Background
The Maritimes have a very long health research history and rich research resources. There are various
health organizations, medical faculties, and health research centres/networks. One advantage in the
Maritime region is the well-organized and comprehensive provincial healthcare databases that
motivate many evidence-based health research projects. These projects often require significant data
linkage, data processing, and high quality statistical analyses and modelling procedures. Hence, in this
region, there is a high demand for collaboration between health researchers and statistical scientists.
The research groups from Acadia University, Dalhousie University, University of New Brunswick and
the University of Prince Edward Island have active faculty researchers and students with access to
excellent facilities. Specific research outcomes range from methodological developments in areas such
as pharmacoepidemiology and drug safety, patient reported research outcomes, and human genetics, to
knowledge translation tools such as novel clinical decision support systems and open source statistical
packages. The mission of MSHSCC is to strengthen ties among our statistical science programs and
our regional/provincial health organizations. This will make our students more competitive in the
employment market and build research capacity in health sciences research, leading to improvements
in health care.
Training program offered at MSHSCC
MSHSCC acts like a platform to coordinate/exchange collaborative research and training programs/projects, through experiential learning placements (such as co-op, internship positions) in health organizations, or student training positions offered by health organizations; and collaborative education among participating institutes. Collaborative education and training is expected to be developed over the coming years as closer links are being established between university environments and health science organizations. The initiatives will most likely be specific to the different types of training programs within the region.