Developing the Strategic Plan for CIHR’s Institute of Infection and Immunity

CIHR’s Institute of Infection & Immunity (III) engaged Shift Health to support the development of a 5-year strategic plan that reflected the research interests and strengths of Canada’s infection and immunity research community and the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the world transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the health sector’s awakening to systemic racism and inequity in health research and care delivery, CIHR’s III saw an opportunity to advance a mandate enriched by greater emphasis on pandemic preparedness and an enhanced commitment to embedding equity, diversity and inclusion into research funding and operations. Shift Health designed a highly consultative approach to gathering insights from Canada’s infection and immunity research community and developed strategic objectives focused on research impact, capacity building and knowledge mobilization.

The strategic plan will guide CIHR’s III in mobilizing an inclusive, collaborative and diverse research community to advance infection and immunity research that drives equitable health outcomes for people in Canada and around the world.