The Women's Health Contribution Program: Advancing the health of women in Canada

The Women's Health Contribution Program supports community-academic partnerships in the development and dissemination of policy research and information for women's health. The Program is managed by Health Canada's Bureau of Women's Health and Gender Analysis.

The Program contributes approximately $2.95 million annually to eligible recipients. It currently supports:

• Centres of Excellence for Women's Health
• Canadian Women's Health Network
• Working groups and other initiatives that address specific policy issues in women's health

Established in 1996 to address gaps in women's health research, the overall goal of the Program is to improve the health status of women in Canada by enhancing the health system's understanding of, and responsiveness to, women's health issues.

For more information, contact the Bureau of Women's Health and Gender Analysis.

Centres of Excellence for Women's Health

Launched in 1996, Health Canada's Centres of Excellence for Women's Health represent a unique multi-disciplinary partnership among academics, community-based organizations and policy makers. To date, the Centres have produced more than 300 research reports.

Their aim is to inform the policy process and generate knowledge about the determinants of women's health, including gender and diversity.

While regionally-based, the Centres of Excellence research has regional, national and international policy applications.

Visit the Centres at:

• British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women 's Health
• Prairie Women's Health Centre of Excellence
• National Network on Environments and Women 's Health
• Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women 's Health

The Canadian Women's Health Network (CWHN)

The Canadian Women's Health Network (CWHN) is funded by Health Canada's Women's Health Contribution Program to facilitate national networking of women's health organizations in Canada, to communicate the research findings of the Centres of Excellence and other initiatives, and act as a clearinghouse for women's health information. The CWHN web site is a major source of women's health information in Canada.

Publications and Selected Resources

Centres of Excellence database, managed by the Canadian Women's Health Network (CWHN), to locate research projects and publications funded through the Women's Health Contribution Program.

Access other women's health resources, organizational links and databases, as well as news on women's health issues at the CWHN web site.

Read the latest news in women's health policy research funded through the Women's Health Contribution Program in the Centres of Excellence for Women's Health Research Bulletin.

Working Groups and other initiatives

The Women's Health Contribution Program currently supports several initiatives that address specific policy issues in women's health:

The National Coordinating Group on Health Care Reform and Women examines the impact of health care reform on women as providers, decision makers and users of the health care system.

The Women and Health Protection working group monitors proposed changes in federal health protection legislation and examines the impact of those changes on women's health.