Every March seems to bring an extra flurry of activity, and this March 2025 has been no exception for the Canadian Primary Care Research Network (CPCRN).
As we embark on our annual reporting efforts for the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR), we have reached out to all our partners and subgrantees to ask that they submit their financials and help us highlight key accomplishments and impacts of the Network for Year 3 of the grant.
Some CPCRN achievements based on our first 2.5 years (April 1st, 2022 – September 30th, 2024):
- Funding impact: The CPCRN funding has leveraged about $77M from an additional 113 research grants.
- Knowledge impact: Investigators within CPCRN have published 292 journal articles, 4 books, 13 reports, 246 poster presentations and delivered 123 oral presentations.
- Structural impact conducting primary care research across jurisdictions: The CPCRN supports multiple Practice-Based Research and Learning Networks (PBRLNs) across the country, all of whom are at varying stages of development.
- 12 PBRLNs currently provide electronic medical record (EMR) data to create Canada’s only Pan-Canadian primary care EMR data repository at the Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN).
- As of September 2024, the CPCRN had engaged with approximately 672 primary care clinics for research projects and is moving towards a primary care information system. Our research projects and PBRLNs also work with 2,472 primary care providers and around 2.8M patients.
- Patient impact: The CPCRN supported work which screened patients for heart failure. We also helped amplify patient voices in key contexts.
- In 2024, xx clinic was honored to be part of an important primary care research project: the MAPLE CHF Study, led by Dr. Nathaniel Hawkins. This study is dedicated to improving the early screening and management of heart failure in Canada by utilizing electronic health records (EHRs) to identify patients with multiple risk factors and assessing them through offering BNP screening and artificial Intelligence-assisted Echocardiograms (AI Echos) for appropriate patients. As part of this initiative, xx clinic screened nearly 600 patients, contributing 43 participants to the overall enrollment. Of these, 23 participants underwent NT-pro BNP assessments, with 4 participants indicated for AI Echo evaluations. Remarkably, this effort has already resulted in the early identification of heart failure in one patient, offering them improved understanding, focused education and highlighting the importance of early detection in improving outcomes.
- Brenda Andreas, a CPCRN Patient Council Member, reflects on her keynote with Onil Bhattacharyya at the NAPCRG PBRN Conference in June 2024.
Beyond reporting, the CPCRN is proud to have partnered with Alberta Health Services, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Health Canada and CIHR to host a Best Brains Exchange (BBE) this past January 29th-30th, 2025 entitled, Team-based Primary Care: Learning how to evaluate the outcomes and implementation of team-based care. The meeting brought together 66 pan-Canadian researchers, health system partners, decision-makers, and patients, who gathered virtually for discussion and information-sharing. Participants engaged in open dialogue around the latest evidence and learnings to co-create a pan-Canadian common evaluation framework to assess the outcomes and implementation of team-based primary care (TBC). The aim of this exchange was to determine the core outcomes and domains by which to measure, evaluate, and monitor the implementation of team-based primary care in Canada. You can find the full report here.
The final report resulting from this BBE was further workshopped at a Centre for Health Services and Policy Research (CHSPR) pre-conference event. Participants (55 in-person and 30 online) provided feedback on: Identifying and prioritizing core domains of TBC in two areas: processes and/or activities of teams and immediate outcomes of TBC.
Members of CPCRN, including our Patient Council were actively involved in the planning and implementation of this annual CHSPR Conference, entitled, PrimaryCare at (A)nother Crossroads, on March 3rd-4th,2025. Details of their presentations and facilitation can be found below in our Patient Council Spotlight.
We trust you will have recently received the Introducing the Canadian Primary Care Research Consortium (CPCRC) email. For those who were at our Primary Care Learning Cycle in November 2024, you will recall that the idea of co-development of this Consortium was endorsed by attendees, with the understanding that it will bring together the following entities: Canadian Primary Care Research Network (CPCRN), the Canadian Primary Care Trials Network (CPCTN) and the data platforms, Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN) and Canadian Primary Care Information Network (CPIN). Co-building of the CPCRC is well underway. Additional details and updates can be found below in this newsletter.
As always, we look forward to collaborating and thank you for your efforts in fostering our incredibly engaged community.
Happy Spring.
-The CPCRN Team
Patient Council Spotlight
Engagement at the Speed of Trust – CHSPR Pre-Conference Workshop
The Patient Council was invited to attend and collaborate at the CHSPR conference. On Monday March 3rd, 2025, they participated in a workshop entitled, Co-Building Relationships at the “Speed of Trust”: Engaging Individuals and Communities for Participation in Primary Care Research. Approximately 30 attendees were present, including BC PHCRN, CPCRN and CPCTNs patient partners. Objectives of the workshop were to identify and agree upon knowledge translation and mobilization of conference learnings that would most interest persons with lived experience (PWLE) and to engage in dialogue on increasing PWLE participation in practice-based research and learning network projects. The workshop was led by Brenda Andreas, Norma Rabbitskin, Ghislaine Rouly, Steve Wolinsky, Joanie Cranston, Marilyn Parker and Viv Ramsden. The CPCRN Patient Council will lead a knowledge product (e.g. manuscript) from this workshop. They will also facilitate a series of discussions through 2025 in this area.
On Day 2 of the conference, members of the Patient Council (Brenda Andreas, Ghislaine Rouly), Walter Wodchis and Viv Ramsden led a session on Improving Patient Experiences and Outcomes in Primary Care. They were joined by Norma Rabbitskin, a budding scholar, undertaking a Master of Science in Health Sciences at the University of Saskatchewan. Norma provided wisdom and teachings from her community of Sturgeon Lake First Nations. Member, Ghislaine Rouly also shared her lifetime of experiences as a patient and deep involvement with a multitude of groups, including the Centre of Excellence on Partnership with Patients and the Public (CEPPP).
Day 3 of the Conference, March 5th, 2025, brought together all CPCRN members to discuss their roles in increasing patient engagement across Canada’s practice-based research and learning networks. Brenda Andreas and Viv Ramsden facilitated this workshop in collaboration with Norma Rabbitskin, Jackie Hanson and Pixie Wells.
Having the Patient Council present, co-lead and collaborate throughout the CHSPR conference was an opportunity to bring voice, visibility, and leadership to its members, as well as to highlight or normalize this approach to research moving forward. Throughout the conference key messages were the importance of relationality (relational equity, relational accountability, and relational transparency) and to co-create a community of belonging through building trust and relationships. The Patient Council is grateful to Dr. Sabrina Wong for inviting the Council members to attend the conference and for her participation in the Council sessions and the sharing of meals.
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Pixie Wells who has received the King Charles Volunteer Medal for her work in the Metis Community and for advancing the health and well-being of their community. This is an incredible honour!
Kudos
Congratulations to member Mpho Begin who has recently been named to the Health Data Research Network (HDRN) Canada’s Public Advisory Council (PAC).
Network News
Canadian Primary Care Research Consortium (CPCRC) Update
We are pleased to share an update on the CPCRC goings-on to date:
- Our Advisory Board had its first Board Meeting last February 5th, 2025, during which the strategic roadmap was discussed with key milestones for Quarter 1 through Quarter 4 of 2025, as well as their roles and responsibilities.
- Our Transition Team continues to meet on a weekly basis to advance deliverables, including: organizing Co-Building Consultative Sessions, creating a Communications Plan, identifying funding opportunities and fine-tuning the intake processes for projects seeking support.
- As you may have noted from the Introducing the CPCRC email, we are using a temporary logo while we survey staff and members of the four organizations (CPCRN, CPCSSN, CPCTN and CPIN) to choose between several logos that have been proposed by a designer. Please vote. We look forward to sharing the result in our inaugural CPCRC Newsletter in June.
- We are also excited to have kicked-off our Co-Building Series. We hope you can join us to share your ideas.
If you are not receiving emails from the CPCRC, please be sure to check your spam/junk folder and approve emails from: admin@cpcrc-ccrsp.ca.
CPCRN 2025 Learning Series
April 23rd, 2025 (12:00 – 1:00 pm ET)
Transformation to a patient-centred medical home in primary care led and delivered by Indigenous communities
Panelist: Stephanie Montesanti
May 28th, 2025 (12:00 – 1:00 pm ET)
First Nations Data Sovereignty
Panelists: Carla Cochrane & Stephanie Sinclair
June 25th, 2025 (12:00 – 1:00 pm ET)
Indigenous Health and Data Sovereignty
Panelist: Lindsay Crowshoe
Details coming soon.
Research Project Spotlight
Does Healthcare Deliver? Results from the Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys (PaRIS)
We are pleased to announce that the OECD released its report and findings from the PaRIS International Survey which the CPCRN helped fund in Canada across 10 provinces, outlining what patients want from primary care. The study aimed to gather patient data on how they view their health and experience of care. It’s evident that Primary Care must adapt to patients’ needs and patients’ information will help us better organize services to meet said needs and expectations.
PriCARE2 Tools
We are also pleased to share two new toolkits created by the PriCare2 team out of Quebec, developed and used as part of their research program. These include reference frameworks and guidelines for patient-centered questionnaires. They also include a clinical toolkit developed by V1sages.
Building Capacity Spotlight
The CPCRN is proud to host a series of TRAINEE Learning Sessions, specifically designed for trainees, by trainees, in partnership with TUTOR-PHC. This new learning series aims to enhance trainees’ knowledge and engagement in primary care research in Canada. Generally, each session will feature an expert on a selected topic, followed by trainees sharing their experiences with the topic. This “meet the expert” style learning series will give trainees an opportunity to actively discuss and engage with leaders in the field.
March 18th, 2025 – RECORDING
Implementation Science in Primary Care Research
Panelists: Noah Ivers, Daphne To, Fikadu Yehualashet, Andréanne Bernier
April 22nd, 2025 (12:00 – 1:00 pm ET)
Navigating Proposal Writing in Interdisciplinary Teams
Panelists: Catherine Donnelly, Dr. Mulugeta Bayisa Chala, Caitlin Piccone and Adhanom Baraki
May 20th, 2025 (12:00 – 1:00 pm ET)
Patient-Oriented Research in Primary Care
Panelist: Holly Etchegary
Details coming soon.
Network Comings & Goings
Thank You!
With the interim board and transition team in place for CPCRC, the yearly contract for the CPCRN Executive Director (ED) position will not be renewed. This means the CPCRN ED, Jamie DeMore, is moving on to greener pastures as of the beginning of May 2025. Jamie has been with CPCRN and previously with the Primary and Integrated Health Care Innovations Network for the past six years. During his time with us, we have seen CPCRN grow and flourish. Jamie was instrumental in setting up the CPCRN committees; he developed and passed their terms of reference; completed necessary reporting requirements to CIHR; led the development of various infographics, communications and knowledge translation and exchange activities; oversaw capacity building efforts; onboarded and trained network staff and worked tirelessly with Network partners. We wish Jamie all the best in his new endeavours.
Openings
A communications position with the Consortium, to support all communications efforts, is being advertised through the University of New Brunswick and has yet to be filled.
There are patient partner positions open in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and the Northwest Territories. If interested, please email: admin@cpcrc-ccrsp.ca
Save the Dates – Webinars
April 9th, 2025 (4:00 – 5:00 pm AT)
From Lab to Life: Unleashing the Power of Implementation Science in Practical Settings
Panelist: Dr. Melanie Barwick
SPOR Events and Opportunities
Ontario SPOR SUPPORT Unit Research Day (April 10th, 2025) – Toronto & Virtual
Click here to learn more
Alberta SPOR SUPPORT Unit | Northwest SPOR Collaborative Forum (May 12th-14th, 2025) – Calgary
Click here to learn more
Save the Dates – Conferences
Canadian Healthcare Navigation Conference (April 23rd-24th, 2025) – Virtual
The Canadian Healthcare Navigation Conference (CHNC) is hosted in partnership between the Centre for Research in Integrated Care at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John and the Family Navigation Project at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. Click here to learn more
HDRN | Health Data for All of Us: A Public Dialogue on AI in Health (April 29th, 2025) – Ottawa
Click here to learn more
CAHSPR 2025 (May 26th-29th, 2025) – Ottawa
The Canadian Association for Health Services and Policy Research (CAHSPR) Conference is being hosted in Ottawa once again. Click here to learn more
Less but Better: Choosing Wisely Canada’s National Meeting (May 26th-27th, 2025) – Winnipeg
Click here to learn more
NAPCRG: Practice Based Research Network (PBRN) Conference (June 2nd-3rd, 2025) – Reston, Virgina
The theme for this year’s conference is Improving Healthcare Access. Click here to learn more
Family Medicine Forum (November 5th-8th, 2025) – Winnipeg
Click here to learn more
NAPCRG: Practice Based Research Network Conference (November 21st-25th, 2025) – Atlanta, Georgia
NAPCRG’s Annual Meeting is a forum for primary care researchers from across the globe to gather and present their research, collaborate for new research and foster growth for up-and-coming researchers. Click here to learn more
Recommended Reading
Final Report – SPOR Governance and Strategy Refresh Steering Committee
We are pleased to share the Final Report of the SPOR Governance and Strategy Refresh Steering Committee, now available on the National Alliance of Provincial Health Research Organizations (NAPHRO) website.
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