those who use previously collected data for a new purpose, such as research – to access health data, which are de-identified to ensure privacy and confidentiality.

“HRDP-SK advancements are instrumental in improving health data access here in Saskatchewan,” said Christina Weise , HDRN Canada Board member and SCPOR Executive Director. “Several time-consuming steps have been eliminated and researchers can now access more databases more efficiently.” Having a data access centre will better align Saskatchewan with other provinces, Weise added, helping to ensure that Saskatchewan data are represented in research.

Using HRDP-SK, researchers in Saskatchewan can access health system data that are already being collected — a clear advantage according to Dr. Derek Jorgenson , a Professor in the College of Pharmacy at the University of Saskatchewan. Dr. Jorgenson, who is the Principal Investigator of the project, An Interprofessional Model for Chronic Pain Management, was recently approved to access data through HRDP-SK. “This opens the door to incredible opportunities to identify health system problems sooner and better measure the impact of the solutions to those problems,” he said.

There is another benefit, pointed out Dr. Kim McGrail , HDRN Canada Scientific Director and CEO: “Researcher access to data through HRDP-SK is an important step forward for health research and innovation to address our health system challenges, in no small part because this will enable the province to be part of multi-regional studies in Canada.”

As a member of HDRN Canada , HRDP-SK joins other data centres across Canada in a pan-Canadian project to support researcher access to multi-regional health data via the Data Access Support Hub (DASH). HDRN Canada’s DASH facilitates access to routinely collected administrative and other linkable data from multiple provinces or territories. It serves as a single intake point for researchers, confirming the eligibility and feasibility of data requests, offering cost estimates, and providing centralized data access support from study conceptualization through to data delivery.

The DASH Team played a significant role in the initial development of HRDP-SK. “Partnering with HDRN Canada was invaluable to developing Saskatchewan’s provincial data access infrastructure for research,” explained Malori Keller , HDRN Canada-Saskatchewan Lead. “Being part of a national network of data centres was especially beneficial because it gave us access to a rich reservoir of templates, examples, frameworks, and experiences for us to learn from.”

Researchers can now request data via the HRDP-SK website , and additional data integration work is underway to increase the number of databases available. 

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Research - Our Team

Brandy Winquist, Executive Director, Academics and Learning:  Dr. Brandy Winquist is the Executive Director, Academics and Learning in the Saskatchewan Health Authority. As a member of the senior leadership team, she provides oversight for the Research, Ethics, and Academic Health Sciences departments. Brandy obtained her PhD in Community and Population Health Sciences at the University of Saskatchewan, after completing a strategic training fellowship in a CIHR-funded Community and Population Health Research training program. 

Dr. Winquist is an adjunct professor in the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan and her research interests span the areas of perinatal epidemiology, health services and population health. She is a co-principal investigator for the Canadian Mother Child Cohort initiative and studies trends in medication use and safety during pregnancy. Most recently, she received funding from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation to develop a longitudinal pregnancy cohort in Saskatchewan using administrative and clinical data. The cohort is part of a national infrastructure to enhance surveillance of perinatal risk factors and outcomes. Brandy serves on various provincial and national research committees, including the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation Board, HealthCareCan VP Research Committee, Health Research Data Network, and the SCPOR Learning Health System Council. 

Dr. Elan Paluck, Director of Research Elan Paluck, BSP, MSc., Ph.D. is the Director of Research for the Saskatchewan Health Authority. She began her career in research more than 23 years ago at the University of British Columbia (UBC) as an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and an Adjunct to the UBC Institute of Health Promotion Research. Since returning home to Saskatchewan, she has been instrumental in leading and supporting research initiatives that make meaningful differences to patients, staff and the health care system. As the Director of Research, she helps broker valuable partnerships between the health authority and faculty at the University of Regina and University of Saskatchewan wishing to engage in clinical, health services, health policy, evaluation, and/or implementation research

Sandy Kassir , Research Manager : Master of Science in Biochemistry with neuroscience focus, University of Regina; Master of Public Health with focus in epidemiology, University of Saskatchewan, Bachelor of Science (Honors) in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, University of Toronto. She joined the SHA Research Department in December 2019. Specialties include supporting research administration including  national and provincial funding and development of new research-related policies and strategic initiatives. As the Research Manager, she helps ensure the provision of a high-quality, client-centered, research administrative services that will support the conduct of quality research to advance patient care, population health, and health care teams. She also ensures that effective and efficient research review processes are in place, and that there is broad organizational awareness of research supports available within the SHA.

Research Administration Team 

The Research Administration team is a group of professionals with expertise regarding the policies, procedures and guidelines that must be followed through all phases of a research project. The Research Administration team works with researchers to facilitate the research ethics, operational approval, grant review and contract review/negotiation processes for research projects involving the SHA. 

Brenda Anton-Tempel, Operational Approval Associate  Bachelor of Business Administration, University of Regina. Brenda joined the SHA Research team May 2019.

Sharleen Maley, BSc, PGD, CCRP, ACRP-CP, Research Approval Coordinator: Responsible for coordinating the Department Impact Assessments and Operational Approval Process. She began her career in clinical research more than 19 years ago at the University of Saskatchewan, working as a Clinical Research Associate for the Saskatchewan Drug Research Institute. She eventually went on to work as a Clinical Research Professional and Research Program Manager with the Clinical Trial Support Unit and with the Saskatchewan Cerebrovascular Centre. She is an ACRP-CP Exam Committee member, helping to craft the international certifying examinations for those with careers in clinical research, and lends her clinical research and regulatory expertise to Saskatchewan researchers needing support.

Casey McMahon , Contracts and Funding Specialist : Master of Science in Kinesiology, University of Saskatchewan; Bachelor of Kinesiology, Brock University. Casey joined the SHA Research team in June 2021. 

Mohamad Bayram, Contracts and Funding Specialist: Master of Business Administration in Project Management, Cardiff Metropolitan University; Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance, Hariri Canadian University. Mohamad joined the SHA Research Department in July 2024.

Oluwadamilola (Dami) Odeleye, Research Ethics Associate: Master of Science in Kinesiology, University of Saskatchewan; Bachelor of Education in Human Kinetics and Health Education, University of Ibadan. Oluwadamilola joined the SHA Research team June 2022.

College of Medicine (Regina Campus) Clinical Research Team

The Regina Campus Clinical Research Team supports research projects being conducted by geographically based medical learners, residents and physicians. The team assists with all phases of the research process in order to find new and better ways to detect, diagnose, treat, and prevent disease and ultimately, improve patient care. 

Sanjida Newaz , Research Specialist : Master of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Canada; Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Research specialties include refugee and migrant health, health policy and planning, qualitative research, and mixed methods research.

Karolina Gryzb, Research Specialist:  Master of Science in Health Studies, University of Regina; Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Sciences, Faculdades Pequeno Principe, Brazil. Karol joined the SHA Research Team in March 2021, supporting the Clinician Research Support Program. In this capacity, she provides valuable support to early career Clinician Researchers to shape and enhance their research portfolio by achieving early successes and help them build a record of accomplishments that can strengthen their future funding applications to provincial, national, and international opportunities

Kirat Shukla, Research Specialist: Kirat holds a Doctorate in Biomechanics and Sensorimotor Neuroscience from the University of Saskatchewan, along with a Master's degree in Neuromuscular Physiology from the University of New Brunswick, Canada. His areas of interest include quantitative research, rehabilitation, community-based research methods, patient-oriented research, community engagement, biostatistics, knowledge translation, and research ethics. Kirat joined the SHA Research Department in September 2022. 

Jyotpal (Joe) Singh, Research Specialist: Jyotpal joined the SHA research department as a research scientist in August 2023. His research interests include pathophysiology of cardiovascular, pulmonary, and neurological diseases, rehabilitation, acute care, and clinical trial methodology. Jyotpal is also a passionate teacher about research and works closely with acute care and frontline personnel, physicians, medical students, and other healthcare providers. 

Shubrandu Sanjoy , Research Specialist : Master of Science in Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of Western Ontario; Master of Public Health in Epidemiology, North South University, Bangladesh. Research specialties include epidemiology, big data, statistical modeling, and multivariate analyses.

Health Services/Strategic Priorities

The Health Services and Strategic Priorities (HSSP) research team investigates how social, personal, and organizational factors affect healthcare access, utilization, and service delivery, and ultimately, health outcomes. Health services research can provide data and tools to support evidence-informed decision making and policy development, helping to ensure that the people of Saskatchewan have access to high quality, affordable, effective, and equitable patient-centered health care.

Michelle McCarron , Research Scientist : Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental and Applied Psychology, University of Regina; Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology, University of Regina; Bachelor of Arts (High Honors) in Psychology, University of Regina. Research specialties include qualitative research, program evaluation, and research ethics, with research interest in areas of mental health (e.g., post-traumatic stress injuries among Public Safety Personnel, moral injury in frontline healthcare workers), online training/education, and ethics.

Mamata Pandey , Research Scientist : Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental and Applied Psychology, University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada; Master of Arts in Experimental and Applied Psychology, University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada; Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India; Bachelor of Arts in Clinical Psychology, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India. Research specialties include mixed methods research, art based methods, community participatory research methods, patient-oriented research, Indigenous research methodologies, program evaluation, community engagement, knowledge translation and multi-disciplinary and sectoral research designs. 

Daniel Adeyinka , Research Scientist: Doctor of Philosophy in Community and Population Health Science, University of Saskatchewan, Canada; Master of Public Health, Cardiff University, United Kingdom; Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. Daniel joined the SHA Research team September 2022. Research specialties include quantitative research, interdisciplinary research, health equity, maternal and child health, infectious diseases, healthcare strengthening, mental health, and quality improvement.

Alicia Husband, Research Specialist: Specialty in Knowledge Translation; Master of Public Health, University of Saskatchewan; Bachelor of Health Studies, University of Regina. Alicia joined the SHA in the fall of 2022. Alicia has worked in Research for the past 10 years. As a Research Specialist with a specialty in Knowledge Translation, Alicia supports knowledge creation, translation and dissemination of Patient-Oriented Learning Health Systems Projects in the SHA. 

Deanna Bickford, Research Specialist: Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing, University of Saskatchewan. Deanna has been a registered nurse for over 25 years working in acute and community care, education, and research. Her areas of interest and specialty are qualitative research, visual methods, community based participatory research, Indigenous research methodologies, health equity, and wise practices.

Joshua Shitta, Research Specialist: Master of Science in Community and Population Health Science and a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Management and Toxicology from the University of Saskatchewan. Joshua joined the SHA Research Department in October 2023. Research specialties include qualitative research, environmental health, and indoor air quality. Joshua works with the SHA to support Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR) projects. 

Adelaide Amah, Research Specialist: Master of Science in Health Sciences, University of Saskatchewan; Bachelor of Science in Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Saskatchewan. Adelaide joined the SHA Research team in September 2022. Research specialties include quantitative research, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and neurological disorders with an emphasis on stroke. Adelaide works with SHA to support Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR) projects.

Health Data Access and Statistical Analysis

The Health Data Access and Statistical Analysis group is a multidisciplinary team that combines statistics, economics, mathematics, and technology to conduct healthcare data analytics (statistical analysis plans, survey designs, descriptive analyses, and data modeling). They gather and integrate data from various sources to unearth insights regarding health care access and utilization, health outcomes, cost and effectiveness of programs and services. Their work enables decision makers to develop evidence-informed strategies that align with the SHA’s strategic goals.

Charles Plante , Research Scientist : Doctor of Philosophy, McGill University, Montreal, Canada; Master of Arts, McGill University, Montreal, Canada; Bachelor of Arts, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada. Charles joined the SHA Research team in 2021. Research specialties include Population Health, Social Epidemiology, and Health Systems, Policy, and Economics. Charles is a sociologist. 

Francis Abayateye, Research Specialist: Master of Science in Agricultural Economics and Master of Science in Community and Population Health Sciences. Francis joined the SHA Research Team in September 2022, supporting the Health Research Data Platform - Saskatchewan (HRDP-SK). In this capacity, he provides valuable support to researchers accessing the platform, assisting them in navigating the intricacies of health data research and ensuring compliance with data governance and privacy regulations. Francis serves as the site representative for Saskatchewan within HDRN Canada, showcasing his leadership and commitment to advancing health data research at the provincial level. He also provides expertise and guidance to researchers interested in accessing multi-provincial data through the Data Access Support Hub (DASH), which includes the datasets held by HRDP-SK.

Bong Soo Kim, Research Analyst: Master of Arts in Economics, University of Saskatchewan. Bong Soo joined the SHA Research team in 2022. Research specialties include quantitative research and policy research.

Anousheh Marouzi, Research Specialist: Master of Science in Community and Population Health Sciences, University of Saskatchewan; Doctor of Pharmacy, Mashad University of Medical Sciences. Anousheh joined the SHA research team in 2022. Research specialties include quantitative research, social epidemiology, and health equity.

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SKY-RDC is now open by appointment only for those with an approved project and valid security clearance, with precautions in place to ensure a safer working environment during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Datasets at SKY-RDC

How to access rdc data, datasets at usask library, publications.

The Saskatchewan Research Data Centre (SKY-RDC) is a research data platform that provides researchers, including faculty and students, access to Statistics Canada microdata masterfiles of Canadian censuses, cross-sectional and longitudinal population and household surveys, administrative data holdings and linked data. These data can be used to investigate a wide range of demographic, social, economic and health-related topics.

The Saskatchewan Research Data Centre (SKY-RDC) is a research data platform that is part of a nation-wide network of research data centres (RDCs) - the Canadian Research Data Centres Network (CRDCN). We are a joint venture of the University of Saskatchewan and Statistics Canada, providing secure access to detailed microdata from Statistics Canada's surveys and censuses. Increasingly, administrative datasets from the federal and provincial governments are also becoming available through RDCs. Our mandate is to support research and training in social, economic and population health statistics to create new knowledge about Canadian society.  Anyone can use an RDC if your project has received approval through the official Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) mandated approval process. Faculty, students, public agencies, provincial agencies, non-profits members, and members of the public may become approved researchers and be granted access to resources through RDCs like SKY-RDC. Researchers whose projects are approved will be subject to a security clearance procedure before being sworn in under the  Statistics Act as 'deemed employees'. See How to Access RDC Data for more information.  The detailed data accessible in RDCs complements the Statistics Canada Data Liberation Initiative (DLI) that provides direct, unmediated access to public use microdata files (PUMF) through academic libraries.  Researchers use SKY-RDC microdata to investigate a wide range of social, economic and health-related topics. Some examples include population structure; disease prevalence; living with chronic diseases; labor force participation; adult literacy; household spending; child poverty; internet use; school success; workplace stress; Indigenous well-being; immigrant integration; and mental health/illness. RDCs, like SKY-RDC, are essential infrastructure for quantitative inquiry. Decision-makers and the public need up-to-date and in-depth analyses of relevant data to develop evidence-informed policy decisions that respond to today's needs and anticipate tomorrow's.

SKY-RDC is effectively an extension of Statistics Canada offices with an on-site Statistics Canada analyst to provide data-related knowledge and services and ensure compliance with confidentiality policies and procedures.

Our Partners

The operation of SKY-RDC is made possible by funding and in-kind contribution from the University of Saskatchewan , in-kind contributions from Statistics Canada , and grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) , the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) , and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI) .

There is a variety of data available through SKY-RDC, and RDCs throughout the country, on demographics, health, economic and social characteristics of the Canadian population. These detailed datasets are provided as Master Files. Facsimiles of the Statistics Canada surveys used to collect this data are also available.

See Nesstar  to search and identify variable of interest on the microdata files and determine whether a PUMF or RDC master file would best fit your research needs. 

Please note that longitudinal surveys and linked survey and administrative datasets are only available through the RDCs.

• Explore Datasets Available at RDCs
• Application Process and Guidelines

To access the microdata housed in SKY-RDC, researchers must submit a project proposal to an online adjudicating committee operating under the auspices of SSHRC and Statistics Canada. SSHRC invites applications from individual researchers and research teams led by a principal applicant. 

Carefully follow the application process detailed on the Statistics Canada website .  

Understand your responsibilities as an RDC user:

• Read a sample research proposal to understand the guideline for a successful application.
• Ensure your project adheres to the guidelines for RDC research papers , including peer review, required for all RDC supported research publications.  
• Acknowledge your use of RDC data in publications, presentations, and theses. All publications (scientific articles, reports, dissertations, theses, etc.) and presentation using datasets available through RDCs should include an acknowledgment of support provided by granting councils (SSHRC, CIHR, CFI), Statistics Canada, and the host university. Below is a template that you can use: 

Public Use Microdata Files (PUMF)

Not all research requires access to Master Files through an RDC. In fact, it is a condition of access to RDC Master Files that your proposed study cannot be done with available PUMF files.

Public Use Microdata Files (PUMF) contain de-identified data for characteristics pertaining to survey units (e.g., individuals, households, or businesses) that have been authorized for release to the public by Statistics Canada Microdata Release Committee.

PUMF contain similar data to RDC Master Files but may include only a subset, not the full sample of respondents. In order to protect against the possibility of identification, the statistical aggregates or categorizations used are at a more general level (e.g., age categories rather than single years of age, higher levels of geography such as provinces or regions rather than census tract areas, no income or ethnicity variables, etc.). This general level of aggregation and categorization may limit the kinds of research that can be done with this data which is why access to more detailed data via the RDC program could be more appropriate. In addition, the RDC master files contain derived variables and bootstrap weights used to calculate variance.

To see research done on a specific topic, using a particular survey, or done in a specific RDC, you can search the Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN) bibliography . It provides quick and easy access to all publications by researchers in the national network. The bibliography includes M.A. and Ph.D. theses, policy reports, working papers, articles published in refereed journals, and book chapters.

• Research from SKY-RDC (Saskatoon)
• [email protected]
• (306) 966-8216
• (306) 966-8278
• Monday - Friday: 9 am to 5 pm
• Saturday & Sunday: Closed

Ruben Mercado, Ph.D., Statistics Canada Analyst (General Inquiries) (306) 966-8216

Dr. Mercado is an employee of Statistics Canada responsible for the daily operations of the Centre including enforcing Statistics Canada data confidentiality regulations and vetting output from research projects.

Sarah Rutley, MA, MLIS, Interim Academic Director for SKY-RDC [email protected]

Sarah Rutley is a University of Saskatchewan faculty member and the institution’s Data and GIS Librarian. She is responsible for the local governance and administration of the Centre as well as its promotional and outreach activities.

Visitors' address:

University of Saskatchewan, Murray Library Room 237 Murray Building, South Wing 3 Campus Drive, Saskatoon SK S7N 5A4

Mailing address:

University of Saskatchewan Library Room 156 Murray Building, Dean's Office 3 Campus Drive, Saskatoon SK S7N 5A4 Canada

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USask researchers to gain remote access to huge array of Statistics Canada data

A recent investment of $17.4 million in a national research and training platform by two federal granting agencies will provide University of Saskatchewan (USask) health and social sciences researchers secure remote access to a wide array of microdata from Statistics Canada.

“This is a significant investment in terms of social sciences, and it will provide faculty and graduate students access to survey data on large samples of 30,000 or 60,000 people they wouldn’t otherwise be able to actually generate,” said Dr. Carl D’Arcy (PhD), professor of psychiatry in USask’s College of Medicine, and School of Public Health (epidemiology).  

“I want to stress that it’s high-quality, anonymized data you can access and use it whatever reasonable way you see fit. It provides huge opportunities for doing research of significance to Canada or even regionally,” said D’Arcy, academic director for the Saskatchewan Research Data Centre (SKY-RDC) platform. Study results are publishable in high quality journals.  

SKY-RDC is part of the nationwide Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN) that received the funding announced in November by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). This investment follows another $17.4 million in ongoing funding for CRDCN announced this summer by the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).  

D’Arcy said researchers can divide the national data sets provided by Statistics Canada and administrative data available from federal and provincial agencies any way they want to, and look at a single province, region or the entire country.   

“What’s readily available is really significant,” D’Arcy said, noting that about 40 faculty and student clusters are making use of the data, with graduate students often using the platform to access information for use in their theses. Researchers need an approved project to access data.  

With available data covering long periods, researchers can track trends in everything from population structure to disease prevalence, adult literacy, immigration integration, and child poverty. Data from the Canadian Social Survey provides data on everything from well-being, unpaid work, and family time to quality of life and cost of living, to issues such as discrimination. The wide array of other data covers geographical data, agriculture-related data, economic data of all types, and health-related data.  

“I don’t think USask faculty and students make as much use of it as they should, especially because for junior faculty members it’s high-quality data you can use that really requires no extra funding,” he said.  

“When you wish to develop an area of expertise and do not have a large amount of grant funding available to you, these datasets give you a foundation from which you can certainly develop a publication track record. All it takes is your time and effort.”  

SKY-RDC currently has about 10 workstations at its location in the Murray Library, where USask users and authorized users must go to access the data through the CRDCN network with support from onsite Statistics Canada analyst Dr. Ruben Mercado (PhD).   

The planned move in the next year or two by Statistics Canada and 33 universities across Canada to establish the new virtual Research Data Centre (vRDC) platform will, for the first time, enable bonafide social science and health researchers to remotely access most of the confidential datasets through their laptops or tabletop computers, as well as enhance their access at campus-based RDCs.  

Article re-posted on Apr 16, 2024 10:57:34 AM . View original article.

Congratulations Shiva Naseri!

Dr. vatanparast recipient of shrf 2023 career achievement award, ‘training public health professionals to meet the needs and challenges of today, and the future’, congratulations dr. masud rana.

Other health research partnerships and collaborations

Research collaborations.

The Health Quality Council works with academic and clinician-researchers, patient partners, administrative decision-makers, policy-makers as well as communities to explore key questions that matter about health and health care quality of Saskatchewan residents.

Examples of these collaborations where we contribute our measurement and analytical experience include:

• The Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR ): SCPOR is a collaboration of eight Saskatchewan organizations – including the Saskatchewan health Quality Council – that have committed resources to building provincial and national capacity for patient-oriented research.
• The Canadian Network for Observational Drug Effect Studies (CNODES) :   the Health Quality Council is the Saskatchewan site for this national network that develops state-of-the-art analytical methods and networks of highly-skilled researchers, data analysts and clinicians that are able to rapidly evaluate the risks and benefits of drugs on the health of Canadians.

Examples of Health Quality Council’s research collaborations

Care pathways analytics: integrating patient-centred outcomes in economic evaluations of care pathways in saskatchewan.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the clinical and economic impacts of the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease care pathway program (COPD-CPP) in Saskatchewan. Funded by Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF) through The Sprout Grant, the research objectives are to assess the impacts of the COPD care pathway program on health care use and costs, and on patients’ health outcomes, as well as assessing the short-term cost-effectiveness of the COPD care pathway program.

The Health Quality Council is providing the data linkage analyst support, and building capability and skills with an external analyst to complete the analysis.

Health Services Use and Trajectories of People who are Transgender and Gender Diverse in Saskatchewan

This project aims to show the patterns of health services use of transgender and gender diverse people in our province. This evidence will support the larger project that is evaluating the impact of peer navigators in assisting transgender and gender diverse people as they access care.

This research, along with the wider project, will increase research capacity and outreach, create new knowledge, inform health care practices and training, and address social, health, and healthcare access for people who are transgender and gender diverse.

The Health Quality Council is providing research and analyst support to a team of researchers from the University of Saskatchewan and patient partners through its data services role. 

Examining Health Services Use of Rural and Remote Memory Clinic (RRMC) Patients

The goal of this study is to increase understanding of mild cognitive impairment and dementia among patients, factors that might lead to earlier diagnoses, factors affecting patients’ referral to memory clinics, and the impact of diagnoses on medical care and health service use. This work sheds new light on the health system and resource use among dementia patients both before and after diagnosis.

The Health Quality Council’s access to and knowledge of administrative health data is critical to this study. The Health Quality Council is able to link the RRMC-collected data related to the abilities and care of patients with data collected in other aspects of the health care system.

Predictors, Patterns, and Outcomes of Opioid Use in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

The goal of this project is to determine the cumulative incidence of opioid use and chronic opioid use, as well as evaluate trends in the prevalence of opioid use over time. Through this research, the impact of opioids on IBD-related and all-cause health service utilization, and direct health care costs will be evaluated. The impact of opioids on the risk of long-term outcomes will also be determined and predictors of patients at risk for chronic opioid use will be identified.

The Health Quality Council is providing the data linkage analyst support and building capability with an external analyst to complete the analysis along with local researcher, Dr. Pena-Sanchez. Dr. Pena-Sanchez is part of the Canadian Gastro-Intestinal Epidemiology Consortium (CanGIEC) . 

The Rising Burden of Lung Cancer: An inter-provincial health economic analysis

This project is a historical cohort analysis of adult patients diagnosed with a primary diagnosis of lung cancer in Saskatchewan and Ontario over a 10-year period. Cancer registry data will be linked with provincial large health databases to estimate and compare healthcare-related costs of lung cancer between provinces.

Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) , this project is being led by Dr. Erika Penz in collaboration with a research team from the University of Saskatchewan and the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency.

The Health Quality Council is accessing large health databases and linking to Saskatchewan Cancer Agency data, performing the analysis to produce the evidence from Saskatchewan.   

Understanding the Challenge of Dementia in Saskatchewan First Nations

This study is the first step to better understanding care and access issues for First Nations people with dementia in Saskatchewan. The results from this study will assist First Nations leadership, policymakers, program developers and researchers better understand the complexities and context of dementia in First Nations populations, improve programs supporting First Nations health care services, and support policy change and the development of tools to work towards improving the health and wellbeing of First Nations people. This project provides a potential platform for ethical, participatory, and community-driven analyses of First Nations-identified administrative health care data. 

The Health Quality Council is collaborating with the local research team by accessing large health databases and applying our researcher and analyst support.  

Ultrasound Imaging Utilization in Saskatchewan: A cross-sectional study

This work is part of a larger study aimed at determining the impact of bringing telesonography to rural communities. Telesonography is a technology that allows a sonographer to conduct an ultrasound exam from a different location. The study sought to answer the question of how distance from an ultrasound affects peoples’ and patients’ ultrasound use. 

This work is important because it helps address one aspect of inequities in care that often exist between rural and urban citizens. It can also help give decision-makers evidence they can use to defend resource allocation decisions.

This study leveraged the Health Quality Council’s access to and expertise in administrative health data as well as statistical modelling. 

Health research partnerships contact

To inquire about opportunities for health research partnerships and collaborations, please visit our Contact Us page for the most up-to-date contact information.

Recommended Content

• Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR) Partnership
• Canadian Network for Observational Drug Effect Studies (CNODES) Partnership

• Resources and Analytics for Authorized Users
• Open Data and Public Reporting Currently selected
• Researcher Access to Data
• Use & Disclosure of Personal Health Information

Open Data and Public Reporting

​​​​​Open Data is data that can be freely used, reused and redistributed by anyone.

What makes this data “open” is that it isn’t limited by restrictions on access or usage. This type of data is delivered in a structured format, making it easier to use, sort and repurpose.

Two of the most frequently requested aggregate data files that are available for the public to access include:

• Saskatchewan health coverage counts
• For example, number of Saskatchewan residents with health coverage.
• Vital statistics event tracking
• For example, baby names, births and deaths.

Public Reports

These public reports have been developed to allow users to view the data in a variety of ways.

Some examples of how these data can be viewed include:

• by Regional Health Authority

Some important points to note:

• The reports are de-identified and aggregated to remove any personal health information before they are available for public use; and
• Users do not need a username or password to access to eHealth Saskatchewan’s Public information.

Watch Publicly Available Self-​Serve Reports Video

We continue to work with our health system partners to make it easier to access these freely-available open data sets and reports.

Online Resources

The initial stage of the Open Data and Public Reporting portal makes data available from the following three major categories:

Health System

Healthcare indicators.

• Healthcare indicators Statistics Canada
• The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) health indicators
• CIHI and Stats Canada Health Indicators
• International Comparisons
• CIHI Quick Stats
• CIHI Health Indicator Library
• Saskatchewan Health Status Reports

Safety and injuries

• Critical Incidents
• Surgical wait times
• Inter-provincial wait time comparisons
• Annual reports
• CIHI reports ​
• Statistics Canada reference maps

Public Health Methodologies

• Association of Public Health Epidemiologists of Ontario
• Centre for Disease Control (USA)

Demographics

• Statistics Canada
• Aboriginal population

Population Health

• Saskatoon Health Region - Public Health Observatory
• Northern Saskatchewan Population Health Unit Health Monitoring
• Population Health of Northern Saskatchewan​
• Saskatchewan Population Health Assessment and Surveillance Reports​

Chronic Disease Indicators

• Chronic disease information base (Public Health Agency of Canada)

Directories

• Specialist Directory
• Medical Services Branch annual reports

Share Additional Resource Links

External links to public data sets will be reviewed, and new ones added from time to time.

Share links to resources others may find useful by contacting us at:

• Email: [email protected]

Funding Initiatives

The OVDR offers a number of funding opportunities to our faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students, and postgraduates as a way to support and encourage trainees, faculty, and staff of the College of Medicine in research activities.

Undergraduate

Post graduate and residents.

• Dean's Projects
• Biomed Projects
• MD Volunteer
• Publication
• MD Research Experience

Letters of Excellence

• Undergraduate Research Showcase

Dean's Summer Research Projects

Current round of project proposal submission has closed. The next round of Dean’s Projects submissions will begin October 2024 for 2025 Summer Research Projects.

Application Process:

• An annual call for proposals is sent out to all faculty in the fall. Faculty will fill in the 1-page proposal form below and develop a potential summer project and submit it to the OVDR.
• Proposals will be adjudicated, and the OVDR will award projects for the 2024 Summer Research Project program based on the quality of proposals and funding available.
• The OVDR will post awarded 2024 project proposals on the  dean’s projects google drive  for students to review in early January.  Available projects have been released to 1st and 2nd year undergraduate medical students and can be found on the Dean’s Project Google Drive.
• Interested students may contact faculty with awarded proposals to express their interest in working with them.
• Faculty and students who have agreed to work together return a student-supervisor agreement to our office, and we will remove the matched proposal from google drive.

Please contact  our office with any inquiries.

• Ethics Information
• Grading Grid
• Google Drive
• 2024 Dean's Project Awardees

Biomedical Summer Research Projects

The Biomedical Summer Research Projects initiative facilitates the research training of undergraduate students enrolled in the following programs: Biomedical Foundations, Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Cellular, Physiological, and Pharmacological Sciences , Interdisciplinary Biomedical Science, and Biomedical Neuroscience.

Applicants have been notified April 5th, 2024.

Biomedical Summer Research Projects are a maximum of 16 weeks in length and run over the summer months (May-August) exclusively. Students and supervisors with similar research interests are encouraged to contact each other and begin the application process. In an effort to help students and supervisors connect, supervisors are encouraged to submit research project proposals to [email protected] . The proposal, which can come from any area of biomedical research, will be posted on Google Drive for students to view. The OVDR will update the list on a regular basis with projects that have been submitted and/or filled. In order to do this, we ask that supervisors let us know when they are no longer seeking students for the project proposed. Please note that supervisors are also free to contact students they would like to work with.

Note: For detailed information including project selection criteria, require approvals, timelines, and more please refer to the appropriate guidelines below.

If you have any questions or are interested in adjudicating for this initiative, please contact  [email protected] .

• Project Proposal
• Application
• Scoring Guide
• 2024 Biomedical Project Awardees

MD Year-Round Volunteer Research Opportunity

The Office of the Vice Dean Research (OVDR) is issuing an official call for project proposals from College of Medicine faculty who are seeking MD Research Volunteers for research projects. This call is in response to feedback from U of S medical students stating their desire to increase the ability to participate in active research projects throughout the year. The OVDR aims to foster connections for MD research projects as a way to encourage more students to become passionate about research. Active research experience is invaluable because of the increasingly vital role research plays in today's health care, therefore student engagement in this field is critical.

A list of available projects can be found on Google Drive.

Project proposal forms can be sent in by faculty to [email protected]

As volunteer participation in research activities during the academic year may impact your academic progress, you are required to receive confirmation that you are a student in good academic standing in the Undergraduate MD Program. 

• Supervisor Information
• Memo of Understanding
• 2024 Volunteer Awardees

Supplemental Publication Funding

We pleased to announce applications for the 2024-25 fiscal year are now being accepted!

The OVDR would like to reinforce the CoM's commitment to trainee research by amending the terms of reference for our Supplemental Publication Funding initiative to open it to students (undergraduate and graduate), post-doctoral fellows, and resident applicants.

This initiative encourages the dissemination of research activities conducted by CoM trainees either independently or collaboratively with CoM faculty. Eligible students may apply once per fiscal year (May 1-April 30), and funding will be allocated on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please note that only invoices dated within the current fiscal year (May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025) are eligible for funding.

2024 Interdisciplinary Summer Research Program

This annual undergraduate research program provides summer students with valuable research experience and encourages them to continue on to graduate studies. Student co-supervision must include a faculty member from at least two of the following colleges: Medicine, Pharmacy and Nutrition, Nursing, and Kinesiology, for the duration of the award period. 

Students and supervisors with similar research interests are encouraged to contact each other to begin the application process. 

Applications for the 2024 Summer Projects are now closed. The next round of the Interdisciplinary Summer Research Program will open in February, 2025.

All undergraduate students enrolled in these colleges are eligible to apply. Students must have a minimum average of 80% in their previous two terms to be competitive. Co-supervisors must be eligible to hold research funds for the duration of the award period.

For details regarding the program, please see attached guidelines, application form, and evaluation rubric.

Please contact us with any questions or comments.  

• 2024 InterD Awardees

MD Summer Research Experience

Please email [email protected]  for more information!

Letters of Excellence acknowledge those students that demonstrated outstanding performance and commitment to their research projects. Students must be nominated by their supervisors to be considered for this honour. 

At the end of the term of the research project, supervisors will be sent a call for nominations. They will then be required to write a short letter of recommendation which should address some of the following key areas:

• Commitment to learning
• Keen interest in the topic
• Work ethic
• Quality of work
• Student contribution to the research

Once the nomination is received by the OVDR, it will be reviewed and if deemed successful, a Letter of Excellence will be written by the Vice Dean Research commending the student's demonstration of strengths and work ethic. 

Note: Only a select few letters will be written.

The 2024 Letters of Excellence nominations will be accepted between  September 4 and September 20. 

This Research Showcase is intended to exhibit the outstanding work undertaken by our students, and to recognize their significant contributions to the research endeavors at the College of Medicine. The 2024 live poster presentations will take place on October 16, 2024.

• 2023 Undergraduate Research Showcase Winners
• 2023 Undergraduate Research Showcase Judges
• 2023 URS Abstract Book
• FAIR Research Grant

Conference Funding

College of medicine research award - open call.

The Office of the Vice-Dean Research (OVDR) in the College of Medicine is excited to announce the 2023 College of Medicine Research Awards (CoMRAD). The CoMRAD provides seed funding (up to $30,000) for novel pilot and/or feasibility studies that will facilitate future applications to provincial, national, and global funding opportunities. Funding takes place January - December 2024.    

 The deadline to submit an Expression of Interest has now passed.

The Application deadline is August 21, 2024. 

CoMRAD-SCPOR Data and Data Support Opportunity

There is an opportunity for patient-oriented research CoMRAD proposals to receive support from data and data services through the Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR) in partnership with the Health Research Data Platform – Saskatchewan (HRDP-SK). If a project requires data and data services support, the Principal Investigator must follow the process outlined below prior to submitting their full application to ensure support is available.

Applicants conducting patient-oriented research who are interested in access to data in the Health Research Data Platform-Saskatchewan (HRDP-SK) to address their research question should complete the Stage 1 – Feasibility & Resource Check Form . If assistance is needed, a consultation may be scheduled by contacting [email protected] . The team will be provided with a Confirmation of Feasibility and Resources Letter if their request is approved. This document must be uploaded to Supplementary materials and included your application submission to SHRF.

For more information about the HRDP-SK please visit the HRDP-SK website or contact [email protected] .

Please contact  [email protected] with any questions.

Please note: C oMRAD projects are for one year only, and the faculty's academic appointment must continue through the end of the full granting period in order to be eligible. Applicants are responsible for the submission of all necessary documents. Failure to do so will result in disqualification from the CoMRAD competition. In 2022, we are resuming the Office of the Vice Dean Research's regular College of Medicine Research Award (CoMRAD) program call, in which we are no longer supporting one final year of post-COVID initiatives, guidelines, and requirements which were contained in previous CoMRAD packages specific for post-COVID measures.

• 2023 CoMRAD Awardees

College of Medicine Bridge Funding

Aimed at supporting College of Medicine (CoM) faculty in achievements of research excellence and encouraging application for Tri-Agency funding, this competitive initiative is available to all faculty with a primary academic appointment in the CoM that will continue through the full granting period. 

Bridge Funding can be obtained for CIHR Project Grants; up to $50,000 CAD over 2 years.

To Apply: Within 3 weeks of final notification of the Tri-Agency results, applicants must submit a copy of the Tri-Agency notice of award (notice of decision document) and the reviewer's comments, plus a budget justification, as a single PDF document via email .

Note: Paper applications will not be accepted. CoMBRIDGE notifications of decision will be sent via email. 

Please contact our office with any questions or comments.

The OVDR recognizes that faculty members may need to take a leave (parental, personal, medical, etc.) during their career. Unfortunately, in the context of today’s competitive academic environment, taking a leave has the potential to negatively impact research productivity, and in turn impact a researcher’s career.

Researchers should not have to worry about exchanging their career trajectories to attend to personal, real-life responsibilities. It is intended that this grant will provide support to minimize the impact of an extended leave period on research activities.

Applicants may request up to $10,000 for a duration of up to one year.

• Application Form

The College of Medicine Supplemental Publication Funding program now only supports publications that are copublished with graduate and undergraduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and residents. (See Publication Funding details under undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate sections below).

Please see OVPR Internal Funding Programs for information about available Publications Funding for faculty.

The OVDR is proud to offer a conference funding opportunity open to all faculty members with a primary academic appointment in the College of Medicine. This initiative is intended to support faculty, clusters, groups, and departments who are interested in organizing conferences, seminars, symposiums, workshops, or webinars in order to aid in the advancement of knowledge and scientific discovery.

Note: This opportunity will be offered from May 1, 2024, forward as an ongoing call. We will not be backdating any virtual conference costs with invoices prior to May 1, 2024.

• CoM Travel Award
• Publication Funding
• Funding Resources

College of Medicine Graduate Student Awards

The CoMGRAD Scholarship Program supports research with the College of Medicine through awards to students who have demonstrated academic and research excellence. The guiding principles of this program include:

• Maximizing the use of CoM funding to support as many worthy students as possible
• Encourage and reward the pursuit of competitive external funding by both students and supervisors.

Detailed information can be found by accessing  Graduate Studies Funding Opportunities  page.

College of Medicine Travel Award (CoMTA)

Masters and Doctoral Graduate Students and Post Doctoral Fellows in the College of Medicine are encouraged to participate in national and international scientific conferences and workshops, particularly those events which are specifically related to their area of research. The College believes that participation in such events is an important element in the training of biomedical and health researchers. The Conference Travel Fund has been established to assist individuals with costs incurred to attend Scientific Meetings. College of Medicine Masters and Post-Doctoral Fellows may submit an application in order to receive up to $1500.00 travel assistance one time per program. Doctoral students may submit two applications to receive up to $1500.00 travel assistance twice per program. Students who transfer from the MSc to the PhD are eligible for one award while a MSc student and two while a PhD student.

The College of Medicine (CoM) offers a number of funding opportunities for graduate students. Graduate students may receive funding from a stipend, an award, or a combination of sources. The CoM encourages graduate students to apply for all internal and external funding for which they are eligible.

Please access the Graduate Studies Funding Opportunities page for details about funding opportunities for graduate students.

Postdoctoral fellows.

Postdoctoral Fellows (PDFs) are valuable members of the university; they contribute immensely to the vitality of the research environment. In general, PDFs come to the university in order to:

• gain additional research experience and expertise
• develop the skills and knowledge necessary to become independent investigators themselves
• engage in research projects that provide the challenge necessary for intellectual growth rather than provision of technical support

Currently, the only funding initiative for PDFs offered by the OVDR is the supplemental publication funding.

However, there are external agencies that provide PDF funding support.

For details, please access the PDF website.

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USask co-leads of first-ever nationwide One Health training program

Six universities across Canada have partnered to develop a cutting edge One Health training, mentorship and education program.

A new national training program co-led by the University of Saskatchewan (USask) to prepare and train researchers to identify and prevent the threat of disease against animal and human populations has received federal support.   

The Canadian One Health Training Program on Emerging Zoonoses (COHTPEZ), a first-of-its-kind program in Canada, received $2.7 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).   

The program was co-designed with input from experts at various government and not-for-profit bodies, as well as from academic and research institutes like USask, Dalhousie University, the University of Guelph, the University of Montreal, the University of Toronto and York University.   

The concept of “One Health” is one that understands and investigates how the health of people, animals and the environment are interconnected and reliant on each other.   

The new COHTPEZ six-year training program will combine the learned experiences of researchers across Canada from the COVID-19 pandemic with the research expertise of a wide range of academic training. The goal of the program is to build the next generation of skilled experts to take on future health challenges, and provide mentorship and opportunities for researchers to continue developing a modern One Health-based skillset.   

"This new national training program on One Health and Zoonosis will fill critical gaps in our workforce to tackle emerging zoonotic pathogens and help prevent the next pandemic. Our program will train Canadian scholars over the next six years in the areas of high containment research, health and sustainability, vaccine and therapeutics development, and surveillance and epidemiology,” said Dr. Arinjary Banerjee (PhD), professor of veterinary microbiology in USask’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine and a co-lead of the USask One Health Signature Area of Research.   

“We will leverage resources from across multiple Canadian institutions, including the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) at USask to build a collaborative and interdisciplinary training platform in Canada."  

The program is one of five supported by the CIHR's Health Research Training Platform initiative.

Article re-posted on Aug 19, 2024 8:26:53 AM . View original article.

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Thank you for helping us make the university website better. Your comment will be forwarded to the editor of this page. Please note that this form is not intended to provide customer service. If you need assistance, please contact us directly.