Research Trainee awards fuel health innovation
29 October 2024
Michael Smith Health Research BC is funding 44 emerging researchers from across BC through the 2024 Research Trainee competition.
These awards support talented postdoctoral or health professional researchers to build their careers in British Columbia. Research trainees increase the productivity of their teams and help drive discoveries that improve the health of people and communities.
“This Health Research BC award will help me establish a research program focusing on improving measurements of health and quality of life in older adults,” says Dr. Ava Mehdipour-Ataei, a postdoctoral fellow in nursing at Trinity Western University. “It will facilitate my training and allow me to conduct research using people-centred approaches to understand older adults’ needs.”
Ava’s research will inform age-friendly community initiatives for people from diverse backgrounds to ensure their well-being.
Other recipients are investigating diverse topics, including:
- the effects of the environment on health
- controlling bleeding in trauma patients
- using artificial intelligence to improve how fractures are diagnosed
The 2024 Research Trainee cohort reflects BC’s geographic diversity. Award recipients are performing research across the province, including at Vancouver Island University, BC Mental Health & Addiction Research Institute and UBC Okanagan.
A legacy of research impact
Since 2001, Health Research BC has granted more than 1,400 Research Trainee awards, supporting the launch of successful careers in research, biotech, health policy, and other sectors.
“We’re proud to support BC’s early career health researchers through this funding,” says Ellie Griffith, assistant vice-president, research programs at Health Research BC. “By investing in their career development, we’re building a stronger future for health research across the province. Congratulations to all the 2024 Research Trainees.”
Full list of 2024 Research Trainee award recipients.
Strong partnerships foster world-class research
This year, Health Research BC partnered with organizations to co-fund four Research Trainee awards. Thank you to our 2024 award partners:
- Alzheimer Society of BC
- Parkinson Society British Columbia and Pacific Parkinson’s Research Institute
- Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute and VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation
These partnerships enable Health Research BC to fund more researchers while helping partners optimize their research dollars to advance priorities. Learn more about partnerships.
2025 guidelines now available
The 2025 Research Trainee competition opens in November. Guidelines for the competition are now available.
New for 2025: We no longer require applicants to be within a certain number of years of their PhD or health professional degree completion date to be eligible for a Research Trainee award (see Section 4, Eligibility Requirements of guidelines). If an applicant is eligible to hold a postdoctoral fellowship under their host institution’s policies, they may apply to the Research Trainee Program, provided they meet the other eligibility requirements.
For more information, visit the Research Trainee Program page and attend the 2025 Research Trainee competition information session:
November 19, 2024, 10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Register for webinar.
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If you have questions about any of our 2025 funding competitions or programs, reach out to us via our help desk.
