Strategic Priorities
1. Engaging and supporting citizens
Citizens have a critical role to play in managing their own health. However, research shows that two-thirds of Canadians do not have the health literacy skills they need to find and use basic health information.
The Foundation believes that Canadians should be able to navigate the health system and become true partners in their own healthcare. High-quality, evidence-based health information needs to be more accessible to the public.
We will:
- Help healthcare organizations do a better job of engaging the public
- Connect citizens with information about what they should expect from their interactions with the healthcare system
- Invest in community-based initiatives designed to improve health
2. Accelerating evidence-informed change
Canada invests significantly in research programs and pilot projects designed to improve health services. These projects have the potential to bring about widespread and positive change, but many of them remain “promising yet unproven approaches”: experiments that are not well understood or communicated across the health system.
The challenge is to apply research successfully. To maximize the benefits of research, it needs to be tracked and evaluated. Changes need to be made based on the results and lessons learned and organizations need to be supported in their efforts to manage those changes.
We will:
- Fund research that will provide a clear understanding of the processes of change and learning within innovative Canadian healthcare organizations
- Provide a national resource centre to support change initiatives
- Develop learning opportunities that bring organizations together to address problems related to managing change within Canadian health systems
As an independent knowledge brokering organization with a mandate to fund research and promote its use in Canada, CHSRF is uniquely positioned to bring diverse stakeholders together to dialogue, debate, and learn about some of the most significant healthcare issues.
We will:
- Provide formal and informal opportunities for sharing policy challenges and emerging strategies across Canada’s provincial health systems
- Develop, encourage, support, and sustain new and non-traditional partnerships
- Actively promote the social and economic benefits of investing in health services research and of its application in Canada
