SUPPORT Unit builds foundation for patient-oriented research
May 25, 2015 – Montreal, Quebec – Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Jacques Gourde, Member of Parliament for Lotbinière−Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, on behalf of Canada’s Health Minister Rona Ambrose, and Quebec Health Minister Gaétan Barrette were joined by Dr. Alain Beaudet, President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and Dr. Renaldo Battista, Scientific Director, Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé, to announce the launch of the Quebec SUPPORT Unit for patient-oriented research.
SUPPORT (Support for People and Patient-Oriented Research and Trials) Units are provincial or regional centres that connect patients, researchers, policy makers, funders, and health care professionals to help attract, train, and mentor health care professionals and patient-oriented researchers.
Ultimately, the SUPPORT Units are about improving health outcomes for patients. They will provide the infrastructure needed to improve health care practices, therapies, and policies. They will ensure new and innovative diagnostic and therapeutic approaches are applied when and where needed, for the benefit of Canadian patients.
The Quebec SUPPORT Unit brings together research institutions and healthcare providers from across the province. The SUPPORT Unit will work with its partners to identify and address the priorities of patients. As an example of their work they will aim to adapt, implement and evaluate the Cardiovascular Health Awareness Program in Quebec in order to reduce cardiovascular illness among the elderly.
Michael Bolkenius
Office of the Honourable Rona Ambrose
Minister of the Health
613-957-0200
Media Relations
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
613-941-4563
mediarelations@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is the Government of Canada's health research investment agency. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened health care system for Canadians. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to more than 13,700 health researchers and trainees across Canada.
