The December DataPoints is out! Check out what’s inside the last issue 2025!

Season's Greetings from the Scientific Director & CEO

Dear friends and colleagues,

The sparkle and bustle of December is upon us. December is also a good time for reflection, including taking time to look back on the year’s accomplishments. It has certainly been another year of “wins” in pushing HDRN Canada’s mission forward—making multi-regional research something that is increasingly feasible for more researchers and knowledge users. We continue to work on improving services, establishing standards, expanding the types of data available, innovating in technology, and including diverse perspectives and voices, all while honouring commitments to IDEA and respect for Indigenous data sovereignty. More than 190 people across the country now contribute to HDRN Canada initiatives. Their dedication, creativity and collaboration are not only impressive—they’re inspiring. I’m truly grateful to work alongside and learn with the individuals and organizations that form our network.

I didn’t think we could get any busier, but 2025 set a new bar. Our third annual public forum, Health Data for All of Us: A Dialogue on AI in Health, sold out in person and drew hundreds more online—and planning is already underway for next year’s forum next April in Ottawa. Our trailblazing speaker series, Big IDEAs About Health Data, has continued to attract record YouTube views and attendance, with a staggering 1,200 people registering for the last webinar.

This year, we launched our IDEA Strategy Action Plan after developing HDRN Canada’s Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility Strategy, the first of its kind in Canada, as far as we know. The IDEA Team also developed an open-access Unlearning Program and released the first of a series of complementary training videos. Our Public Advisory Council played an essential role in research on public trust and health data for the Public Health Agency of Canada and created a plain-language health data glossary that launched on social media during Health Literacy Month campaign. The PAC will be recruiting new members in 2026, so keep an eye out for updates. And our Privacy Team completed the HDRN Canada Privacy e-Learning Program, with user testing beginning in the new year.

We started the work of evolving our data access services, bringing researcher and knowledge-user services together under one front counter, and we continue to refine our methods and tools. We launched the DASH Researcher Impact webinar series to spotlight multi-regional projects supported through the Data Access Support Hub. Our work in data harmonization continued to break new ground—from pioneering advances in distributed analytics to the LLM MASK pilot project—and we hosted the first-ever pan-Canadian OMOP Common Data Model event, drawing more than 80 participants and 20 presenters.

Collaboration remains at the heart of our progress. We expanded the Health Data Research (HDR) Alliance and are launching the Atlantic Collaborative to strengthen regional representation in multi-regional health research. These relationships, and ongoing commitment from our member organizations, are what make our shared success possible. All signs point to another ambitious and productive year ahead. But for now, I hope you enjoy a restful, regenerative holiday season. My very best wishes to you and your loved ones in the new year.

Warmly,

Kim

Kim McGrail | Scientific Director & CEO
Health Data Research Network Canada

What's Up @ HDRN Canada?

A photo of four smiling people standing in front of two banners: a white man with glasses, a white woman with long brown hair and glasses, a white woman with medium light brown hair and a Black woman with glasses.

HDRN Canada welcomes newest member

CEO Dr. Kim McGrail and Board Chair Dr. Bob Bell went to Charlottetown to celebrate the launch of HDRN Canada's newest member, the Secure Island Data Repository, alongside SIDR Director Mary-Ann Standing. SIDR contains a wide variety of linkable, de-identified, health-related data that supports data-driven evidence in PEI.

Top priorities for Public Advisory Council

Why is HDRN Canada's Public Advisory Council prioritizing privacy, consent and equity? Learn how these strategic priorities are shaping our PAC's work and their vision of a future where health data are used to strengthen trust, promote equity and deliver meaningful benefits to everyone across the country.

Headshots of 20 smiling people of different ages, genders and skin colours. Text reads: Pan-Canadian OMOP Common Data Model. Engagement event. Logos for ICES, INOVAIT, IQVIA and Health Data Research Network Canada are at bottom.

That's a wrap! First OMOP Common Data Model event

HDRN Canada wrapped up the first-ever pan-Canadian OMOP Common Data Model engagement event in Toronto last month, with more than 80 attendees, 20 presenters and countless conversations focused on how to transform and harmonize data using OMOP, as well as the challenges and opportunities for multi-regional health research.

Pragmatic trial seeks to end shameful colonial policy

Now in its second year, HDRN Canada’s Pragmatic Trials Training Program is already driving real change. Trainee Dr. Tibetha Kemble is designing a trial to confront a lasting legacy of colonial policy: the removal of Indigenous babies through birth alerts. The trial seeks to reduce bias in health systems and create safer care for Indigenous families.

Upcoming Events

How can administrative data help Canadian Veterans? DECEMBER 17 | Virtual

How can population-based health data better support Canadian veterans? In this HDRN Canada Discussion Session, Dr. Alyson Mahar will share her work leveraging routinely collected administrative health and social data to improve the health and well-being of veterans across Canada.

REGISTER

Using Administrative Data in Rural Dementia Health Services Research JANUARY 29 | Virtual

In our next Big IDEAs About Health Data webinar, three researchers from the University of Saskatchewan's Rural Dementia Action Research Team will discuss their research using administrative data to help identify people living with dementia in rural populations.

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CHIMA Virtual Education Day
JANUARY 30 | Virtual

Take advantage of CHIMA’s virtual education day to build new skills in clinical information systems and interoperability. Learn more about current standards, future innovations and how structural ontologies and terminology standards are developed and applied so systems, devices and applications can communicate effectively.

REGISTER

Navigating Data with CRDCN & DASH FEBRUARY 12 | Virtual

The Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN) and HDRN Canada are teaming up for an exciting joint webinar designed to support researchers with data access and use, highlighting how CRDCN’s extensive research platform and DASH’s streamlined data access support can accelerate and strengthen health research.

REGISTER

News from Across the Network

CIHI releases National Health Expenditure Trends, 2025

CIHI has released its annual publication on health expenditure trends, providing detailed information on health care spending using the National Health Expenditure Database. Total health care spending is expected to reach $399 billion in 2025 or $9,626 per Canadian, failing to keep up with inflation and population growth.

Using data to evaluate public health programming

Using linked administrative data and qualitative research, DataNB and the Maritime SPOR SUPPORT Unit assessed New Brunswick's Healthy Families, Healthy Babies program. This rare, Canadian-specific evaluation of a provincial perinatal program shows the promise and the limitations of targeted supports for higher-risk families.

HRDP-SK increases researcher access to health data

Since its 2024 launch, the Health Research Data Platform – Saskatchewan has offered a coordinated request process for researchers to access provincial health system data, significantly increasing research using these data. Currently, 15 projects are underway, including three multi-regional studies in collaboration with HDRN Canada.

Breastfeeding in birthing parents with bipolar disorder

In maternal bipolar disorder, decisions about early infant feeding are complex and may depend on mental health stability, sleep protection needs and medication safety in lactation. A new population-based cohort study from ICES explores breastfeeding practices in birthing parents with this mood disorder.

Child abuse declines in Québec

Violence against Quebec children has declined over the past 25 years, according to data from the Institut de la statistique du Québec. Psychological abuse dropped to 28 percent, while minor physical abuse fell to 13.5 percent. Despite the decline, 50,660 children were victims of severe physical violence in 2024.

Measuring the impact of health research in Manitoba

The Manitoba Centre for Health Policy has released a framework to measure the impact of its government-commissioned research. Co-authored by HDRN Canada Executive member Dr. Nathan Nickel, it examines how the research process can be improved to ensure that future projects are timely, relevant and effective.

Does healthier food correlate to cancer prevention?

A study to advance cancer prevention by determining how healthier food environments could reduce cancer incidence and mortality has been approved for data access through Population Data BC. It will use linked data from three sources to identify associations between categories of food outlets and incidence of obesity-related cancers.