55 years, 21 storeys still to come
The SickKids Research Institute has come a long way in 55 years. In its first year, the Research Institute completed 47 projects with the aid of 27 full-time and 23 part-time scientists, 41 technicians and 13 secretaries. Today, the SickKids Research Institute is Canada’s largest research program at a paediatric institution and is home close to 2,000 employees, including world class scientists, professional staff, students and trainees.
In 2005, Dr. Janet Rossant became the Chief of Research at SickKids. Under her leadership the Research Institute implemented a new structure that was designed to further promote integration, innovation and research excellence. The seven new programs reflect SickKids’ research strengths in fundamental discovery, applied research and impact research – all relevant in child health. The reorganization was fully implemented in September 2006 and the new structure still exists today under Rossant’s leadership. The seven research programs are:
- Cell Biology
- Child Health & Evaluative Sciences
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology
- Genetics & Genome Biology
- Molecular Structure & Function
- Neurosciences & Mental Health
- Physiology & Experimental Medicine
These programs allow SickKids researchers to apply the tools of basic science and technology to determine the causes of diseases affecting children and study how these diseases progress and how they respond to treatment. They bring to bear experience of troubling clinical problems to ensure clinically relevant scientific questions are asked. Researchers also pursue the social sciences to better understand environmental factors underlying disease as well as health-related behaviours and their societal influences—critical to educating people to make healthier lifestyle choices.
The Research Institute’s functions are currently distributed across the SickKids campus in six, non-integrated locations. However, SickKids is in the advanced stages of a plan to consolidate the operations of the Research Institute into a single, 21-storey building that will provide state-of the-art facilities to our entire research community.