About CIPSRT
As part of the National Research Consortium, CIPSRT serves as the Knowledge Exchange Hub for knowledge synthesis, translation, and exchange that relies upon the best contemporary research evidence supporting an overall mission to help current and former public safety personnel, their leaders, and their families to maintain and improve their mental health and wellbeing.
Our History
In its 2018 budget, the Government of Canada identified the treatment of posttraumatic stress injuries (PTSI) as a priority for the country’s public safety personnel (PSP). As a result, a new National Research Consortium between the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) and the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment (CIPSRT) was formed. CIPSRT, under the scientific direction of multi-disciplinary researchers from across Canada, serves as the Knowledge Exchange Hub for the CIHR-CIPSRT National Research Consortium for Posttraumatic Stress Injuries among Public Safety Personnel. Public Safety Canada (PSC) has provided $5 million to support CIPSRT’s role as the Knowledge Exchange Hub for the Consortium with a focus on PTSI in PSP.
Our Team
Scientific leadership at CIPSRT is composed of a multi-disciplinary team of Canadian researchers who provide strategic leadership and hold primary responsibility for oversight of all scientific activities at CIPSRT.
The Public Safety Steering Committee (PSSC) includes leadership from Canada’s public safety personnel executives and associations and serves to reflect the interests and concerns of the Public Safety sector. PSSC organizations will have an opportunity to share expertise and shape research agendas of the National Research Consortium in order to support the relevance and knowledge translation of research undertaken for the PSP community.
Mission
To provide a Canadian Knowledge Exchange Hub for strategic public safety wellness research and analysis by working with public safety leaders and academics from across Canada to translate and mobilize research knowledge that meets the current and future needs of Canadian public safety personnel (PSP), their leadership, and their families.
Mandate
Through its national network, CIPSRT responds to the identified needs of public safety personnel by producing or facilitating the evidence necessary for engaging strategies and allocating resources to support high quality and easily accessible mental health care for all public safety personnel.
CIPSRT is an innovative organization that engages existing academic research resources and facilitates the development of new research, research capacity, and effective knowledge translation. With a network of academic researchers from across Canada and the support of Canadian public safety personnel leadership, CIPSRT is a hub for collaborations to address the mental health and wellbeing research requirements of Canadian public safety personnel and their families.
CIPSRT operates as a Research Unit under the leadership of the Vice-President (Research) at the University of Regina.
The National Research Consortium will build the evidence base related to posttraumatic stress injuries and other mental health related concerns among PSP and disseminate this research evidence to public safety stakeholders, knowledge users, and policy makers. As part of the National Research Consortium, CIPSRT will serve as the Knowledge Exchange Hub for knowledge synthesis, knowledge translation, and knowledge exchange.
Beneficiaries
CIPSRT works to improve the lifetime health and wellbeing for people directly or indirectly related to public safety personnel, including frontline personnel, support personnel, families of personnel, and retired personnel. CIPSRT research will focus on the unique occupational exposures, experiences, and environment encountered by people directly or indirectly related to public safety personnel. The research results and advancements will support the lifetime health and wellbeing of all Canadians.
Public Safety Personnel
When hearing the term Public Safety Personnel, or PSP, most people think of the highly visible professions – firefighters, paramedics, and police. But there are many other types of PSP; for example, border services officers, correctional officers, correctional workers, search and rescue personnel, and numerous persons who support all PSP operations. There are also other important PSP who often work out of sight; for example, public safety communicators (e.g., 911 operators and dispatchers) and operational intelligence personnel.