Manitoba Centre for Health Policy

YouTube video by U of M Rady Faculty of Health Sciences February 2026 News Roundup

New episode of RadyUs highlights exciting stories from the past month including new HIV research studies, funding for mental health initiatives, the Black Health Symposium and more! #podcast #healtheducation #MedSky
youtu.be/g6bG25lcY2A

🚨BCC MEMBERS, SAVE THE DATE🚨

2026 AGM will be held April 16th, 2026.
2-3PM ET
Meeting link to follow closer to the date.

The image consists of blue text with blue and gold rectangles over a white background. Text reads Attention MSc and PhD students at University of Manitoba, Manitoba Training Program for Health Services Research Applications Due April 3, 2026. Below is a qr code and the University of Manitoba logo. An inset photo shows a student with long, dark hair, working in a library, with books and a laptop computer, smiling.

MSc & PhD students: Apply by April 3 to the Manitoba Training Program for Health Services Research. Build key skills for a career in research, clinical science, or healthcare planning. Successful applicants are eligible for a stipend.
@um-radyfhs.bsky.social #UManitoba
umanitoba.ca/graduate-stu...

In honour of #InternationalWomensDay, please join us on Thursday, March 5th at the WAG-Qaumajuq for a panel discussion on gender-based violence & displacement featuring featuring Joy Chadya, Brenda Gunn, Helga Hamilton, Olga Khamedova, Shirley A. Robinson, + Alex Wilson.

#umanitoba

Image consists of a graphic with words in blue letters reading Louis Riel Day. To the bottom right is a headshot photo of Louis Riel. Behind, graphics represent stitching in red, a rising sun and the outline of the Province of Manitoba.

We're closed Feb 16th for #LouisRielDay. Today, we reflect on the tremendous sacrifices Manitoba's founder made to support the rights of the #RedRiverMétis people. We commit to honouring his vision by working to support an inclusive, just society that embraces all cultures.

New research funding supports ‘Ecosystem for mental health in Manitoba’

Six community organizations are receiving grants to support innovative mental health projects, thanks to new donations to @primetheme.bsky.social, a @chrimanitoba.bsky.social research theme founded by UM’s Dr. Mandy Archibald and Dr. Leslie Roos. umtoday.ca/stories/new-...

We are honoured to host Dr. Sherry Farrell Racette for a lecture titled "The Resurgence of Traditional Media and Acts of "Doing" in Contemporary Indigenous Art" on Wednesday, March 4 at 6:30 pm in the Skylight Gallery at WAG-Qaumajuq, 300 Memorial Blvd. Doors open at 6:00 pm.

#umanitoba

Menopause: our study revealed how it affects the brain, cognition and mental health We also investigated whether taking HRT post-menopause had any impact on these health outcomes.

Menopause: our study revealed how it affects the brain, cognition and mental health
theconversation.com/menopause-ou...

Image consists of a photo of Dr. Lisa Lix, wearing a purple top and glasses, smiling, above graphic and text. Text reads Congratulations Dr. Lisa Lix, Appointed as Associate Dean, research, College of Community and Global Health. The graphics include bars of University of Manitoba colours and a Rady Faculty of Health Sciences logo.

Congrats to #MCHPResearch's Dr. Lisa Lix, named Associate Dean, Research of U of M Rady Faculty's new College of Community & Global Health. The George & Fay Yee Centre for Healthcare Innovation's Director of #DataScience & a CAHS Fellow, Dr. Lix holds leadership roles with multiple organizations.

The CHRR is honoured to host Dr. Gina Starblanket for a talk on Indigenous feminism and critical approaches to relationality. The lecture will be on Friday, February 27 from 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm in 307 Tier Building.

For more information about this event, visit chrr.info/.../methods-...

#umanitoba

Centre on Aging text on left of logo. Logo is a design of a bison walking on a path under the northern lights with a prairie landscape and the flame representing reconciliation below. Text University of Manitoba on right. Background image of cherry blossom branches in bloom on the right side, set against a blue sky. Text reads 43rd Annual Spring Research symposium. QR code on right linking to Symposium web pages. Text below reads May 7, 2026. 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Minosin Kikiwa: “A Good Home” –A community- academic collaboration to study Indigenous aging, housing and supports in Winnipeg. Lucille Bruce, Joanne Mason, Kathy Mallett, and Laura Funk, PhD

Registration is open for the Centre on Aging's 43rd Spring Symposium on May 7.
Hear a panel presentation on Minosin Kikiwa: “A Good Home” –A community- academic collaboration to study Indigenous aging, housing and supports in Winnipeg"
View full Symposium details: tinyurl.com/2j8ak9k3

Note: #MCHPResearch Scientist Dr. Mina Nourdanesh's upcoming Centre on Aging Talk has been rescheduled to February 12.

How to ensure affordable, safe and culturally grounded housing for Indigenous older adults The Indigenous Seniors Research Committee examined the housing and care needs of Indigenous older adults in Winnipeg, Manitoba. And the evidence suggests a housing crisis that is economic and cultural...

Centre on Aging Research Affiliates Drs. Luo and Funk are co-authors
How to ensure affordable, safe and culturally grounded housing for Indigenous older adults
theconversation.com/how-to-ensur...

First Nations Health and Social Secretariat of Manitoba Anti-Indigenous Racism in Health Care Conference Moving beyond land acknowledgments February 18-19, 2026 Radisson Hotel, Downtown Winnipeg, MB This conference centres Indigenous-led perspectives...

Don't forget, registration is still open for The First Nations Health and Social Secretariat of Manitoba Anti-Indigenous Racism in Health Care Conference happening February 18-19 in Winnipeg.

Register now at the post below!

https://ow.ly/fvAm50Y5B4A

Person cutting a rectangular cake decorated with red and blue flowers on a table near a projection screen.

Photo of Dr. Nathan Nickel, in a dark sweater, speaking while. Dr. Nickel is holding a smartphone with one hand raised against a backdrop of window blinds casting striped shadows.

Rectangular white cake on a tabletop, decorated with red and blue icing roses and multicolored sprinkles, featuring red script text reading 150 Deliverables, We came, We saw, We submitted.

#MCHPResearch celebrated the release of our 150th Deliverable. Produced since 1991 in partnership with the Manitoba Government, deliverables harness our expertise & repository of health, social, & registry data to provide evidence supporting decisions promoting the health & wellbeing of Manitobans.

Centre on Aging text on left of logo. Logo is a design of a bison walking on a path under the northern lights with a prairie landscape and the flame representing reconciliation below. Text University of Manitoba on right. Background image of cherry blossom branches in bloom on the right side, set against a blue sky. Text reads 43rd Annual Spring Research symposium. QR code on right linking to Symposium web pages. Text below reads May 7, 2026. 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Implementing an evidence-based dementia screening program for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in community agencies across four provinces. Shahin Shooshtari, PhD and Nicole Bobbette, PhD, OT Reg. (Ont.)

Registration is open for the Centre on Aging's 43rd Spring Symposium on May 7.
Drs. Shooshtari & Bobbette will co-present "Implementing an evidence-based dementia screening program for adults with IDD in community agencies across 4 provinces"
View full Symposium details: tinyurl.com/2j8ak9k3

Image consists of graphics and text. Text reads MCHP Research, Manitoba Youth placed in out-of-home care 10x likelier to be accused of a crime. This especially impacts First Nations youth, who are overrepresented in both the care and justice systems. Graphics depict scales and handcuffs.

#MCHPResearch: Link between placement in out-of-home care & criminal justice system involvement disproportionately impacts First Nations children & youth in MB, underscores need to reduce the number of kids in care & improve supports for those aging out.
www.sciencedirect.co...

Inspiring future generations Fireside Chats encourage Indigenous nurses to pursue graduate studies, take on leadership roles

A new intergenerational collaboration between UM and the University of Victoria aims to inspire young Indigenous nurses to go into leadership positions to address an underrepresentation of First Nations nurses in these roles.
umtoday.ca/stories/insp...

Mothers whose kids are taken face higher mortality rates — especially if they’re First Nations: Manitoba study | CBC Accessibility Mothers whose children are apprehended have a higher risk of dying prematurely — a risk that’s even higher among First Nations women, a new study led by University of Manitoba researchers and the Asse...

A joint Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs FNFAO & #MCHPResearch study showing 4x higher rates of premature death for First Nations mothers with children apprehended by child protective services highlights the need to invest in First Nation-led solutions. @um-radyfhs.bsky.social
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

UM mourns passing of alum Dr. Barry Lavallee Dr. Lavallee dedicated his career to health equity and improving care and outcomes for Indigenous people.

Dr. Barry Lavallee dedicated his career to health equity and improving care and outcomes for Indigenous people. UM and the Rady Faculty send sincere condolences to his family, friends and community on this sudden loss.
umtoday.ca/stories/um-m...

💻 Reminder! Join us today for a webinar on the 2026 SSHRC Impact Awards to learn about the nomination process.
sshrc-crsh.canada.ca/en/funding/o...

Text reads: Calls to action: End child removal: Invest in First Nations-led, culturally grounded supports that keep families together. If a child is removed: Make removal a last resort and protect parents’ income and housing while reunification is pursued. Keep parents involved: ensure parents are involved through kinship, voluntary and customary care. First Nations Jurisdiction: Fund First Nations control over child and family care through their own laws and services. Photo to right depicts a mother holding a toddler, gently kissing its outstretched hand, in front of a table with a smartphone.

Image is a photo of a mother cradling a crying infant on her lap, seated on a fabric couch. Text behind reads Source: Kenny KS, Frank K, Lavallee B, Burton M, Dreaver C, Bennett M, Rocke C, Brownell M, Detillieux GR, Anderson M, Urquia ML. The association of child removal by child protective services and mortality among First Nations and non-First Nations mothers in Canada: a retrospective cohort study.

It is time for Manitoba to move away from over-reliance on child removal and instead invest in First Nations-led solutions that prioritize keeping families together and helping them heal.
U of M Rady Faculty
4/4

Text reads: Prior to this study, we know that child removal by Child and Family Services was linked to higher maternal mortality. However, this had not been examined among First Nations mothers, despite their disproportionate exposure to CFS involvement. Background image shows an infant’s hand grasping an adult’s, with a toddler visible in soft focus behind.

How this study was done: We used government records linked together, to look at the connection between having a child taken into care & risk of death for mothers, comparing First Nations & non-First nations women. We examined this relationship in 3 ways: by studying the entire population, comparing similar mothers, and comparing siblings within the same family. We also looked at mothers’ circumstances before a child was removed, using info such as health history and basic social & demographics

Many of the deaths are linked to preventable causes like suicide, accidental poisonings, and homicide. These findings underscore the profound harm caused to First Nations families by the colonial child welfare system.
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Image contains a photo of a pregnant mother, with long dark hair and a knit top, standing in an open, sunlit field, with eyes closed, head leaned back and arm extended behind. Text reads: Between 1998-2020, More than I in 4 First Nations mothers experienced child removal, compared with 1 in 25 non-First Nations mothers. Between 1998-2022, After child removal, mortality rate increased more than 4x for First Nations mothers and nearly 3x for non-First Nations mothers. Most deaths were from avoidable causes, such as suicide and accidental poisonings.

Between 1998 and 2020, more than 1 in 4 First Nations mothers in Manitoba experienced child apprehension. Following removal, their risk of death was more than 4 times higher than that of mothers who did not experience child removal.
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Photograph of the backs of a mother with long dark hair, holding a toddler in front, held with shoulders above the mother’s, wearing a yellow t shirt. Both facing forward, away from the camera, through a brightly lit window. Text reads First Nations mothers face highest risk of death amongst mothers with apprehended children: study, below are logos of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, the First Nations Family Advocate Office and the University of Manitoba Rady Faculty of Health Sciences

A powerful new study published in The Lancet Public Health, jointly led by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs’ First Nations Family Advocate Office and #MCHPResearch, confirms what First Nations have long known: the over-removal of children is putting mothers’ lives at risk.
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Two older adults, a man and woman, are playing ping pong in an active living centre. Text: Keeping active in Manitoba. January 26, 2026, 12:30–1:30 p.m., via Zoom. Linda Brown, Executive Director, Active Aging in Manitoba. RSVP: star@umanitoba.ca. At bottom left is QR code linking to the STAR web page. Centre image is a checkmark in different shades of blue. Text Experience Record. On right bottom is the logo. Text STAR Students Targeting Aging Research. On the right a bar graph is trending upwards, with each bar in a different colour. Above the chart is a jagged line moving upward with a star at the end point.

If you're a University of Manitoba student interested in aging, join us for the next STAR meeting!

Keeping active in Manitoba
Jan 26 | 12:30–1:30 p.m. | via Zoom
Linda Brown, Executive Director, Active Aging in Manitoba
RSVP: star@umanitoba.ca for Zoom link
umanitoba.ca/centre-on-ag...

Logo is a design of a bison walking on a path under the northern lights with a prairie landscape and the flame representing reconciliation below. Text UM Centre on Aging. Text reads Targeting Isolation in Manitoba. January 21, 2:30 – 3:30 PM, via Zoom, Dr. Nancy Newall, Associate Director, Brandon University. Dr. Verena Menec, Professor Emerit, University of Manitoba on light blue background with decorative elements in top left and right bottom corner. QR code linking to Zoom January 21 registration.

Join the Centre for their 1st Speaker Series of the new year!
Jan 21 | 2:30 PM | via Zoom
Targeting Isolation in Manitoba
Drs. Nancy Newall & Verena Menec
In this presentation, learn about some of the MB made resources from training, videos, to infographics.
Register on Zoom: tinyurl.com/ms3684ez

Image is presented as a magazine cover, with a header reading MCHP Quarterly Highlights. Below, white text on a blue background reads Poverty and Intellectual Development in Chilhood, above an image of the torso and feet of a child, jumping, in a muddy field with grass behind. At bottom, text reads Winter 2026.

Studies on how poverty affects intellectual development in childhood, and adolescent vaping impacts on physical and mental health problems are 2 of 23 new #MCHPResearch articles included in our Winter 2026 Quarterly Highlights. #UMResearch #RadyFaculty
https://icont.ac/51cC2

In collaboration with the Faculty of Arts, join us as we host Dr. Lindsay Larios & Emma Cowman for a lecture titled ‘Abortion in Manitoba: A feminist community-based approach to abortion access research’ on Wednesday, January 28 at 1 pm in 108 St. John’s College.

#umanitoba #reproductivejustice

Check out this profile of MCHP Research Scientist Dr. Amani Hamad and her research program, shared by our colleagues at @primetheme.bsky.social.
#MCHPResearch