2020-2021 Call for Research Proposals

Call is closed

For more than a decade, Health Canada has been funding important and innovative research on linguistic issues in healthcare and social service provision, through HCALM (Health Care Access for Linguistic Minorities) Network – an interdisciplinary and interinstitutional community of researchers. This initiative constitutes the research capacity of the larger Dialogue McGill project. Projects must primarily address issues relevant to English-speaking minorities.

HCALM regularly posts calls for research proposals that address interrelationships between language and access to health care and related social services. Research themes include but are not limited to:

• Innovation addressing language and health/social services (e.g., digital solutions, artificial intelligence, economic modelling)
• Cultural and linguistic competency
• Health or social inequalities/inequities
• Health geography and spatial statistics
• Retention of health/social professionals (in urban, remote, and/or rural communities)
• Second-language instruction for healthcare/social service professionals
• Linguistic minorities in professional education and practice
• Second language (L2) capacity creation and development among health/social professionals

Thematic priority area: For the 2020-2021 funding competition, “Reducing language barriers to enhance access to health and social services while optimizing outcomes” has been identified as a thematic priority area. The topic is broadly construed, and eligible proposals may consider it from theoretical, digital, methodological, evidence-informed perspectives.

Proposals must focus on access to health care for linguistic minorities in Quebec. Proposals aiming to address either digital innovation or the economics of unaddressed language barriers in Quebec's health and related social services systems are encouraged. Collaborative projects with academic institutions outside Quebec and Canada are eligible, provided that the Principal Investigator is based at a Quebec university, and that the funds are managed and disbursed by a Quebec university.

For the 2020-2021 competition, HCALM invites proposals (max. $30,000) for projects funded up to 18 months (October 2020 – March 2022). Please note that the funding period overlaps 2 fiscal years, and that no carry overs are permitted from one fiscal year to another. The fiscal year begins on April 1 and ends on March 31. Disbursement is contingent upon the availability of funds through a contribution agreement between Health Canada and McGill University.

Selection of research proposals will take place in early October. Funded applicants become members of the HCALM Network and will be referenced as such in all formal communications. Upon approval, successful applicants will receive a reporting package which specifies their team roles and responsibilities, payment schedule and reporting requirements based on Health Canada guidelines. A sub award agreement between McGill University and the researcher’s institution will follow.

Application Details:

• Eligibility Criteria

The principal applicant must be a researcher based in, or formally affiliated with, a Quebec institution such as a university or a research institute. Affiliation must be established prior to submitting the proposal. Successful applicants will be required to provide an ethics certificate issued by the university, health care/social services institution, or research institute.

• Evaluation of Proposals

The evaluation of proposals will be conducted by the HCALM interdisciplinary Advisory Committee. Proposals will be evaluated for consistency with the guidelines as specified in the application form below.

• To Apply

Please e-mail the complete application including a Curriculum Vitae for each Principal Investigator (existing agency CVs are welcome), and all other relevant supporting documents (e.g. confirmation of support from project partners) to yael.peled [at] mcgill.ca (subject: 2020-2021%20Call%20for%20Research%20Proposals%20) (Yeal Peled) by Friday October 2, 2020. Results will be announced by October 16, 2020.