September 13, 2023
Michael Smith Health Research BC’s funding for 23 researchers through the 2023 Scholar competition will help develop, attract and retain BC’s best and brightest health researchers and support the advancement of world-class health research in the province.
Funding includes 16 awards to UBC faculty members to support health research at UBC and its affiliated health research institutions.
The Scholar Program supports early-career health researchers who are building leading-edge health research programs, training the next generation of scientists and expanding their potential to make significant contributions to their field.
Read the Health Research Bc announcement
UBC Funding recipients
Health Research bc Scholars
- Kirk Bergstrom (Biology UBCO)
Mucus-directed therapeutics to prevent and treat chronic microbiota-dependent diseases of the gut
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus
- Brittany Dennis (BC Centre on Substance Use)
The Road to Recovery Initiative (R2RI): a prospective evaluation of a novel program for the delivery and coordination of addiction care in a Canadian setting
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia, BC Centre on Substance Use, Providence Health Care, St. Paul's Hospital
Partners: St. Paul's Foundation / BC Centre on Substance Use
- Rebecca Feldman (Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Statistics UBCO)
Evaluating microstructural changes in multiple sclerosis with magnetic resonance imaging
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus
- Devon Greyson (School of Population and Public Health)
Improving health information interventions to foster vaccine confidence and cultural safety of vaccination services
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia
- Brett Hilton (Cellular and Physiological Sciences)
Improving health information interventions to foster vaccine confidence and cultural safety of vaccination services
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia, International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD)
- Ryan Hoiland (Anesthesiology Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
The oxygen cascade as a therapeutic target in humans with hypoxic-ischemic brain injury
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia
- Tao Huan (Chemistry)
Development of metabolomics to interrogate the effects of maternal sugar overconsumption on pregnant rats and their offspring
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health
- Elizabeth Keys (School of Nursing UBCO)
The SLeep solUtions to proMote Better Early childhood Relationships (SLUMBER) Program: helping families optimize infant mental health by supporting sleep health in early childhood
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus
- Calvin Kuo (School of Biomedical Engineering)
Errors, uncertainties, and ambiguities in wearable health monitoring systems
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia
- Jessica Lougheed (Psychology UBCO)
Supporting mental health in adolescents and their parents: using developmental science to refine and promote the uptake of a local community intervention
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus
- Manu Madhav (School of Biomedical Engineering)
Quantifying navigational impairments in preclinical Alzheimer's disease
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health
Partner: Canadians for Leading Edge Alzheimer Research (CLEAR) Foundation
- Johanna Sam (Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education)
Nini nanaghintsan ?anh (is your mind tired?): the healing journeys of Indigenous adolescents navigating pathways to urban and online wellness supports
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia
- Julia Schmidt (Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy)
Transforming health services following traumatic brain injury through peer-support
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia, GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre
Partners: Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation
- Neal Shahidi (Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine)
Organ-sparing minimally-invasive endoscopic resection techniques program: incorporating high-quality endoscopic management into everyday clinical practice
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia, St. Paul's Hospital
- Laura Struik (School of Nursing UBCO)
Innovating health promotion efforts in response to youth tobacco use
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus
- Simon Wisnovsky (Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences)
Integrating functional glycomics and genomic screening to reveal new targets for cancer immunotherapy
Host Institution / Research Location: University of British Columbia
Partner: Lotte & John Hecht Memorial Foundation
View all 2023 Scholar award recipients and Project Descriptions