SUPPORT Units

SUPPORT Units (Support for People and Patient-Oriented Research and Trials Units) are a core element of Canada's Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR)

SUPPORT Units (Support for People and Patient-Oriented Research and Trials Units) are a core element of Canada's Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) led by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) in collaboration with partners across the country.

Patient-oriented research engages patients as partners and focuses on patient-identified priorities with the goals of improving patient experiences, health outcomes and the health system.

SUPPORT Units are locally accessible, multidisciplinary centres of specialized research resources, policy knowledge, and patient perspectives. They provide the necessary expertise to pursue patient-oriented research and help lead reforms in response to locally driven health care needs. They also lead and facilitate decision-making within the health services setting, foster the implementation of best practices, and promote collaboration among researchers engaged in patient-oriented research.

Yukon SUPPORT Unit – Advancing Patient-Oriented Research

Funding and In-Kind Support

• Government of Canada funding: $5.25 million
• Yukon partner funding: $5.18 million
• Total funding: $10.4 million over five years

Partners

The Yukon SUPPORT Unit is made possible through a broad collaboration of partners:

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research
• Department of Health and Social Services, Government of Yukon
• Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, Government of Yukon
• Yukon Hospital Corporation
• Yukon University
• The former Arctic Institute for Community-Based Research
• Yukon Recreation and Parks Association
• FASD Information Gathering and Evaluation Sub-Committee

Structure and Operations

The Yukon SUPPORT Unit (the Unit) is a multi-partner organization created to support, streamline and increase patient-oriented research throughout Yukon.

Yukon University will host the Unit and its staff on campus, and play a fiduciary role through the administration of the funding agreement with CIHR. It will hire and host a scientific director and operations manager and provide opportunities for YukonU faculty, students, and visiting graduate students to be involved in research activities. Yukon University served on the advisory committee that guided the development and successful funding of the unit.

The Unit has two main roles: providing services to researchers, patients, health care providers and health system decision makers, and facilitating initiatives identified as territorial priorities.

Yukon SUPPORT Unit Vision and Values

Yukon is a recognized leader in co-created health research, grounded in partnership among Indigenous and non-Indigenous government and non-government institutions, that brings together all ways of knowing to help Yukoners face our shared challenges, leading to an improved patient experience and improved health outcomes for all residents.

Values of the new Yukon SUPPORT Unit:

• Recognizing and embracing a holistic concept of health and wellness that incorporates multiple dimensions and influences;
• Acknowledging the wisdom of Elders, and recognizing that story is powerful;
• Equally privileging Indigenous and Western ways of knowing;
• Valuing the contributions of all members of Yukon society, with a special emphasis on youth;
• Ensuring that the work of the Unit promotes and respects equity for all genders and populations;
• Ensuring that the work of the Unit reflects priorities from all communities and regions in Yukon;
• Creating and leveraging opportunities for research results to be used and spread;
• Respecting principles of First Nations ownership and control of data, access to data, and data sovereignty;
• Taking a strengths-based approach to health research;
• Placing a priority on integrated, holistic, multi-disciplinary research, while leaving room for other forms of research where appropriate;
• Demonstrating a commitment to ethical approaches to research; and
• Building Yukon capacity.