Year 4 - Succeeding Together, Highlights Q1

Year 4 – Reaching New Heights

Q1 Highlights

May 1, 2022 – July 31, 2022

Quarter 1 Highlights A thriving and engaged research community, driving advancements in health

Executive Committee Nicole Sbrocca (Chair)

Windsor Regional Hospital

Caroline Hamm

Windsor Regional Hospital

Alison Murray

Hôtel Dieu Grace Healthcare

Heather Pratt

Year 4 – Reaching New Heights Igniting Discovery, Living Better In our first three years we established a strong common vision, united our strengths and accelerated our research activities. We continued to expand and build efficiencies within our health research ecosystem, made diversity and inclusion a priority and supported researchers at all stages of their career.

We ended our year by hosting a celebratory event that focused on the impact of health research and what can be accomplished when we focus on succeeding together. The details can be found in our Year 3 Impact Report.

University of Windsor

Chad Sutherland

University of Windsor

Jennifer Voth

Hôtel Dieu Grace Healthcare

Peter Wawrow

St. Clair College

Lisa Porter

WE-SPARK Health Institute

Karen Metcalfe

WE-SPARK Health Institute

In Year 4, we are focused on continuing to support the people that drive health research in our community and accelerate research to become successful funded projects. We are focused on growing health innovation and critical infrastructure, creating an environment that is attractive to the brightest minds and demonstrating the importance of health research for the economic development of our region. We aim to ignite discovery, reach new heights and live better.

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

The WE-SPARK Team Lisa Porter, Executive Director Karen Metcalfe, Assistant Director Emily Espinoza-Lewis, Social Media & Communications Devinder Moudgil, Medical Student Research Associate Ryan Palazzolo, Student Network Coordinator Adriana Grande, Knowledge Translation (on maternity leave) Year 4 – Q1

Kyle Lago, Translational Research Associate Christopher Ng Fletcher, Innovation Research Associate Linda Hudson-Chapman, Administrative Assistant Cathy Mombourquette, Special Projects-Media Relations Page 2

Year 4 2022-2023

SNAPSHOT quarter one highlights

893

MEMBERS

49 MEDIA STORIES

15 GRANTS AWARDED

17,247 VIRTUAL ENGAGEMENTS (SOCIAL MEDIA & WEB)

4

EVENTS/WORKSHOPS HOSTED

Q1 83

120

EVENT ATTENDEES

APP ACCOUNTS

$310,000 IN GRANT FUNDING AWARDED

2921 400+ STUDENT VOLUNTEER HOURS LOGGED

NEWSLETTER ENGAGEMENTS

Q1

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

Reporting

Year 4 Milestones a) Continue quarterly reporting and tracking that leads to the yearly impact report b) Monitor and adapt budget reporting c) Implement a fundraising plan d) Develop MOUs between WE-SPARK institutions, as needed e) Review current terms, policies and reporting mechanisms to identify and respond to changing needs f) Implement the next strategic planning cycle

HIGHLIGHTS a) Continue quarterly reporting and tracking that leads to yearly impact report Quarterly and year end reporting for year 3 has been fully implemented with all reports available on the WE-SPARK website. WE-SPARK’s Year 4 will be focused on ‘Reaching New Heights’.

e) Review current terms, policies and reporting mechanisms to identify and respond to changing needs Terms of reference for all committees are currently being updated with terms being added to address new partnership requests.

Driving Organizational Effectiveness – Governance Committee Next Meeting: October 13, 2022 (committee meets quarterly) Lisa Porter (Chair), WE-SPARK Alison Murray, HDGH Heather Pratt, UW

Year 4 – Q1

Nicole Sbrocca, WRH Monica Staley Liang, SCC Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK

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

Year 4 Milestones a) Host events that build collaboration, grow teams and support professional development that moves local research excellence forward b) Continue to host the WE-SPARK Grant competitions to support local researchers to elevate grant success at the national level c) Profile and track successes of Core Members to elevate the academic profile of Windsor-Essex d) Provide opportunities for research mentorship e) Consult and grow WE-SPARK programs f) Provide a central hub for research processes and system navigation g) Monitor the progress toward a regional Research Ethics Board (REB) h) Provide support for external peer review i) Initiate and continue to evolve the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) action plan j) Bring together local experts to develop position papers that advocate for change

HIGHLIGHTS a) Host events that build collaboration, grow teams and support professional development that moves local research excellence forward Launched a Conference and Hosted 4 Events In Q1 we launched the 2022 Health Research Conference and WE-SPARK After Dark – a monthly, in person event that provides an opportunity for our research community to casually connect.

We continued our Think Tank series, allowing people to make connections, present research ideas and mobilize next steps. A summary of all events can be found on the Think Tank landing page.

Driving Research Excellence – Research Development Committee Next Meeting: August 19, 2022 (committee meets every 6 weeks) Caroline Hamm (co-chair), WRH Chris Abeare, UW Jessica Bennett, WRH Kyle Jackson, SCC

Year 4 – Q1

Balraj Jhawar, WRH Jody Ralph, UW Simon RondeauGagne, UW

Jennifer Voth (co-chair), HDGH Peter Wawrow, SCC Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK

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Research Excellence Think Tank Successes

Q1

Think Tanks now include a spotlight on past presenters and how their projects have progressed. This latest project was presented

by Dr. Jennifer Bondy at the October 2021 Think Tank and since then, she has brought together a new team of collaborators and successfully secured grant funding in the 2022 Igniting Discovery Grant competition.

b) Continue to host the WE-SPARK grant competitions to support local researchers to elevate grant success at the national level Decisions have been made in the 2022 grant competition. Nineteen members of the Multidisciplinary Research Assessment Committee (MRAC) were asked to declare any conflicts of interest and indicate areas of expertise. Each grant was assigned a primary, secondary, and tertiary reviewer. Reviewers attended an onboarding session, were assigned to a panel and met for the designated 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 and grants were ranked against scores, priority streams and partner institutions. Grants were recommended for funding and approved. Details of all projects can be found on the WE-SPARK website in September. Outcomes and impacts of the grants program will be highlighted in Q2.

Year 4 – Q1

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Research Excellence c) Profile and track successes of Core Members to elevate the academic profile of Windsor-Essex We continue to add new members to our research ecosystem with a total of 893 members.

Highlighting Member Profiles, Projects and Successes Our research activities are driven by our Principal and Core Associate Members who are actively engaged in the research field on a daily basis. Members profiles, projects and successes continue to be shared on social media, newsletters and added to the WE-SPARK website. In Q1, a number of Members were successful in receiving grant funding, two began with an Igniting Discovery Grant.

Members are asked to submit research activities and successes for the bi-monthly newsletter. They are distributed to our research community and archived on our website. The newsletter for Q1 highlighted:

• • • •

$1.3 Million in new funding 16 publications 3 awards 9 new projects Publishing Dates June, 2022 December, 2022 August, 2022 February, 2023 October, 2022 April, 2023

f) Provide a central hub for research processes and system navigation There are now 83 active app accounts and a Daily digest sent to users every Monday to update on missed posts. New features are being added in Q2 that will encourage engagement - @mentions and reaction buttons. As our research network grows, this app will be critical to staying engaged and connected. Be sure to sign up now!

Year 4– Q1

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Community Engagement Enhance understanding and build trust with the community

Q1

Year 4 Milestones a) b) c) d)

Create workshops, series and/or events that engage the community and build the profile of WE-SPARK Showcase research facilities and projects happening in the community Maintain social media engagement while continuing to refine messaging to target audiences Broaden community understanding of WE-SPARK through media relations, our community newsletter and speaking engagements, locally, regionally and provincially e) Continue to evolve our website capabilities and reach f) Implement the WE-SPARK Engage program to invite the community to join our research efforts

HIGHLIGHTS f) Implement the Engage Program to invite the community to join our research efforts We continue to grow the ‘Ask the Expert’ program to serve as a trusted resource for our community and showcase the expertise we have in Windsor- Essex. In Q1 we added 3 experts to the series: • Clementa Stan, Mental Health & Addictions Patient and Family Advisory Council, HDGH • Patrick Kolowicz, Director Mental Health & Addictions, HDGH • Laurie Freeman, PhD., Associate Professor, Faculty of Nursing, University of Windsor

e) Continue to evolve our website capabilities and reach WESPARKHEALTH . COM

Total Q1 Unique Visits

Most Visited Pages in Q1

Driving Community Understanding - Community Engagement Committee Next Meeting: November 2, 2022 (committee meets quarterly) Dora Cavallo-Medved, UW Erica Colovic, HDGH Allison Johnson, WRH

Year 4 – Q1

Chad Sutherland (Chair), UW Roseann Danese, SCC Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK

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Community Engagement c) Maintain social media presence and engagements, while continuing to refine messaging to target audiences

@wesparkhealth continued to engage the community on all social media platforms during Q1. A shift from standard to tailored content according to the platform and type of audience, and including storytelling and personal narratives to our communications has had positive results.

d) Broaden community understanding of WE-SPARK through media relations and community engagements locally, provincially and nationally Select Featured Media Stories In Q1, WE-SPARK was part of 12 local mainstream news stories, 30 stories in partner newsletters/communications and 7 in national/other media.

The Drive Magazine: The H.E.A.L. Lab – University researchers work to understand and improve women’s healthcare experiences CTV News: Windsor Regional Hospital and University of Windsor team up for potential 'health and innovation park' St. Clair College S.T.E.M. Speaker Series Podcast: A discussion with WE-SPARK Executive Director Dr. Lisa Porter Windsor Star: Windsor researcher earns grant money for breast cancer WRH The Pulse: Video showcases health research environment

Community Newsletter In Q1, we continued with our community newsletters alternating between providing a quarterly highlight (May, 2022) and spotlighting the impact of research (June, 2022) (engagements: 2036)

Community Connections and Outreach WE-SPARK supports the efforts of others by speaking at events, providing sponsorship and collaborating on initiatives locally, regionally, provincially and nationally. Some connections made in Q1:

Year 4 – Q1

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Knowledge Translation Translate research information to inspire and drive change

Q1

Year 4 Milestones a) Expand the student research network and integrate with existing student programs and services at St. Clair College and UWindsor b) Expand, promote, and streamline management of our Health Research Resource Hub c) Expand and promote the Knowledge Translation Toolkit, including tools for commercialization, and increase awareness to our research community d) Support student experiential learning, novel training opportunities and professional development e) Develop and implement a plan for increasing engagement with industry and community partners

HIGHLIGHTS a) Expand the student research network and integrate with existing student programs and services at St. Clair College and UWindsor In Q1, our student network onboarded 15 new members, including masters, PhD and medical students. We received over 10 project requests and are encouraging our membership to continue to utilize our highly skilled network. With many of our students graduating in Q1, we have reached 100 student alumni!

b) Expand, promote and streamline management of our Health Research Resource Hub In Q1, WE-SPARK began working closely with HDGH and WECHU and are in the initial stages of developing a mental health and addictions research resource hub. This will build off initiatives that each organization is moving forward internally and create efficiencies and build collaborations.

Driving Knowledge Translation – Knowledge Translation Committee Next Meeting: August 10, 2022 (committee meets every 6 weeks) Pete Wawrow (Co-Chair), SCC Dave Andrews, UW Becky Berlasty, SCC Martin Crozier, UW Linda DiRosa, HDGH

Year 4 – Q1

Dora Cavallo-Medved (Co-Chair), UW Jody Ralph, UW Indryas Woldie, WRH Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Karen Metcalfe, WE-SPARK Page 10

Knowledge Translation d) Support student experiential learning, novel training opportunities and professional development in health research The Master of Science in Translational Health Science students attended July’s WE-SPARK After Dark to meet potential supervisors. Since then, all students have been connected with a research project. A key part of their professional development activities has been REDCap training. The Masters program is designed to provide students with education and skills to enter a wide variety of career paths in translational health sciences.

Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry restarted the summer research electives after they were stalled during the pandemic and funded 6 Windsor campus medical students to conduct a research project with clinician-researchers at Windsor Regional Hospital. An example of the type of project is one being supervised by Dr Amit Bagga and Dr. Monica Bagga, “Evaluation of a Continuous Glucose Sensor in Patients with Diabetes on Hemodialysis.”

e) Develop and implement a plan for increasing engagement with industry and community partners Chris Ng-Fletcher, Innovation Research Associate, has moved forward plans to connect and grow industry engagement in health research related areas. Highlights to date:

Preparing to launch Innovation Ambassadors Program • •

Designing layout and content for new Innovation Hub on WE-SPARK website that will be formally launched in the Fall.

5 Innovation Ambassadors have been onboarded.

Developing an Industry Collision Event • •

Conducting an environmental scan on similar events Focusing on key sectors related to the pandemic, such as biotechnology, manufacturing, supporting our most vulnerable populations, mental health, etc.

Developing a Health Care Hackathon • •

Year 4 – Q1

In partnership with:

In partnership with:

Conducting an environmental scan on similar events.

Focusing on key themes that are gaining traction in the health care sector.

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Build Capacity Secure the resources needed to achieve our mission

Q1

Year 4 Milestones a) Support and expand use of data sharing platforms for our researchers b) Create research ecosystem maps to facilitate clear reporting and communication pathways for WESPARK members, staff and committees c) Facilitate joint funding plan for large infrastructure grants by creating multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary teams in preparation for large infrastructure grant competitions d) Explore and evolve infrastructure planning and a capital plan, including a research infrastructure map of Southwestern Ontario e) Implement the NUCLEUS plan, including collecting key core facility metrics and developing promotional content to inform our members and the community about research infrastructure

HIGHLIGHTS a) Support and expand use of data sharing platforms for our researchers WE-SPARK’s research data management strategy (RDM) began in 2020 with the launch of REDCap which has grown to over 160 active users. RDM progress in Q1 looked at expansion of REDCap and the development of a larger RDM strategy.

Completed Pilot Phase of REDCap REDCap demonstrated that it is an effective RDM tool and we are moving forward to support it as one of our key data sharing platforms.

Implementing a Comprehensive Training Program To increase capacity and provide RDM skill development for students, we began to implement a REDCap training program that is being pilot tested with the students in the Master of Science in Translational Health Science (MSTHS)

Moving Forward WE-SPARK’s Health Data and RDM Strategy This strategy will help guide the governance of shared research data management tools for health research in our region. This includes REDCap and acquisitions of other RDM software and platforms. The next step will be to bring together a committee with representation from each partner to develop a RDM strategy that aligns with each institution’s goals and creates a robust health research data system.

Driving Research Capacity – NUCLEUS Committee Next Meeting: September, 2022 (committee meets every quarter) Adriana Grande, WE-SPARK Renee Biss, UW Arezoo Emadi, UW Jackie Fong, UW Wendy Foote, SCC

Year 4 – Q1

Phil Karpowicz, UW Kyle Lago, WE-SPARK Krista Naccarato, WRH Michelle Nevett, UWindsor Ken Ng, UW

Ming Pan, WRH Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Jody Ralph, UW Chad Sutherland, UW Pete Wawrow, SCC TBD, HDGH Page 12

Build Capacity c) Facilitate joint funding plan for large infrastructure grants by creating multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary teams, in preparation for large infrastructure grant competitions The Canadian Biomedical Research Fund is a Tri-Agency Program designed to strengthen research systems and talent pipelines. In Q1, we submitted an application as a major partner with University of Toronto to be part of a Canadian Biomedical Research Hub.

d) Explore and evolve infrastructure planning and a capital plan Progress continues to be made on research infrastructure planning to continue to grow our academic health research environment.

• •

•

An environmental scan into Health Innovation Parks was completed and submitted to the Steering Committee for review.

We are continuing to grow our network to support our researchers in preparation for the Health Innovation Park – 13 new contacts were made representing a mixture of startups, economic development corporations, innovation support organizations and government Completed a review of economic impact models to initiate the development of a health research economic impact that could be adapted to specific audiences

e) Implement the NUCLEUS plan, including collecting key core facility metrics and developing promotional content to inform our members and the community about research infrastructure In Q1 we prepared for our upcoming participation in the Science Ontario Cross Country Roadshow that showcases the life sciences and health care ecosystem in our region. The audience includes academic institutions, accelerators, incubators, and community partners such as Roche, Diabetes Canada, etc.

Year 4 – Q1

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Looking Forward Igniting Discovery, Reaching New Heights, Living Better

Reporting Timeline

Q2

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

Organizational Effectiveness • • •

Develop a budget proposal that includes plans for sustainability and grants program support Align strategic planning with partner initiatives Revise and rework WE-SPARK’s approach to fundraising that takes into account and builds on the existing fundraising strategies of each partner

Research Excellence • • • • •

Support new grant recipients to initiate projects Highlight outcomes and impacts of grants program Grow number of members with profiles created on the website Increase use and engagement of the WE-SPARK researcher App by adding additional engagement features Promote the Fall 2022 Health Research Conference

Knowledge Translation • • •

Create a commercialization navigation and resource hub to support health researchers connect with Industry Expand and share the Research Training Hub for students Introduce the Innovation Ambassador Program

Community Engagement • •

Implement, pilot and expand the Engage Program Roll out WE-SPARK branded merchandise

Build Capacity •

Launch revised NUCLEUS section of the website, highlighting infrastructure available within Windsor-Essex

REACHING NEW HEIGHTS @wesparkhealth

Year 4 – Q1

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Appendix: Year 4 Budget May 1, 2022 – April 30, 2023 ADMINISTRATION Salaries • Research Director Stipend/Teaching Release • Assistant Director Salary • Translational Research Associate • Administrative Assistant • Nucleus Manager • Medical Student Research Associate • Social Media and Communications Coordinator • Student Network Research Associate • Innovation Research Associate • Conference Coordinator Discretionary, Supplies and Consumables (meetings, office equipment, printing, Professional Development, software licenses, etc.)

Marketing & Website (including dissemination) WE-Spark Grant Competitions TOTAL Operating Revenue (Partner Contributions) University of Windsor Windsor Regional Hospital Hotel-Dieu Grace St Clair TOTAL

Year 4– Q1

Proposed 2022-2023 BUDGET $380,000

$40,000 $30,000 $50,000 $500,000

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

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