Q3 Report - November 2020 - January 2021

Year 2

Q3 Highlights

November 1, 2020 – January 31, 2021

Quarter 3 Highlights A thriving and engaged research community, driving advancements in health

Executive Committee Nicole Sbrocca (Chair)

Windsor Regional Hospital

Terra Cadeau

Hôtel Dieu Grace Healthcare

Caroline Hamm

Windsor Regional Hospital

Marla Jackson

Year 2 – Achieving More, Together Igniting Discovery, Living Better WE-SPARK was officially launched in March 2020. Despite being newly minted, the Institute has been gaining momentum for over a decade and brings together health research and healthcare strengths across our region to work toward a vision of a thriving and engaged community driving advancements in health. In our first year, we UNITED STRENGTHS across our region. The details of our progress from year 1 can be found in our Impact Report.

Hôtel Dieu Grace Healthcare

Heather Pratt

University of Windsor

Chad Sutherland

University of Windsor

Peter Wawrow

St. Clair College

Lisa Porter

WE-SPARK Health Institute

Karen Metcalfe

WE-SPARK Health Institute

In year two, we are focused on ACHIEVING MORE, TOGETHER. We are establishing pipelines to address pressing health issues, advancing discovery, innovation, technology and community resources. Training is at the heart of all that we do. We are promoting excellence among our health professionals and engaging and empowering our community. We are committed to providing equity, diversity, inclusivity, and support. We aim to inspire and drive change, achieve more and ignite discovery so our community lives better.

Lisa A. Porter, PhD, Executive Director Professor, University of Windsor

The WE-SPARK Team Lisa Porter, Executive Director Karen Metcalfe, Assistant Director Kyle Lago, Translational Research Associate Cathy Mombourquette, Communications Coordinator Adriana Baggio, KT Research Associate Ryan Palazzolo, Volunteer Network Coordinator Aleksandra Redko, EDI Intern Year 2 – Q3

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2020 2021 What We Do

SNAPSHOT q ua r te r t h re e h i gh l i g h t s

7529

3

ASK THE EXPERTS LAUNCHED

452

5

VIRTUAL ENGAGEMENTS (SOCIAL MEDIA & WEB)

PROJECTS ADDED TO THE RESEARCH REGISTRY

3

Q3

MEMBERS

463

EVENT ATTENDEES

30

EVENTS HOSTED

18

GRANTS AWARDED

2173

NEWSLETTER ENGAGEMENTS

ACTIVE REDCap USERS

$346,725

IN GRANT FUNDING AWARDED

Enhancing the health, well-being and care of people through transformative research and knowledge translation.

Organizational Eff ectiveness Building the effective organizational structures and systems we need to achieve our mission.

Re se a rc h E x c e l l e n ce Creating a dynamic research environment that enables, supports and promotes excellence.

Knowledge Tra n sl a t i o n Translating research information to inspire and drive change.

Bu i l d C a p acit y Enhancing understanding and building trust with the community.

Community E n g a g e m en t Securing the resources needed to achieve the WE-SPARK mission.

created by Megan pidgeon Graphic design | St.Clair College

Q3

Organizational Effectiveness Build the effective organizational structures and systems we need to achieve our mission.

Reporting

Year 2 Milestones a) Implement quarterly reporting and tracking mechanisms that leads to the yearly impact report b) Implement budget reporting system c) Facilitate a fundraising plan, including a partner MOU d) Develop MOUs between WE-SPARK institutions for communication and data sharing e) Implement Conflict of Interest policy for all committees

HIGHLIGHTS a) Implement quarterly reporting and tracking mechanisms Quarterly reporting has been implemented, with Committee Chair quarterly updates and a yearly meeting timeline finalized

Q3

d) Develop MOUs between WE-SPARK institutions for communication and data sharing MOUs were finalized for communication and data sharing.

e) Implement a conflict of interest policy for all committees The WE-SPARK Conflict of Interest policy has been developed and was implemented by all committees in Q3, including the Multidisciplinary Research Assessment Committee who oversaw the review and scoring of the Igniting Discovery Grants.

Driving Organizational Effectiveness – Governance Committee Next Meeting: April 7, 2021 (committee meets quarterly) Lisa Porter (Chair), WE-SPARK Terra Cadeau, HDGH Heather Pratt, UW

Year 2 – Q3

Nicole Sbrocca, WRH Monica Tighe, SCC Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK

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Q3

Research Excellence Create a dynamic research environment that enables, supports and promotes excellence

Year 2 Milestones a) b) c) d) e) f) g) h)

Host events that build collaboration, grow teams and support professional development Host WE-SPARK Grant competitions Profile and track successes of Core Members Grow membership and consult and support WE-SPARK programs Provide a central hub for research processes and system navigation Address need for a regional Research Ethics Board (REB) Provide support for external peer review Develop an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) action plan

HIGHLIGHTS a) Host events that build collaboration, grow teams and support professional development Hosted a Think Tank Our virtual Think Tank series continued with the last event of 2020 taking place on December 4th.

This forum allows people to ignite connections and mobilize new ideas. The speakers presented their research ideas, moved to break out rooms to discuss with participants and ended the afternoon with action items to move projects forward. A summary of the event speakers, topics and outcomes can be found on our website. Think Tanks are scheduled bi-monthly, are open to anyone who is interested and require registration.

Driving Research Excellence – Research Development Committee Next Meeting: February 19, 2021 (committee meets every 6 weeks) Caroline Hamm (co-chair), WRH Chris Abeare, UW Jody Ralph, UW Simon Rondeau-Gagne, UW Balraj Jhawar, WRH Year 2 – Q3

Ingrid Qemo (co-chair), UW Jennifer Voth, HDGH Peter Wawrow, SCC Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK Page 5

Research Excellence b) WE-SPARK grant competitions Decisions have been made in the latest grant competition where 30 applications were submitted for review.

Ten members of the Multidisciplinary Research Assessment Committee (MRAC) declared conflicts of interest and areas of expertise. Each grant was assigned a primary, secondary, and tertiary reviewer.

MRAC met for an online review panel where the Chair, Co-Chair, Scientific Officer and score keeper ran the meeting. All grants were discussed and scored. Consolidated scores were calculated, grants were ranked against scores, priority streams and partner institutions. Grants were recommended for funding and approved by the Advisory Board. An official video announcement with details of the grants, teams and messages from funders will be shared in Q4 and project details will be provided on the website.

Thank you to our funders

c) Profile and track successes of core members WE-SPARK Core Principal Member profiles can now be found on the WESPARK website. Members are interconnected through projects, programs and core facilities to demonstrate how we all work together to advance health research. Our next step is to work with our members to refine and grow their profile pages and add Core Associate members to our website.

Year 2 – Q3

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Research Excellence d) Grow membership and consult and support WE-SPARK programs Since inception our membership continues to grow. Quarter three has seen an increase in membership from 229 (Q1) to 452 (Q3). Core membership has grown from 88 to 142.

We have begun to consult with WE-SPARK programs and build their website profile pages. As a highlight, WCRG hosted the 5th biennial cancer research conference which was hosted online in November.

e) Provide a central hub for research processes and system navigation WE-SPARK Health Institute is the central hub for health research processes. Tools have been developed to help navigate research. Noteworthy from Q3 is the uptake of the Research Registry and the launch of the research request portal with Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU). The portal is an easy way to have WE-SPARK help move your project forward and can be found on the WE-SPARK homepage next to the menu. Submit a request if you are looking for any of the following: • • • • •

A collaborator Research project and budget development Data management, data analysis or methodological support Equipment or facilities Fresh tissue trials

Research Registry Expanding WE-SPARK Research Registry highlights local recruiting studies conducted by WE-SPARK researchers. In Q3, 5 studies were added to the registry and a centralized intake system was implemented.

h) Develop an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) action plan WE-SPARK’s EDI Intern, Aleksandra Redko, has completed an environmental scan, examining best practices and recommendations for WE-SPARK’s EDI action plan. A presentation will be made to the Research Development Committee on February 19, 2021.

Year 2 – Q3

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Community Engagement Enhance understanding and build trust with the community

Q3

Year 2 Milestones a) Launch an Ask the Expert series to support the health-related questions of our community b) Increase engagement on all social media platforms c) Broaden community understanding of WE-SPARK through media relations, our community newsletter and speaking engagements d) Continue to evolve our website capabilities and reach

HIGHLIGHTS a) Launch an Ask the Experts series to support the health-related questions in our community The Community Engagement Committee has developed an ‘Ask the Expert’ program to serve as a trusted resource for our community, and showcase the expertise we have in Windsor-Essex. This series was kicked off in January with 4 experts, responding to vaccine-related questions and can be found on a dedicated area on the website.

Questions can be sent to wesparkhealth@uwindsor.ca.

Dr. Tong, PhD | Dr. Rahim, PhD | Dr. Saad, MD, FRCPC, FACP | Dr. Summerfield, MD, BScN, CCFP

b) Increase engagement on all social media platforms In Q3, @wepsarkhealth continued to increase engagement across all platforms, including the addition of a WE-SPARK YouTube Channel.

@wesparkhealth

Driving Community Understanding - Community Engagement Committee Next Meeting: February 23, 2021 (committee meets every 6 weeks) Marla Jackson (Co-Chair), HDGH Dora Cavallo-Medved, UWindsor Allison Johnson, WRH

Year 2 – Q3

Chad Sutherland (Co-Chair), UWindsor Roseann Danese, SCC Cathy Mombourquette, WE-SPARK Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK Page 8

Community Engagement c) Broaden community understanding of WE-SPARK through media relations, our community newsletter and speaking engagements Media Releases: International Cancer Research Conference an Overwhelming Success WE-SPARK Health Institute Acquires World Class REDCap Licence

Select Featured Media Stories: In Quarter 3, WE-SPARK was part of 4 Mainstream news stories, 19 stories in partner newsletters and 1 in national media.

Windsor Life: The Windsor-Essex Sewing Force - A Team of Volunteers Windsor Star: Experts, patients to provide answers online about dealing with COVID-19 CTV: University of Windsor professor receives grant for 21K to research anxiety app results UWindsor Daily News: Think Tank to spark health research collaboration WRH Newsroom: WCRG Holds 5th Biennial International Research Conference WE-Tech Alliance: Beyond Borders: MedHealth Mixer Makes Cross-border Connections

Community Connections and Outreach WE-SPARK supports the efforts of others by speaking at events, providing sponsorship and collaborating on events locally, regionally, provincially and nationally. Here are a few of our Q3 connections.

Community Newsletter Distribution Schedule May 25, 2020 September 21, 2020 January 18, 2021

d) Evolve our website capabilities and reach Website Analytics WESPARKHEALTH . COM

Total Q3 Visits: 6,374 Unique Q3 Visits: 3,537 Most Visited Pages in Q3: Events/Workshops, Researcher Profiles, Ask the Experts, COVID Resources

Top Site Visitors

CANADA

Year 2 – Q3

USA

GERMANY

RUSSIA

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Knowledge Translation Translate research information to inspire and drive change

Q3

Year 2 Milestones a) b) c) d)

Develop a student research network and launch an education series to support student research Support novel training opportunities in health research Create, implement and maintain a Health Research Resource Hub Develop an online Knowledge Translation Toolkit for our research community

HIGHLIGHTS a) Develop a student research network and launch an education series to support student research Student Volunteer Network Ryan Palazzolo, WE-SPARK’s Volunteer Network Coordinator is working with Tejas Shinde, St. Clair College and Vanessa Montemurri, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry to create a Student Volunteer Network. In the past 3 months, the following progress has been made:

Completed training sessions Two orientation and training sessions were conducted with volunteers.

Feedback was provided to the coordinator to continuously improve the network.

Placements assigned Volunteers were assigned to WE-SPARK leads based on their indicated areas of interest.

Initiated projects Volunteers met with leads and have begun to move forward projects including REDCap support, infographic and social media content development, and creation of knowledge translation tools.

Next steps Create a dedicated space for the student volunteer network on the website

Driving Knowledge Translation – Knowledge Translation Committee Next Meeting: February 24, 2021 (committee meets every 6 weeks) Pete Wawrow (Co-Chair), SCC Dave Andrews, UW Linda DiRosa, HDGH Jody Ralph, UW

Year 2 – Q3

Dora Cavallo-Medved (Co-Chair), UW Indryas Woldie, WRH Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK

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Knowledge Translation c) Create, implement and maintain a Health Research Resource Hub The Health Resource Hub is one of the most visited pages on our website. Created to be a trusted resource for our community, it continues to expand every quarter. In Q3, vaccine related resources were added under the COVID-19 Hub and a Cancer Resource section has been created. General topics for all areas include: general information, statistics & numbers, local resources, mental health and specific sections for researchers, healthcare providers and children and teens.

d) Develop an online knowledge translation toolkit for our research community Designed and Launched a Knowledge Translation Workshop Series In addition to the resources available on the website are the events that support translating research information to our community. In response to requests from members, a KT workshop series was launched on January 29th, focused on the creation of Infographics.

Our panel of presenters provided infographic fundamentals, a step-by-step process and expert graphic design advice. Attendees received an Infographic Guide that is now available in the KT section of our website. Attendees appreciated the practical approach, the design tips and the opportunity to share and ask questions through the chat feature.

Panelists: Dr. Sarah Woodruff, Kinesiology, University of Windsor Frank Ely (PhD Candidate), Kinesiology University of Windsor Jenna Fiala (Undergraduate Student), Kinesiology, University of Windsor Sabrina Bours (Undergraduate Student), Kinesiology, University of Windsor Megan Pidgeon (Student), Graphic Design & Advertising Program, St. Clair College

Collaborating on KT Best Practices In ensuring that WE-SPARK uses KT best practices, we pitched the Quarterly Report snapshot to the Graphic Design & Advertising Program class at St. Clair College. They heard our ideas, asked questions and in 1 week provided us with 13 products to choose from. Thank you to Megan Pidgeon for her infographic that is featured on page 3 of all our Year 2 Quarterly Reports.

Member Newsletter Distribution Schedule June 23, 2020 December 21, 2020 August 17, 2020 February 22, 2021 October 26, 2020 April 19, 2021

Year 2 – Q3

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Q3

Build Capacity Secure the resources needed to achieve our mission

Year 2 Milestones a) b) c) d)

Launch and expand use of data sharing platforms for our researchers Facilitate joint funding plan for large infrastructure grants Coordinate infrastructure planning Initiate discussion on capital plan

HIGHLIGHTS a) Launch and expand use of data sharing platforms for our researchers With the number of collaborative, cross-institutional research projects growing, WE-SPARK has acquired REDCap software through a fully executed licensing agreement to allow our researchers to collect and store de-identified data with each other seamlessly. In Q3, REDCap was used by research teams for funded projects, operational support and quality improvement. Training workshops have been developed and pilot tested and will be made available to members. REDCAp accounts can now be requested through the WE-SPARK website.

Recognizing the needs of WE-SPARK members, MyCap is currently being pilot tested.

MyCap is an App interface that allows researchers to capture participant reported outcomes using a mobile device.

c) Coordinate Infrastructure Planning – NUCLEUS Working Group Adriana Baggio was recently hired to coordinate NUCLEUS expansion and support the working group to prepare for future infrastructure funding calls and showcase core facilities on the website.

Otis Vacratsis, UW Anthony Bain, UW Jody Ralph, UW Kristoffer Romero, UW

Year 2 – Q3

Krista Naccarato, WRH Linda MacDougall, SCC Pete Wawrow, SCC Kyle Lago, WE-SPARK Adriana Baggio, WE-SPARK Page 12

Looking Forward Igniting Discovery, Achieving More, Living Better

Reporting Timeline

Q3

Below are a few action items you can expect to see in Q4.

Organizational Effectiveness • • •

Commitment to recommended Year 3 milestones Initiation of WE-SPARK strategic planning process Completion of a fundraising plan

Research Excellence • • • • • • •

Consult with Core Principal Members and WE-SPARK programs Initiate an EDI action plan based off recommendations from the environmental scan Continue to grow the central hub for research processes and system navigation Launch the 2021 Igniting Discovery Grant competition Prepare for the WE-SPARK App launch Distribute The Spark members newsletter Host a WE-SPARK After Dark event for researchers

Knowledge Translation • • •

Grow the on-line KT toolkit Create a presence for the WE-SPARK student volunteer network on the website Expand the Health Research Resource Hub

Community Engagement

Q4

• • •

Continue to grow the Ask the Experts series Implement the WE-SPARK social media plan Evaluate and evolve website capabilities

Build Capacity • •

Launch REDCap training workshops for researchers and student volunteer network Pilot test and brand a screening lab

ACHIEVE MORE Year 2 – Q3

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Appendix: Year 2 Budget May 1, 2020 – April 30, 2021 ADMINISTRATION Salaries • Research Director Stipend/Teaching Release • Assistant Director Salary • Translational Research Associate • Comms & Events Coordinator – PT • Administrative Assistant - Full Time • Nucleus manager + Medical Student Research Coordinator + Knowledge Translation Research Coordinator + Knowledge Translation Internship (partial grant) Discretionary (exec meetings, office equipment, printing, etc) Marketing & Website (including dissemination) Research Education & Outreach - Cross Institution Education Program Development Infrastructure and Operating Grant Supports (Year 2) WE-Spark Grant Competitions TOTAL Operating Revenue (Partner Contributions) University of Windsor Windsor Regional Hospital Hotel-Dieu Grace St Clair TOTAL

Year 2 – Q3

Proposed 2020-2021 BUDGET $320,000

$25,000 $30,000 $10,000 $15,000 $100,000 $500,000

$200,000 $100,000 $100,000 $100,000 $500,000

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