OTTAWA (August 17, 2006) - Dr. Morris Barer, Scientific Director of the CIHR Institute of Health Services and Policy Research has won the Health Services Research Advancement Award from the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (CHSRF) for his outstanding contributions to the health services research community in Canada.

"I would like to congratulate Dr. Barer on receiving the Health Services Research Advancement Award," said Dr. Alan Bernstein, President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). "Dr. Barer has made landmark contributions to the health research landscape in Canada. His ability to mobilize the Canadian health research community to provide solid evidence in order to help all levels of government agree to the establishment of wait time benchmarks for the Canadian health care system is one of his many accomplishments."

Since 2000, as Scientific Director at CIHR, Dr. Barer's accomplishments include being instrumental in the creation of the Canadian Association for Health Services and Policy Research and, the new Canadian health services research journal Healthcare Policy. In addition, he has led the creation of a number of innovative new research programs that have demonstrated the importance of health services and policy research in strengthening the Canadian health care system and improving the health of Canadians.

"I am flattered to be included amongst the winners of this prestigious award, and would like to thank CHSRF for this recognition," said Dr. Morris Barer, Scientific Director of the CIHR Institute of Health Services and Policy Research. "The CIHR has provided the necessary platform and the opportunity to strengthen both the health services research community in Canada, and the linkages between that community and the users of research evidence. I am grateful to the many wonderful staff at CIHR with whom I have had the pleasure to work on these important initiatives, and without whom none of this would have been possible.

Dr. Barer's recent research focuses on the causes of healthcare cost increases, Canadian pharmaceutical policy, and separating fact from fiction concerning access to care, waiting lists, the effects of an aging population, and healthcare financing. Widely published, he gave the Emmett Hall Memorial Lecture at the Canadian Association for Health Services and Policy Research's 2004 annual conference.

The Health Services Research Advancement Award is aimed at any individual, team, or organization that has contributed significantly to the advancement of the health services research community in Canada. Winners receive $10,000 to use in the advancement of health services research.

About CHSRF

The Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (CHSRF) promotes and funds management and policy research in health services and nursing to increase the quality, relevance and usefulness of this research for health-system policy makers and managers. In addition, the foundation works with these health-system decision makers to support and enhance their use of research evidence when addressing health management and policy challenges. Any foundation project, process or activity always involves both researchers, and managers, policy makers from academia and Canada's health system. www.chsrf.ca

About CIHR

CIHR's Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (CIHR-IHSPR) is dedicated to supporting innovative research, capacity-building and knowledge translation initiatives designed to improve the way health care services are organized, regulated, managed, financed, paid for, used and delivered, in the interest of improving the health and quality of life of all Canadians.

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is the Government of Canada's agency for health research. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to catalyze its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to over 10,000 health researchers and trainees across Canada. www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca

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Further information:

Marie-France Poirier
CIHR Media Relations
(613) 941-4563
mediarelations@cihr-irsc.gc.ca