Six community organizations are receiving grants to support innovative mental health projects, thanks to new donations to an interdisciplinary initiative at the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM) co-led by two UM researchers affiliated with the institute.
PRIME – Partnering for Research Innovation in Mental Health – is a research theme founded in 2022 by Dr. Mandy Archibald, associate professor at the College of Nursing, and Dr. Leslie Roos, associate professor of psychology at the Faculty of Arts. Research themes at CHRIM comprise groups of interdisciplinary researchers to tackle large, complex issues in a variety of projects and studies.
RBC is supporting PRIME X Community Grants with a $250,000 gift. Additional funding comes from Sobeys Family of Support, which is the main funder of PRIME, with $150,000 annually.
“The funding allowed us to give money back to organizations to support the good work that they’re doing, to support that broader ecosystem for mental health in Manitoba,” Archibald said. “This will be in the form of student placements, funds to support research around existing or future programming and for strengthening academic community partnerships.”
One of the projects funded is a youth-led Indigenous mental health initiative with the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Manitoba and Winnipeg that Archibald will be working closely with on an arts-based and qualitative research project.
Laurie McPherson, director of research, evaluation and innovation at CMHA Manitoba and Winnipeg, said the My Path Forward initiative is inspired by Indigenous youth who expressed their interests in a recent Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth report.
“Youth were interested in programs that focus on connection, relationships, culturally relevant activities, land-based teaching, peer support and finding community,” she said.
“This grant gives us the resources to be able to work with youth to develop something really meaningful and we’re very appreciative of the collaboration with the university and will benefit greatly from their expertise in research and program development.”
Archibald will work alongside Dr. Aleah Fontaine, assistant professor in clinical health psychology at UM, to support this work and strengthen academic and community partnerships through the initiative.
“Such partnerships leverage existing institutional strengths while providing supports in other areas of importance, such as using a particular research method, like photovoice, to support youth engagement and communicate about their experiences,” Archibald said.
The other projects that will benefit from the funding include:
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