Grant: SPOR Mentorship Chair in Innovative Clinical Trials

Canada is failing its children. One in four are overweight or obese, one in six have a mental health problem and one in four are not ready to start school at the right time. Intervening early can improve children's physical, mental and educational well-being. Yet there are major gaps in understanding what interventions we should use, when to do so, and which children benefit most. To address these questions, we created TARGet Kids!, the largest primary care research network for children in Canada which has collected detailed information on over 8000 children. We will use the TARGet Kids! network to train new researchers to be experts in innovative clinical trials and patient-oriented research. Our mentorship program will focus on creating interventions which target the top 3 research priorities for parents and doctors: 1) heart health, 2) mental health and 3) readiness to start school. Our mentorship plan will focus on: 1)Methodological skills: Training on the planning and conduct of innovative clinical trials 2)Mentorship skills: Promote the ability for trainees to become role models for others 3)Leadership training: Teach trainees the skills to secure funding for new research programs 4)Patient and user engagement: Involve patients in all aspects of research 5)Policy development: Turn findings into action by developing relationships with policy makers and making recommendations that are relevant to them Our team is highly skilled in innovative clinical trials and our partnerships with parents, clinicians and policy makers have created a highly productive training environment. This mentorship program will create new researchers who are global leaders in improving the sustainability, effectiveness and responsiveness of the healthcare system and will maximize the physical, mental and educational wellbeing of Canada's children.