RI-MUHC Annual Report

RI-MUHC ANNUAL REPORT 2024

TRAINING AND MENTORING HIGHLIGHTS

CANADIAN CONSORTIUM OF CLINICAL TRIAL TRAINING TAKES OFF SUCCESSFULLY
OUR DCAT TEAM CONNECTS TRAINEES AND PROFESSIONALS
THE EACARE NETWORK APPROACHES SECOND ANNIVERSARY
INSPIRING MINDS AND IGNITING THE DISCOURSE

CANADIAN CONSORTIUM OF CLINICAL TRIAL TRAINING TAKES OFF SUCCESSFULLY

CANTRAIN implements competency training to conduct better, high-quality clinical trials. It is led at the RI-MUHC by Dr. Jean Bourbeau (left).

In January 2023, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) announced the funding of several projects aimed at improving the development and conduct of clinical trials across the country and increasing access to clinical trials for underrepresented communities. One of these programs is the CANadian Consortium for Clinical Trials TRAINing (CANTRAIN), a project initiated at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) to implement competency training of the current and new generation of clinical researchers/trialists, professionals and trainees.

A year later, CANTRAIN and three partnering Clinical Trials Training Programs (CTTPs)—CAN-TAP-TALENT, CBITN and STROKECOG—are proud of this first achievement: the creation of an awards program to enable graduate and postdoctoral trainees to be trained for clinical trials research projects. Thanks to the development of fruitful partnerships across the country, 84 students received salary awards in 2023-24, half of which was awarded by CANTRAIN, with co-funding from provincial organizations.

“This new scholarship program meets an important need and will help develop essential expertise across the country,” says Dr. Jean Bourbeau, Senior Scientist in the Translational Research in Respiratory Diseases Program, who leads the project at the RI-MUHC.

OUR DCAT TEAM CONNECTS TRAINEES AND PROFESSIONALS

The Career Half-Day hosted by the Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training facilitates networking between RI-MUHC trainees and industry professionals (Glen site, November 2023)

Under the leadership of Dr. Miguel Burnier and Emily Bell, PhD, the Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training (DCAT) at the RI-MUHC offers structured career support to trainees alongside their graduate or postdoctoral training.

Major events this year included a Career Half-Day to facilitate networking between trainees and industry professionals and a Precision Medicine Symposium in partnership with the TREMPLIN McGill-affiliated Consortium for career and professional development of trainees. DCAT also offered bi-monthly career seminars and one-on-one career advising to help move graduate students and postdocs forward with their career development goals.

Additional career and professional development opportunities have opened with funding for the TREMPLIN McGill-affiliated Consortium from the FRQS, and for The CANadian Consortium of Clinical Trial TRAINing, or CANTRAIN, from CIHR. The DCAT team is an instrumental partner in the development of training initiatives and connects RI-MUHC trainees with these exciting programs.

The centre shared recent progress and successes in its latest annual report.

Pillars of DCAT from its 2023-2024 Annual Report

The RI-MUHC warmly thanks Desjardins for generous support in enhancing career development opportunities for its trainees.

TOP OF PAGE

THE EACARE NETWORK APPROACHES SECOND ANNIVERSARY

Focussed on outreach, EACARE co-hosts events for young RI-MUHC researchers seeking career options and mentorship

The EArly and Mid-CAreer REsearchers Network (EACARE) is rapidly expanding its efforts to fulfill its mission of empowering young scientists at the RI-MUHC. With an organizing committee composed of dedicated postdoctoral fellows and research associates, EACARE is committed to addressing the unique career development needs of postdoctoral fellows, as well as early- and mid-career research associates and research assistants.

Since its establishment in 2022, EACARE has been focused on impactful outreach, creating strategic collaborations with key partners such as the Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training and the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion team at the RI-MUHC. Beyond co-hosting valuable outreach events for young researchers, EACARE is now focused on launching an innovative mentorship program aimed at empowering emerging and mid-career researchers to advance their careers and achieve their full potential.

On EACARE Mentoshare Day, RI-MUHC trainees and researchers gathered for inspiration, leadership and networking in the spirit of International Women’s Day (Glen site, March 20, 2024)

INSPIRING MINDS AND IGNITING THE DISCOURSE

The RI-MUHC welcomed Nobel laureate Professor Sir Paul Nurse, Chief Executive Officer of the Francis Crick Institute (UK) in 2024. Inspiring to our trainees and seasoned scientists alike, his talks were part of the high-profile RI-MUHC Distinguished Professors Lecture series at the RI-MUHC.

Professor Sir Paul Nurse spoke to a full house on “What is life?” and on “Controlling the cell cycle” in delivering the inaugural Dr. Phil Gold lecture. Warm thanks to the Montreal General Hospital Foundation for supporting this memorable visit!