NOSM University and research institute partners awarded prestigious CIHR Project Grant

Health equity is central to the mission of NOSM University and its partners. Through community-engaged, evidence-informed research, faculty and collaborators are addressing real-world challenges that affect the accessibility, quality, and fairness of health care—particularly in rural, remote, and Northern communities.  

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) has awarded a research group affiliated with NOSM University a Project Grant totaling $803,251, reflecting the strength of collaboration and the impact of research rooted in local realities. Dr. Erin Cameron, Professor and Director of the Dr. Gilles Arcand Centre of Health Equity at NOSM University, in partnership with Ottawa’s Bruyère Health Research Institute, received the grant for the project A Place-based Framework for Equitable Health Service Delivery. 

The project explores how geographic, health, and social data can improve the equity and effectiveness of the delivery of health services. By drawing on an existing place-based approach and incorporating community voices, the team aims to create a new framework that can guide more equitable service delivery in diverse settings. 

This new framework will be refined through a pilot implementation in Thunder Bay, where it will be shaped by local data and lived experience. The goal is to build a model that can be adapted and scaled to improve equity in health-care systems across Canada. The project also highlights the strength of NOSM University’s research partnerships with community organizations, which bring together clinical care and education in ways that directly benefit Northern Ontarians. 

Drs. Cameron and Claire Kendall are co-principal investigators on the project, with co-investigators including partners from the City of Thunder Bay, Thunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute, the Thunder Bay District Health Unit, and numerous health providers and educational institutions across Northern Ontario. This project represents the ongoing commitment of NOSM University’s research community to foster collaboration with regional partners to address the unique health-care needs and experiences of Canadians. 

“This CIHR-funded project exemplifies how collaboration, innovation, and social accountability can lead to transformative change in health care,” says Dr. David Marsh, Vice-President, Research and Graduate Studies. “By working together across institutions, disciplines, and communities, NOSM University and its partners are advancing research excellence and helping to build a more equitable health system for all Northerners.” 

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About NOSM University 

NOSM University is Canada’s first independent medical university and one of the greatest education and physician workforce strategy success stories of Northern Ontario. More than just a medical university, it was purpose-built to address the health needs of the region. While advocating for equitable access to care, the university contributes to the economic development of Northern Ontario. NOSM University relies on the commitment and expertise of the people of Northern Ontario to educate health-care professionals to practise in Indigenous, Francophone, rural, remote, and underserved communities. With a focus on diversity, inclusion, and advocacy, NOSM University is an award-winning, socially accountable organization renowned for its innovative model of distributed, community-engaged education and research. 

For further information, please contact: news@nosm.ca. 

About the Dr. Gilles Arcand Centre for Health Equity 

Established as the NOSM University Centre for Social Accountability in 2021, the Centre was born of an immutable conviction: that everyone, regardless of circumstance or geography, deserves the dignity of equal access to health-care practitioners who are culturally competent, understand the realities of living in the rural and remote North, and lead with compassion and integrity. 

The Dr. Gilles Arcand Centre for Health Equity is the only one of its kind in Canada. It is a visionary, multidisciplinary venture, dedicated to the improvement of health and wellness in Northern Ontario. Through policy leadership and advocacy, research and innovation, and education that better aligns medical training with community needs, the Dr. Gilles Arcand Centre for Health Equity is already becoming a frontrunner in the improvement of sustainable equity, access, and population health outcomes. Its impact derives from regional focus, yet is unbounded in its scope. The national and international relevance of its work will become recognized as the Centre’s results are dispersed among practitioners, policy makers, and advocates in similarly challenged regions.