RPP Profile: Dr. Judy Wuest

"All Canadians need to benefit from research," says Dr. Judy Wuest, who became a CIHR Investigator through CIHR's Regional Partnerships Program (RPP)* in 2002. The Program is designed to support health research capacity development in less populous regions of Canada and to build on the local strengths of the regions involved. "If all Canadian health research took place in larger urban centres, we would have little understanding of the health or health service needs and challenges that Canadians face in rural areas, small towns, and small cities."

As a professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of New Brunswick (UNB), Dr. Wuest studies the long-term physical and mental health effects of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), and their impact on the health-care system and the development of health policy. Her important work not only sheds light on the unique factors affecting women and IPV in New Brunswick, but also contributes to the theoretical understanding of women's health and IPV, workplace bullying, and social determinants of health that can be used by other researchers across the country.

Her RPP funding has enabled Dr. Wuest to contribute to the growth of health research culture and infrastructure in New Brunswick. "The CIHR Investigator Award gave me the opportunity not only to expand my program of research, but also to assist in creating a supportive climate for health research within UNB," she explains. "At the time this award was granted, the health research infrastructure available to me at UNB was very limited, and there were no seasoned health researchers there to facilitate its development. With my CIHR funding, I have tried to contribute to addressing this gap as I work to meet the objectives of my own research plan."

Her efforts have paid off. Since she received her initial CIHR-RPP award, Dr. Wuest has been successful in receiving more funding as a Principal Investigator for one CIHR operating grant and co-PI on another, two further operating grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and a research grant jointly funded by the Alzheimer's Society of Canada and the Canadian Nurses Foundation. In addition, Dr. Wuest is currently a successful Co-Investigator for a CIHR operating grant, as well as for a CIHR New Emerging Team (NET) grant.

"This funding has allowed me to move from conducting a single research study – literally off the corner of my desk – to building human resource capacity that previously did not exist within the Faculty of Nursing research environment at UNB. I have engaged research coordinators, graduate and undergraduate students, and one new investigator in my expanding programs of research," remarks Dr. Wuest. "In fact, my initial RPP award gave me the credibility I needed to obtain funding from the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation's Research Assistantships Initiative. I have been able to support students through this funding, quite steadily, since 2004."

Dr. Wuest has also tried to contribute to UNB's institutional knowledge of how to acquire health research funding and how to run research projects in the university's environment. She has been able to advise and support her UNB colleagues and students, and has witnessed their success in seeking CIHR and SSHRC funding first-hand. Dr. Wuest's RPP funding also enabled her to take the lead in writing a successful Canada Research Chair application for the Faculty of Nursing at UNB; as a result, Dr. Barbara Patterson, a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair, has been a professor at UNB and an excellent resource for students since her recruitment in 2004.

"Students need exposure to programs of research and mentors," Dr. Wuest stresses. "Without a solid cadre of local health researchers, intelligent young scholars in New Brunswick would not get exposure to the programs that are so essential for fostering an interest in health research as a career path – and for understanding how to get the funding that they need. Making those connections makes a difference."

For example, Dr. Wuest worked with a Masters student who used data from the project funded under the CIHR-Institute of Gender and Health grant. This graduate student, Ms. Kelly Scott Story, conducted a secondary analysis of the data to look at the cardiovascular risk of women who have left abusive relationships. When Ms. Story completed her Masters degree, she worked as a cardiovascular clinical nurse specialist for a time, but returned to UNB for their interdisciplinary Ph D program. Ms. Story became part of the FUTURE Program, a network for Cardiovascular Nurse Scientists based out of McMaster University, and also has close contact with the team at UNB that is working under the CIHR NET grant.

"The snowball effect is amazing," says Dr. Wuest. "Our talented graduate student, who made wonderful use of our data to complete her Masters degree, is now connected to other researchers in her field across the country and is able to stay in New Brunswick to conduct her own research. Our funding helped her with her work, and hopefully she'll garner more funding that will let her help more students and colleagues in the future. And so the cycle continues."

Dr. Wuest is quick to reiterate how valuable programs of research and health research funding are for New Brunswick. "The $200,000 per year coming to New Brunswick under RPP has provided huge leverage for other funding to support the health research endeavour at UNB," she emphasizes. "We have incredibly bright and promising young researchers in this region. The support for research programs in provinces like New Brunswick ensures that health research is relevant for all Canadians."

* RPP has been operating since 1997 (initially under the former Medical Research Council). It originally included Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, but expanded to include New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in 1999.