Call for Proposals: Collaboration centre for strengthening Integrated Youth Services across Canada

Current status: Closed

Opened on June 14, 2024 and closed on July 26, 2024.

The Integrated Youth Services (IYS) model offers a transformative approach by providing comprehensive, integrated care (for example, mental health and substance use services, primary care, sexual health and harm reduction services, youth and family peer support, social and community services, employment and educational supports) to youth typically aged 12 to 25 through "one-stop shop" hubs in communities. There are currently approximately 90 IYS hubs across Canada with more in development.

On this page

• About this Call for Proposals
• About the Health Care Policy and Strategies Program
• Who can apply
• Deadline
• Assessment criteria
• How to apply
• Funding terms
• Contact us

About this Call for Proposals

This call for proposals invited applicants to submit a project proposal to develop a collaboration centre to strengthen IYS across Canada. This centre would align initiatives among provinces and territories, the Indigenous IYS Network and other IYS stakeholders. The centre would support the expansion, continuous improvement, and networking of IYS hubs across Canada as well as build and optimize intersectoral partnerships, helping maximize the overall effectiveness of delivering IYS.

To leverage the expertise and networks of the array of IYS stakeholders, the applicant is expected to collaborate with IYS partners in establishing and sustaining the centre.

The project activities may include:

• Providing a mechanism for provincial/territorial (PT) jurisdictions and the Indigenous IYS Network to come together to identify common goals/priorities for IYS in Canada and to more quickly respond to emerging jurisdictional/national trends or crises while addressing associated challenges and barriers;
• Supporting PTs and Indigenous networks (and hubs in jurisdictions where networks are not yet established) to build and enhance their capacity and effectiveness through formal and informal training and mentoring, developing tools and resources, and helping to identify gaps and needs;
• Sharing best practices, lessons learned, and measurement-based results from IYS implementation, and disseminating information about effective approaches, innovative programs, and strategies that have shown positive outcomes from IYS networks and models across Canada and internationally; and
• Organizing and delivering workshops, conferences, webinars, and other events to facilitate knowledge exchange, among stakeholders, including service providers, researchers, IYS leaders, post-secondary professionals working in the youth mental health services sector, government representatives, and community members with a focus on sharing research findings and data insights.

It is expected that all products and deliverables of this project are available and distributed in English and French. As well, the proposals are expected to explain how diversity and inclusion factors are taken into consideration.

The proposals are expected to outline how the applicant intends to build on established IYS tools and networks and collaborate with IYS partners in establishing and sustaining the collaboration centre.

It is also expected that a sustainability plan for the project be outlined by the time federal funding for the collaboration centre winds down.

The total funding available is up to $15,000,000, over five (5) fiscal years, starting in fiscal year 2024/25 and ending no later than March 31, 2029.

Projects can be of varied duration. Funds cannot be transferred from one fiscal year to the next. The fiscal year for the Government of Canada runs from April 1 of one year until March 31 of the following year.

About the Health Care Policy and Strategies Program

Funding for the IYS collaboration centre will be provided under the terms and conditions of the Health Care Policy and Strategies Program.

The Health Care Policy and Strategies Program provides time-limited funding for projects that improve the accessibility, quality, sustainability and accountability of Canada's health care system. The Program supports the federal government's commitment to maintain a strong and effective publicly funded health care system through the development of policies and strategies to address identified health care system priorities, including palliative and end-of-life care, home and community care, mental health care, and other federal, provincial-territorial and emerging priorities.

The objectives of this Program are to:

• Increase understanding, and share and generate knowledge and research related to data, policies, best practices, products, technologies and processes, including identification of gaps, needs and trends;
• Identify, develop, implement, assess and promote new or modified tools, approaches and models that promote people-centred health care systems; and,
• Identify, develop, implement, assess and promote new learning opportunities, skills development, standards, products and technological solutions.

Who can apply

To apply, the organization must be:

• A provincial, territorial or local government; or
• A non-government, non-profit organization, including but not limited to:
  • Professional associations;
  • Regional health authorities;
  • Educational institutions; and,
  • International organizations.

Ineligible applicants are those excluded from the categories above, namely individuals and for profit organizations.

Deadline

The submission deadline was extended until July 26, 2024.

Assessment criteria

Health Canada used due diligence to assess the proposals for funding, and examined, at minimum:

• the strength of the evidence-based rationale demonstrating the need for the project;
• the alignment of the proposed project with Program objectives and expected results;
• the feasibility of the proposed work plan and budget;
• the potential benefit to the identified target groups;
• the inclusion of diversity considerations;
• the applicant's experience and expertise in conducting similar projects; and
• the level of demonstrated consultation with key stakeholders.

In addition, for this call for proposals, the following criteria were applied:

• expertise in youth mental health;
• expertise in translating research into practice;
• capacity to deliver on a large scale national initiative involving multiple partners, in both English and French; and,
• plans to collaborate with IYS partners in establishing and sustaining the collaboration centre.

Eligible expenses

Funding must be used only for expenditures that are directly related to the activities identified in the funding agreement with Health Canada. Eligible expenditures may include:

• Personnel salaries and benefits
• Goods and services of contractual personnel
• Travel and accommodation
• Materials and supplies
• Equipment
  • Equipment expenditures in excess of $500,000 per project will be subject to prior written approval from Health Canada.
• Rent and utilities

Expenses incurred as a result of audit requirements imposed by Health Canada are eligible expenditures for non-government recipients only.

Ineligible expenditures

• Ongoing operational expenses of the applicant organization not related to approved project activities, and unspecified miscellaneous costs.
• Capital expenditures such as vehicles, land or buildings.

How to apply

The application form must be completed, following the Guide for Applicants. Applicants were required to request the application form and the budget templates and tools by email to hcpsp-ppsss@hc-sc.gc.ca in order to complete the application requirements. These budget templates and tools were required to include meeting planners, detailed budget calculations by business line for each fiscal year, and other costs outlined in detail. Applications without this detailed budget information were not considered.

The whole application package (application form, workplan, budget spreadsheets, letters of support) was to be sent by email to hcpsp-ppsss@hc-sc.gc.ca no later than 23:59, applicant's local time, on July 26, 2024 to be considered eligible.

Receipt of the application was acknowledged within 2 days of its receipt in our office.

Funding terms

If the project is approved, the project will be funded by means of a non-repayable contribution. It is important to note that funding is not guaranteed and Health Canada reserves the right to not fund this application, even if the project is eligible. It is possible that the approved project may receive less than the amount requested. It is also possible that the project may be approved, but with a narrower scope of activities.

Contact us

For more information, email the Health Care Policy and Strategies Program at hcpsp-ppsss@hc-sc.gc.ca.