Sponsor

Offered by Canadian Institutes of Health Research​ (CIHR) in partnership with the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) and in collaboration with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

Program

Collaborative Health Research Projects (CHRP): Special Call on Artificial Intelligence (AI), Health and Society

For More Information

For more information, please see the CIHR ResearchNet website [1].

Letter of Intent [2]

Description

The CHRP Initiative [3] funding supports innovative, interdisciplinary, collaborative research projects, requiring participation from the natural sciences or engineering community together with the health sciences community. The CHRP Initiative funding requires the translation of the research results to knowledge/technology users (KTUs) and related stakeholders outside the academic or training environment. As such, the proposed research projects must have a strong focus on knowledge translation (KT) and lead to health and economic benefits for Canadians, more effective health services and products, and/or a strengthened health care system. KTU organizations should be meaningfully engaged throughout the research process, as appropriate, to inform research planning and design. For more information on KT at CIHR, please see About KT [4]. Applicants are also encouraged to refer to CIHR’s Guide to Knowledge Translation Planning at CIHR: Integrated and End-of-Grant Approaches [5]. For additional guidance regarding knowledge/technology users, please consult CHRP - Frequently Asked Questions [6].

Successful projects will bring together researchers from natural sciences and engineering, health sciences, and social sciences and humanities, to collaborate on innovative artificial intelligence research applied to health. They will also investigate ethical, legal, and/or societal impacts associated with the development, scale and spread of artificial intelligence in the health sector. 

Eligibility

For an application to be eligible:

• The proposal must include at least two (2) Principal Applicants (including the Nominated Principal Applicant), one from the natural sciences or engineering community, and one from the health sciences community.
• Both the above Principal Applicants must:
  • hold an academic appointment at an eligible Canadian university [7]; and
  • be independent [8] and authorized to oversee trainees.
• There is otherwise no limit to the number of applicants participating on CHRP Initiative grants.
• The application must include trainees [9], the number should be commensurate with the size of the project.
• The application must include a partnership with at least one (1) eligible, non-academic knowledge/technology user (KTU) organization with an expressed interest and demonstrable ability to use the end products of the research. See Eligibility of Partner(s) below.
• The application must include at least one (1) representative from a KTU organization in the applicant role of “Principal Knowledge User”.* This person must have the authority to represent their organization, and their role may vary accordingly (e.g. chief scientific officer at a company, decision maker at a hospital, provincial government policy maker, etc.).

Funding Availability

The total amount available for this funding opportunity is $24.875 million. This amount may increase if additional funding partners participate.

• Of the $24.875 million, up to $5.975 million may be available from CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC to fund applications relevant to the special call Artificial Intelligence: Health and Society. This amount may increase if additional funding partners participate.
  • Of the $5.975 million, up to $3.725 million may be available from CIHR institutes in the following research areas [10]:
    • $500,000 is available from CIHR-IA to fund applications that align with its relevant research areas.
    • $750,000 is available from CIHR-ICR to fund applications that align with its relevant research areas.
    • $1,200,000 is available from CIHR-IHDCYH to fund applications that align with its relevant research areas.
    • $750,000 is available from CIHR-INMD to fund applications that align with its relevant research areas.
    • $375,000 is available from CIHR-INMHA to fund applications that align with its relevant research areas.
    • $150,000 is available from CIHR-IPPH to fund applications that align with its relevant research areas.

Indirect Costs

0%

Project Duration

Three Years

How to Apply

• The application process for this funding opportunity is comprised of two phases: Letter of Intent and Full Application.
• All participants listed (other than Collaborators) will require a CIHR PIN [12].
• Please see the CIHR Website [1] for more information on the application process.

Information For Co-applicants

If you need to meet a deadline set by the lead institution for this opportunity, please ensure that you provide the Office of Research with at least five days in advance of the lead institution’s deadline to review the application, or your proposed component of the project. Please be in touch with the Office of Research (contact information below) ahead of the deadline if it looks like it will be difficult for you to submit all the required documentation on time (i.e. budget, proposal, OR-5 Form).