CIHR is increasing the awareness of the importance and use of SGBA in research design through promotional activities, awareness campaigns and profiling of outcomes of SGBA in research.
Embed SGBA into CIHR program design and delivery
Beginning in the Spring 2018 competition for the Project Grant Program, peer reviewers will be called upon to conduct a more structured review of the integration of sex as a biological variable and gender as a sociocultural factor as a strength, weakness, or not applicable to applications under review. Specifically:
Peer reviewers will be asked to provide written feedback on their assessment of SGBA; CIHR has added a text box within the adjudication worksheet to provide reviewers dedicated space for written SGBA-related comments.
Peer review panels will be asked to include SGBA assessment in their discussions; CIHR aims to include one SGBA expert and one or more SGBA knowledgeable members on each panel to guide these discussions.
Currently, all applicants are asked whether their proposal integrates sex (as a biological variable) and/or gender (as a socio-cultural determinant of health). CIHR is working to expand and improve its standard application questions on these topics, and consultations with the research community are under way.
Enhance capacity to apply SGBA in health research
CIHR has developed learning modules and has collected a wide variety of resources to ensure that applicants and reviewers have access to the tools they need to better integrate SGBA into their work. All of these materials are available on the SGBA Resources page.