History
Revised Governance Structure
Program Development
Program Implementation

History

In March 2003, the BC ministries of Health Planning and Health Services granted $8 million to MSFHR to develop and implement initiatives for building BC's capacity to undertake excellent health services and policy research. Under the terms of the Transfer Agreement for the funds, the ministries charged the Foundation with developing a planning process to bring together the academic research community, the Ministry, the health authorities and the health service provider community to discuss and develop recommendations for programs that would achieve the following:

• Implement and fund specific projects that evaluate changes already made to the BC health system.
• Build capacity in BC for undertaking research into future health redesign and change initiatives.
• Lever additional funding from other sources to further enhance research activities into health redesign and change initiatives.

Following a six-month consultation facilitated by MSFHR, an interim advisory council comprised of representatives of the Ministry of Health Services, BC's six health authorities, the health services and policy academic research community, and the health services provider community developed the vision, mandate and goals for HSPRSN. They also developed recommendations for action in three broad areas of capacity building and research. In a parallel process, the Ministry and the health authorities identified six priority research areas that would be the initial focus for network funding programs. These recommendations and priorities were approved on January 16, 2004.

HSRPSN Vision, Mandate, and Goals

BC Health Services and Policy Research Support Network – A Report to Leadership Council (PDF)

In March 2004, the Ministry endorsed the network approach and progress, announcing an additional $8 million to augment network activities and to support health care re-engineering and innovation in the health system. The Ministry also identified two additional priority areas: patient safety and clinical outcome measurement.

HSPRSN research priority areas (PDF)

Revised Governance Structure

In March 2005, the Ministry of Health Services and the MSFHR Board of Directors approved a revised governance structure for the network. The structure endorsed the consultation processes established by the network for the development of recommendations and delegated to MSFHR the powers, duties, functions and decision authority to make grants from HSPRSN funds for approved activities. The terms of reference for the HSPRSN Steering Council were revised to reflect these changes.

Revised HSPRSN governance structure (PDF)

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Program Development

An HSPRSN Steering Council replaced the interim advisory council to serve as the primary advisory body for the initiative. The council met for the first time in March 2004 and over the next six months with the support of MSFHR developed guidelines for, received and held a formative review of research capacity-building applications from BC's six health authorities. Funds to implement approved health authority research capacity-building initiatives began in January 2005. The network steering council also developed the principles and guidelines for two research funding competitions: one to support the development of Investigative Teams (infrastructure support) and an open operating grants program to support research projects addressing the priority areas identified by the ministry and health authorities.

To leverage national funding, they recommended a partnership program to support BC researchers applying to national granting competitions that required match funds as a condition of award.

HSPRSN November 2004 Update (PDF)

Program Implementation

Health Authority Capacity Building Program

This program supported health authorities in developing a vision and plan for creating a basic platform of or augmenting existing health services and policy research capacity to facilitate uptake and use of existing research and more effective engagement in research and evaluation activities. The program was originally planned to run for three years, but in January 2008 the awards were extended twice for an additional 21 months to September 30, 2009 to provide opportunity for MSFHR to explore the possibility of incorporating the Health Authority Capacity Building Program into their institutional infrastructure program. MSFHR was unable to proceed in this direction so the health authorities were provided with bridge funding for a further six months to enable them to complete current activities and transition expenses for activities the they want to maintain. The program ended on March 31, 2010 after five and a quarter years.

Investigative Teams Program

This one-time program required the partnering of researchers and program/policy decision makers in the development of a program of research which provided for synthesis and original research as well as capacity building and knowledge translation deliverables. Five teams were awarded $150,000 per year for three years, with each focused on one of the five HSPRSN priority areas. After three years, the Investigative Team awards were extended for an additional year to provide opportunity for MSFHR to explore the possibility of incorporating the Investigative Teams program into their institutional infrastructure program. MSFHR was unable to proceed in this direction so the Investigative Teams were provided with bridge funding for a further six months to enable them to complete activities. The program ended on March 31, 2010 after four and a half years.

Partnership Program

This program supports BC researchers in applying to peer-reviewed, national or international competitions that address BC health services and policy research priorities and require matching funding as a condition of funding. Between 2005 and 2010 seventeen (17) research projects and two (2) teams received awards for research that evaluated the effects of health redesign and change initiatives or informed health care process redesign and innovation in priority areas.

Research Operating Grants Program

This program was offered in 2005 and 2006 and provided up to $100,000 over two years to answer specific research questions. It required partnering of researchers and policy and/or program decision makers and a plan for supporting dissemination to and uptake of findings by the target audience(s). A total of fifteen (15) awards were approved that supported relevant high quality health services and policy research that evaluated the effects of health redesign and change initiatives or informed health care process redesign and innovation in priority areas. In 2007 the HSPRSN Steering Council endorsed a recommendation from a task force on Future Directions for Research & Capacity Building to discontinue the HSPRSN open operating grants program in favour of a more iterative process to narrow and select priority areas for attention.

Health Human Resources Program

In September 2008, the MSFHR Board of Directors approved a recommendation from the HSPRSN Steering Council to focus remaining HSPRSN funds (about $4.5 million) on health human resources research in the three subtheme areas identified as priorities: ways to better employ existing providers, new models of staffing and new models of practice.
After extensive consultation activities, the HSPRSN Steering Council approved four recommendations for action in the area of development of funding mechanisms and programs that address gaps and opportunities in the HHR priority area. Staff are currently in the process of developing the principles and guidelines for programs to address the endorsed recommendations.

 

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Last updated April 26, 2010