1. Funding overview
The objective of the WSIB Research and Grants Program is to enhance workers’ compensation system outcomes by supporting innovative proposals that are aligned to the WSIB’s strategic mandate.
This is accomplished through highly practical, expert research studies and training initiatives delivered by professional individuals and organizations that address current and emerging challenges, and strengthen Ontario's workers' compensation system now and in the future.
Systematic review grants support research issues of immediate relevance to occupational health and safety, and may help to answer key questions in workers' compensation. Outcomes from systematic reviews may be considered by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) to determine whether the scientific evidence meets the recommended standards for scheduling, policy development or for adjudicative support in case-by-case decision-making.
2. Funding opportunity
The WSIB is interested in awarding a grant for a systematic review of the scientific evidence examining if occupational exposure to vapours, gases, dusts and fumes causes the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Specifically, the review must address:
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- Occupational exposure to vapours, gases, dusts and fumes, such as
- Occupations with vapours, gases, dusts and fumes exposure including hard rock miners, coal miners, cement manufacturing, aluminum smelting and refining, cadmium alloy production, people working with asbestos, people working in a foundry, and welders,
- Occupational vapours, gases, dusts and fumes exposures including silica, asbestos, cement dust, coal dust, cadmium dust and fumes, foundry exposure, aluminum smelting and refining, welding fumes and dust, smelting involving the production of sulphur dioxide
- Any other occupations with known vapours, gases, dusts and fumes exposures (e.g., people working in agriculture) or occupational vapours, gases, dusts and fumes exposures (e.g., organic dusts) associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, not mentioned above.
- Identification of
- subgroups of exposed people who have an increased risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- any exposure-response trends of increasing risk with increasing duration, frequency or intensity of exposure, including whether there is a minimum cumulative dose of exposure associated with increased risk
- minimal interval (latency) between the first exposure and the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- any interdependent causes or synergistic relationships with other risk factors
The review must follow established principles for conducting systematic reviews. The research team may indicate if they plan on registering the systematic review and research protocol with the International prospective register of systematic reviews (PROSPERO).
Refer to Proposal Instructions Appendix C for detailed requirements for the systematic review.
3. Outputs and reporting
Outputs
For the purpose of this grant competition, a systematic review is considered to be a review of a clearly formulated research question that uses systematic and replicable methods to identify, select and critically appraise all relevant scientific research, and to collect and analyze data from the studies that are included in the review. Methods used should also minimize bias and ensure results are reproducible. Statistical methods such as meta-analyses should be used, if appropriate, to analyze and summarize the results of the included studies. A rationale and the appropriate supporting analysis should be clearly identified to validate the inclusion or exclusion of meta-analytic techniques.
This information may be considered by the WSIB to determine whether the scientific evidence meets the recommended standards for scheduling, policy development or to underpin adjudicative support in case-by-case decision-making.
Reporting
WSIB grant recipients will be required to regularly report on their progress to ensure we can support the recipient in early identification and removal of barriers.
The successful applicant will be required to complete a final report as a condition of funding, which will be subject to a peer-review as arranged by the WSIB. The final report will need to address peer-reviewer comments and be delivered within 2 (two) months of receipt of peer-reviewer comments. Additionally, a requirement to present the overall findings of the systematic review to WSIB management will occur following the peer review of the final report.
The final report delivered to the WSIB will be in electronic format and will be published within the WSIB Reference Centre.
Refer to Proposal Instructions Appendix C for detailed requirements of the final report.
4. Eligibility
The research team will require a minimum of three (3) team members including:
- At least one member with a doctorate in epidemiology
- At least one member who has formal training in toxicology or industry hygiene (Masters level or PhD)
- At least one member of the team must have demonstrated experience conducting systematic reviews including meta-analyses related to disease etiology
Expert researchers affiliated with an eligible applicant organization:
- Publicly funded universities or colleges
- Public hospitals with a specialized research area
- Not-for-profit or registered charitable organizations with the capability and capacity to conduct research
- Canadian non-governmental organizations with the capability and capacity to conduct research
- Other organizations that have the capability and capacity to conduct research and are not privately owned and operated may also be eligible for a WSIB grant.
Private organizations are not eligible to apply for a WSIB research grant as a project or secondary lead. Private organizations may be identified as a partner or collaborator of an eligible applicant organization.
5. Award amount and term
One grant will be awarded with a funding term of up to 18 months and a total of $175,000.
6. Important dates
Completion launch: September 22, 2021
Application deadline: December 1, 2021
Notice of decision: December 15, 2021
Funding start date: January 30, 2022
7. Contact
For inquiries regarding the application process, please contact the Research and Grants Team, [email protected].
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