Skip to McMaster Navigation Skip to Site Navigation Skip to main content
McMaster logo

Research & Innovation

Physicians’ Services Incorporated (PSI): Operating Grants Health Research

Research Admin Offices:

  • HRS

Funding Type:

Grant

Opportunity Type:

  • Grant
  • Operating

Value:

Up to $250,000 for a maximum of three years (maximum $100,000 in any one year).

Disciplines:

  • Health Sciences

Sponsors:

Deadlines:

Internal Deadline:

Continuous

Sponsor Deadline:

Continuous

Description:

PSI’s granting interests are in two areas: education of practicing physicians and health research with an emphasis on research relevant to patient care. The Foundation’s support of health research is offered in the following areas:

  • Clinical Research which is of direct relevance to patient care. Studies involving animals will be considered only if the animals are required as an immediate patient surrogate, which must be demonstrated in the written application.
  • Medical Education Research which focuses on projects designed to assess through research in the post M.D. educational environment, such as curricula, methods and teaching resources. The Foundation recognizes that research within this area may involve teams that include non-medical researchers and consultants. Please note:
    • This funding stream is intended to support hypothesis driven research proposals; therefore, applications will only be considered for projects that evaluate curriculum, methods and teaching resources. Projects intended to create and/or develop curriculum, educational programs or tools will not be considered. Also, any costs attributed to the creation and/or development of curriculum, educational programs or tools will not be considered.
    • Research participants must be at the post M.D. level (e.g. residents) and cannot include undergraduate medical school students.
  • Health Systems Research which focuses on projects of a special nature within the healthcare system, such as preventative medicine, care of the elderly, communications within the system, underserviced regions and ways of enhancing the effectiveness of medical practice.

Please note: Since PSI funds hypothesis-driven research, applications focusing on developing a tool or application must contain a strong research component. Applications lacking a strong research component may be deemed ineligible and not receive full peer and committee review.

Eligibility:

The principal investigator/applicant for a research grant must be either:

  • A College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario licensed M.D. with an academic appointment and therefore eligible to apply for their own research grants as an independent investigator.
    OR
  • A fellow who is a College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario licensed M.D. and who has a supervising co-Principal Investigator for the research project. The supervising co-Principal Investigator, who is a College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario licensed M.D. with an academic appointment, will therefore provide the necessary research supervision and infrastructure (including administering the grant at their sponsoring institution).
  • Fellows must include with their application a letter of support from the supervising co-Principal Investigator. If the fellow’s training is scheduled to end before the projected end date of their research study, then the supervisor must confirm that they will take over the fellow’s responsibilities in the event where the fellow may not be able to complete the project as the PI.
  • PSI will consider and support only one project per Principal Investigator at any given time. If an investigator is currently being supported by PSI as the Principal Investigator, the Foundation will not consider an application for a new project until the end of the current granting period as agreed to by the PI and PSI. Also, applicants must not submit more than one application as Principal Investigator per grant cycle.
  • Examples of co-Principal Investigator, co-investigators, and collaborators including but not limited to:
    • Faculty members who hold a Ph.D but not an M.D.
    • Healthcare professionals who do not have an academic appointment.
    • Collaborators can be anyone who is not a co-investigator but assisting with the project in some way, i.e. providing lab space, samples, expertise, etc.

Application/Nomination Process:

Application Process
All requests for funding must be submitted using PSI’s online application system.
  • To be eligible for consideration, applications must contain all requested information in full. PSI is unable to consider incomplete applications.
  • Please do not upload scanned documents to the online system, with the exception of letters of support with signatures and the completed signature page
  • Please note: all applications received by the Foundation through the online system are acknowledged automatically. You will receive a second notification of acceptance within a few weeks.
  • Applications submitted will be reviewed for completeness and eligibility. PSI will notify you through the online grants management system if we require clarification or additional information. Failure to respond in a timely manner may result in your application’s review being delayed or your application being declined.
  • Once completeness and eligibility are confirmed, the application will be sent for external peer review by experts in the research focus area.
  • The PSI Foundation no longer has deadlines.
  • You may submit an application at any time. PSI’s internal review committee will consider your application at its next meeting following the peer review process. You will generally receive a decision within six months. Since PSI does not fund ongoing research, applicants are required to wait for a funding decision from PSI to begin their research project.

Resources:

Contact:

If applying from the Faculty of Health Sciences, unless otherwise indicated, you no longer need to send documents to HRS Intake. Your first point of contact is your assigned Senior Grants Advisor.