Research and Innovation Toward Tomorrow

UCalgary Research Excellence Chair

In addition to being among 15 recipients named UCalgary Research Excellence Chairs in 2024, professor Dr. Shane Sinclair released a study that measured the impact of compassion in the 14 busiest provincial emergency departments in Alberta. The paper published in BMC Emergency Medicine found that compassion was identified as the greatest predictor of patients' overall quality care ratings. He also received the Alberta Medical Association (AMA) Medal of Honour for his groundbreaking evidence-based patient-centered compassion research. 

Canadian Institutes of Health Research Tier 1 CRC in Black and Racialized Peoples’ Health 

Dr. Bukola Salami is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Black and Racialized Peoples' Health at the Cumming School of Medicine and Faculty of Nursing, University of Calgary. Her research program focuses on policies and practices shaping migrant health as well as Black People’s health. Dr. Salami is also the Canadian Nurses Association’s vice-president and became a professor in the Faculty of Nursing on Sept. 1, 2024.

Canadian Institutes of Health Research Tier 2 CRC in Patient and Family Centered Cancer Survivorship 

In November 2024, the Government of Canada announced the renewal of six Canada Research Chairs (CRC) at the University of Calgary, along with eight new CRC appointments, earning UCalgary more than $10 million in federal funding to solve some of our most complex problems. Dr. Cuthbert continues her second term as a CRC chairholder and on building momentum, she says, “my ultimate goal is to develop innovative and sustainable ways to support patients and their families as they grapple with their many biopsychosocial health and supportive care needs."

Associate professor and associate dean, research and innovation Dr. Tracie Risling and Alberta Health Services leaders are co-leading study-focused ways to stabilize and support more sustainable nursing workforce. Risling says the study REACHing (Retention through Experienced and Aspiring Career Harmony) Excellence: A Transformative Mentoring Solution for Late-Career Nursing Workforce Retention, will work toward delaying late-career nurses' retirement, combat system ageism and enhance novice nurse retention through significant mentorship matches.

Sue Crawford, manager of the Health Systems Transformation Initiative (HIVE) in the Faculty of Nursing was featured in an episode of Now Innovating, a research-to-impact podcast and video series at UCalgary. She shared how HIVE initiatives utilize nursing expertise to empower innovators and change agents to enhance health and health care delivery by applying transdisciplinary solutions.

Dr. Karen Benzies, PhD, is a leading researcher in maternal and child health in the Faculty of Nursing. At the annual ASTech Awards in November 2024, which recognizes Alberta’s science and technology innovation sector, Benzies was recognized in the category of Social Innovation/Educational Technologies – Research Collaboration. Her social enterprise Liminality developed Merge, a clinical trial-validated model of family-integrated care for the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In June 2025, she was named a 2025 Parex Innovation Fellow. The Parex Resources Innovation Fellowships recognize UCalgary researchers engaged in academic exploration and community collaborations that lead to impactful startups and advancements in technological and social innovation.