2013 SUMMER STUDENT RESEARCH PROGRAM
Deadline for posting projects online: January 28, 2013
Instructions to supervisors
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If you have yet to identify a student partner for your SSRP project you may submit a completed Project Registration and Description
form for posting on the SSRP website. Interested students will be able to view your project description and contact you. It is your
responsibility to find an appropriate student partner for your SSRP application.
If you have already identified a student for your SSRP project, you do not need to post your project online. Instead, have the
student include the information from the completed Project Registration and Description Form in their application package.
Supervisors may submit more than one project for posting on the website; however, only one completed application per supervisor
will be accepted for the competition.
Faculty members who wish to post their projects on the SSRP website are encouraged to submit this document to the Student
Research Coordinator, Linda Herbert, as early as possible at linda.herbert@ubc.ca.
Additional information on the SSRP, including application forms, funding terms, adjudication criteria and program procedures can
be found on the SSRP website: http://www.med.ubc.ca/research/ssrp.
Content boxes will expand as you type but please be mindful of the text limits; the actual application form will not allow extraneous
material.
PROJECT REGISTRATION AND DESCRIPTION FORM
Applications will be accepted from:
Both MD & non-MD Undergraduates
MD undergraduate students only
non-MD undergraduate students only
Additional notes to potential applicants:
Project Title:
Women’s Health Initiative Supporting Pregnancy – Oral Health (WHISP-OH): Developing a Community-Based
Research Approach to Reducing Prematurity
Hypothesis:
A comprehensive dental health program to pregnancy outreach programs or equivalent, which facilitates
access to oral health, including examination, periodontal care, dental health education and
treatment/intervention for women aged 15-39 years on Vancouver Island, reduces the healthcare resources
required to provide acute neonatal care due to prematurity.
Keywords: Provide approximately 5 key words that describe the proposed research project.
Oral health, preterm delivery, health promotion, interdisciplinary collaboration
Some studentship funding is only available for specific research topics. To assist us in assigning
funding to successful projects please indicate whether your project is related to any of the following:
Oncology
Leukemia/ Lymphoma/ Hodgkin’s/ Myeloma or other blood cancers
Surgical Oncology
Kidney Disease
Muscular Dystrophy
Diabetes
Psychiatry/ Mental Health
Pharmacology
Neurology
Cardiology
Pulmonary
Rheumatology / Arthritis
Community-based research
Clinical Genomics
Statistics
International
*Please note that funds are also available for general medical research and all projects will be considered for this funding.
Some studentship funding (CIHR) is only available to student-supervisor teams where the supervisor
holds other sources of peer reviewed funding. Please indicate if you hold other sources of peer
reviewed funding. Note that the other funding does not need to be for this project.
2013 SUMMER STUDENT RESEARCH PROGRAM
Deadline for posting projects online: January 28, 2013
Yes
No
To assist with adjudication assignments indicate the type(s) of research applicable to this project
(select all applicable):
Basic Science
Clinical
Other (please specify):
Educational and/or Curricular
Population Health
Background and Summary of Proposed Research: (In 400 words or fewer – please write in lay terms)
Preterm delivery (<37 weeks gestation) consumes significant health care resources and constitutes an
important public health issue. The etiology of premature delivery is poorly understood, but it is well recognized
that poor antenatal care and low socio-economic status are implicated. There is emerging evidence of a
relationship between periodontal health and adverse pregnancy outcome, including preterm birth. Preterm birth
rates in defined areas on Vancouver Island are above the national averages.
The American Association of Periodontology (Task force on periodontal treatment of pregnant women, 2004)
recommends: “that women who are pregnant or planning pregnancy undergo periodontal examinations.
Appropriate preventive or therapeutic services, if indicated, should be provided”. There is no such
recommendation in BC or Canada.
The proposal is to explore the need for dental health resources in women of child-bearing age on Vancouver
Island. An initial study is underway to explore the perceptions of new mothers in the Victoria area of oral health
and pregnancy. Studies of healthcare professionals involved in both oral health and pregnancy care is under
development. These initial studies are designed to identify the need for, opportunities and barriers to the
implementation of a focused dental health program in defined geographical populations and to evaluate the
impact on preterm delivery and neonatal morbidity.
Student involvement in the initial studies has been a focus of this project.
Outline the student’s role in the project including the potential benefits they will gain as a result of their
involvement. This should include their anticipated interaction(s) within the research team, individual duties,
available resources (training, facilities etc.) and opportunities for the student to learn new skills.
A CIHR-funded planning meeting took place in 2012 with stakeholders which included researchers and
knowledge users from a range of academic, practice and policy settings identified to reflect the crossorganizational impact and the practice, research and policy implications of the relationship between oral health
and pregnancy outcomes. The role of the student will be to develop one of the key themes identified which
include: i.misconceptions about safety of oral health during pregnancy; ii. discrepancies in knowledge and
practices versus current evidence; iii. connections between healthcare providers; iv. limited focus on oral
health in medical and nursing curricula; v. costs of acute care versus preventative strategies; and vi. barriers
to oral health care access. The student will work with the research team which includes students in other
healthcare disciplines and will have the ability to work on their own piece of the project while collaborating as
part of a larger supportive team.
Opportunities are provided for skill development in critical analysis and report writing, comprehensive
database and journal search, survey design, knowledge translation and Research Ethics Board application,
depending on the student's preference. This is a clinical research project with a focus on community-based
healthcare promotion and prevention. It provides an opportunity to work with an enthusiastic multi-professional
team including acute hospital care and community services and healthcare professionals from medicine,
nursing, and dental health. The student will be supported in providing a critical element to the development
stages of a large team-based research project with a focus on the impact on population health on Vancouver
Island.
2013 SUMMER STUDENT RESEARCH PROGRAM
Deadline for posting projects online: January 28, 2013
Research Location Information (complete as applicable)
Some funding is only available to projects with specific affiliations. Please indicate if you and/or your project are
affiliated with any of the following (select all that apply):
BC Cancer Agency
Child and Family Research Institute
Providence Health Care Research Institute
Vancouver Coastal Heath Research Institute
Women’s Health Research Institute
Fraser Health Authority
Interior Health Authority
Northern Health Authority
Authority
Vancouver Coastal Health
Vancouver Island Health Authority
UBC Point Grey
UBC Okanagan
Island Medical Program
Northern Medical Program
Vancouver Fraser Medical Program
Provincial Health Services
Southern Medical Program
Research Centre:
Hospital: Victoria General Hospital
Program or Unit: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Additional information (building, lab etc.):
City or Region: Victoria
Supervisor’s Information
Supervisor Surname:
Harrison
Supervisor Given Name:
Adele
FoM Department/School (Main FoM Appointment):
Pediatrics
UBC FoM Division (if applicable):
Neonatology
Additional Affiliations (University, Department/School, Centre, Hospital, unit etc.):
Victoria General Hospital
Main Phone:
250 727 4239
Cell / Secondary Phone:
E-mail Address:
adele.harrison@viha.ca
Academic Appointment at UBC:
Clinical assistant professor
Preferred contact method (for students)
Phone supervisor
Email supervisor
Phone alternate contact
Email alternate contact
Alternate Contact’s Information
Contact’s Name:
Lenora Marcellus
Contact’s Role:
Co-Investigator (Professor, UVIC School of Nursing)
Contact’s Phone Number:
Contact’s E-mail Address:
lenoram@uvic.ca