HANSARD

 

NOVA SCOTIA HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY

 

 

STANDING COMMITTEE

 

ON

 

HEALTH

 

 

Tuesday, September 8, 2026

 

 

 

COMMITTEE ROOM

 

 

 

Advancements in Clinical Research, and

Health and Life Sciences Innovation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Printed and Published by Nova Scotia Hansard Reporting Services

 

HEALTH COMMITTEE

Danny MacGillivray (Chair)

Adegoke Fadare (Vice-Chair)

Julie Vanexan

Ryan Robicheau

Nick Hilton

Lisa Lachance

Rod Wilson

Hon. Iain Rankin

Hon. Becky Druhan

 

[Adegoke Fadare was replaced by Chris Palmer.]

[Hon. Becky Druhan was replaced by Hon. Derek Mombourquette.]

 

 

 

In Attendance:

 

Robin Dann

Legislative Committee Clerk

 

 

 

WITNESSES

 

Nova Scotia Health Authority

Dr. Jeannie Shoveller, Vice-President, Research

Dr. Ashley Hilchie, Senior Director, Research

Doris Grant, Managing Director, Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub

 

IWK Health

Dr. Frank MacMaster, Vice-President, Research and Innovation

 

Life Sciences Nova Scotia

Doris Grant, CEO

 

 

 

 

HALIFAX, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2026

 

STANDING COMMITTEE ON HEALTH

 

9:00 A.M.

 

CHAIR

Danny MacGillivray

 

VICE-CHAIR

Adegoke Fadare

 

 

THE CHAIR: I call the meeting to order.

 

This is the Standing Committee on Health. I’m Danny MacGillivray, the MLA for Pictou Centre and Chair of this committee.

 

Today, we’ll hear from the Nova Scotia Health Authority, IWK Health, and Life Sciences Nova Scotia regarding Advancements in Clinical Research, and Health and Life Sciences.

 

A reminder to please set your phones to silent. You don’t have to touch your microphones; the staff will take care of lighting up your microphone for you.

 

I’ll now ask the committee members to introduce themselves for the record by stating their name and constituency. We’ll start to my left.

 

[The committee members introduced themselves.]

 

THE CHAIR: For the purposes of Hansard, I also recognize the presence of Legislative Committee Clerk Robin Dann on my right.

 

I’d like to welcome the witnesses here this morning. Thank you for taking time out of your day to come. We really appreciate that.

 

I’ll make a reminder that if a member is satisfied with an answer, they’ll indicate that to the Chair, and I, as the Chair, will call order and allow the member to continue to their next question.

 

Now I’ll ask the witnesses to please introduce themselves, starting at the left.

 

[The witnesses introduced themselves.]

 

THE CHAIR: There are some opening remarks. I believe we’ll start with Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: My name is Doris Grant. I’m the CEO of Life Sciences Nova Scotia, the industry association representing Nova Scotia’s life sciences sector. I also serve as the managing director of the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub, which is focused on advancing innovation and helping transform how care is delivered.

 

My two roles give me a unique perspective on the connection between two things that matter enormously to Nova Scotia: the health of our population and the health of our economy.

 

Our life sciences sector spans biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and diagnostics, digital health, biomanufacturing, and the research and commercialization activities that support them.

 

Today, Nova Scotia is home to more than 120 life sciences companies, directly employing more than 2,000 people. The core sector contributed an estimated $642 million to provincial GDP in 2025, and that number is growing.

 

Companies are scaling, entering international markets, and attracting global investment. At Life Sciences Nova Scotia, we welcomed 25 new member companies last year, the most in our 30-year history.

 

However, the importance of this sector goes well beyond economic impact.

 

A new treatment can give a patient another option. A clinical trial can provide earlier access to a promising therapy. A new technology or model of care can change how and where care is delivered.

 

That is the promise of this sector: better health, new approaches to care, new companies, investment, and opportunity.

 

At Life Sciences Nova Scotia, our job is to help create the conditions for companies to start, grow, and scale within our province.

 

At the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub, we approach innovation from the other side of that equation, from inside the health system.

 

We start with the needs of patients, clinicians, and the system and ask: What problem are we trying to solve, and is there a better way to solve it?

 

In a time of global uncertainty, this work becomes even more important. We are competing globally for investment, talent, intellectual property, manufacturing, and clinical trials.

 

A strong life sciences sector helps build a stronger health system, and an innovative health system helps build a stronger life sciences sector.

 

Ultimately, getting both right means better care for Nova Scotians and greater economic opportunity for Nova Scotia.

 

That is why this work matters.

 

THE CHAIR: Thank you, Ms. Grant. Now we’ll move on to Dr. MacMaster.

 

DR. FRANK MACMASTER: Good morning. Thanks for the opportunity to talk to you today. I represent IWK Health, and of course, we serve women, children, and a large segment of youth mental health, as well.

 

I want to take a second, though, before I dive into some of the way they advocate - so fascinating and a great place to work - is the why we do this work. When you think about the importance of being able to deliver on those new treatments and those new ideas - I’m going to tell you a quick story. Growing up, I had a close friend who was diagnosed with cancer. This was back in the 1970s. Back then, it was about a 50-50 shot that you would live.

 

Now, it’s about a 15 percent shot that you won’t respond to the frontline treatments. Things have moved that far that quickly. Just in my lifetime, things have moved from - whenever he went to Halifax, whenever he went to the IWK Health Centre - we didn’t know if he was coming back, to now, when parents have a lot more hope and the kids have a lot more hope going in. That’s through the advancements of why we do the work that we do and why we try to push these boundaries forward. That really is at the core of what we’re up to.

 

A great example: We had a kid pass through one of the research studies. Their big goal was they wanted to be able to keep on swimming and being part of their swim team. These are the things that hit at home, that hit at the kitchen table when you’re sitting with your family.

 

To facilitate that work takes a tremendous amount of effort, investment, a lot of great ideas, and a lot of sweat to really make it happen. At IWK Health, we have about 165 researchers and about 550 staff, volunteers, and learners. When you think about the payroll alone - thinking about life sciences as an economic engine - that’s about $7 million of research payroll that comes out of this work for people living and working in Nova Scotia.

 

From that, there are about 630 active studies going on right now and about 331 publications every year that come out of IWK Health. For a hospital in Nova Scotia, we’re doing extremely well. We’re really providing a huge contribution, not just here in our province or in the Maritimes but also internationally. We’ve got about 180 partnerships that span all over the globe. There’s not one continent, except for Antarctica, I don’t think we have a good connection with. A lot of penguins don’t ask for help.

 

When you think about that reach and that ability to achieve that mission, it really is everyone trying to work together to solve those key health problems that the people we serve face. That’s at the heart of it.

 

You think of the fear in a parent when they’re taking their kid to the emergency department or the fear that they feel when the regular treatments don’t work and they don’t know what to do next. That’s where research and innovation really come in, and they come to shine.

 

We can take those risks. We can search for those new ideas. There are new ways of doing things.

 

THE CHAIR: Thank you, Dr. MacMaster. We’ll move on to Dr. Shoveller.

 

DR. JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Good morning, Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for allowing us to be here today.

 

At the Nova Scotia Health Authority, we see research as an essential part of delivering excellent health care.

 

Our research enterprise spans the full continuum, from discovery science and clinical trials to health services research. Nova Scotia Health research includes more than 500 research staff and 150 principal investigators working across more than 30 therapeutic areas.

 

Over the past five years, we have negotiated more than $65 million in industry-partnered clinical trial activity and more than $35 million in competitive research award funding.

 

Today, we have more than 1,400 active research studies under way, including more than 360 active clinical trials, and Nova Scotia has achieved multiple first-in-world and first-in-Canada clinical trial activations and patient enrolments. As Frank illustrated, these achievements matter because behind every first is a patient and a family and a community.

 

Clinical trials give Nova Scotians earlier access to promising new treatments that might not have otherwise been available to them. Our clinician scientists are conducting research that is changing the standard of care at home and everywhere.

 

We are also building the infrastructure we need to make our research enterprise even stronger. The research consent framework introduced earlier this year gives Nova Scotians a consistent, province-wide way to express their preferences about whether and how they would like to participate in research. As we strengthen our ability to use health data and emerging technologies, privacy, ethics, governance, and public trust remain fundamental to research at the Nova Scotia Health Authority.

 

Perhaps our greatest strength is collaboration. Research is the ultimate team sport. It does not happen because of any single investigator or one institution or even one sector. Our researchers work alongside clinicians, patients, communities, universities, government, industry, and other partners to address shared challenges. That collaborative environment also helps attract new researchers, partnerships, and investments to Nova Scotia.

 

In closing, our commitment to research excellence allows our researchers to remain focused on what matters most, and that is generating high-quality evidence that improves care and strengthens our health care system. Nova Scotians can count on us to continue building on that excellence into the future.

 

THE CHAIR: Thank you, Dr. Shoveller. We’ll now move on to the question-and-answer portion. Each caucus will have 20 minutes, followed by a second round of approximately 10 minutes, as time allows. We’ll wrap up questioning at 10:45 a.m. We’ll start with the NDP caucus.

 

MLA Lachance.

 

LISA LACHANCE: I’m really excited about this topic. I spent a number of years at Dalhousie University working in knowledge mobilization and completing my Ph.D. in health in 2023. I have spent a lot of time thinking about patient-oriented research and patient engagement. I think everyone made the point that we need really good research to make a difference in people’s lives. When I think of particularly the questions around ensuring that we have diverse folks engaged in research, diverse communities, because traditionally and even now, the vast majority of clinical research - discovery research in particular - doesn’t take into account gender differences, the needs of the 2SLGBTQIA+ folks, African Nova Scotian folks. You know all this. I’m telling you things you know.

 

CIHR released the Canada strategy for patient-oriented research in 2011 and then the Maritime SPOR was launched in 2013. I’m wondering how your organizations work with the SPOR to ensure that research is patient engaged, patient oriented, and really benefiting from all those best practices that are being developed in that type of research.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Thank you very much for referencing our Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s significant investment in the Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research, affectionately known as SPOR. This is an opportunity for provinces and territories across the country to truly engage with patient populations and communities to better understand what kinds of questions they want to see answered, what kinds of concerns are top priority for them.

 

[9:15 a.m.]

 

I’m very, very proud to say that the Nova Scotia Health Authority is the home for the Maritime SPOR support unit. That kind of work has really revolutionized the way in which community engagement, including communities that are not, as you referenced, generally receiving equitable attention on the research scene and really have brought us forward in thinking about working with communities such as those that you mentioned in your remarks and questions as well as rural communities. Rural communities obviously are an important part of the Nova Scotian context, and we are really grateful to have that support from Canada’s premier health research funder brought to bear here in Nova Scotia through that SPOR unit.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Across the opening remarks, you all referenced the enormous amount of research that is happening in Nova Scotia in health sciences and the enormous number of researchers and trainees and everything that goes into that. I was really concerned when the most recent provincial budget cut the Scotia Scholars Award health research fund. Those were scholarships that provided support for Master’s and Ph.D. students. I could not have taken - I could not have reduced my workload and thus reduced my income while having a family to do a Ph.D. without having the support of that program. I know that scholarship makes or breaks it for some people, and it makes and breaks it for people to choose Nova Scotia.

 

I’m wondering: Have you seen the impact of the reduction in Scotia Scholars Award scholarship funding either in the types of research teams that are being put together or in the trainees who are coming to Nova Scotia to do that work?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Excellent question. I will say that at the Nova Scotia Health Authority, we are very fortunate to have an over-subscription of students - Master’s students, Ph.D.s, post-docs - who want to come and do learning/working alongside the great scientists who dedicate their time to the Nova Scotia Health Authority. We have not noted a decline in the expressions of interest. Overall, I would say that that’s not unusual across the country. The application pressure, both for scholarships that you’ve described and previously held, is tremendous at this time as is the application pressure on research operation funds themselves. We have not seen a decline, and we feel very confident that it is the quality and the opportunities that our investigators are able to muster that attracts young people in particular and scientists in training to our province.

 

LISA LACHANCE: I think that’s a really good point. For folks who aren’t aware - and I don’t know what the most recent stat is - about 4 percent of research applications that are developed each year are funded in Canada. A research application is a long and lengthy process; it involves research beforehand. I know how hard everybody works at IWK Health and other areas to get those applications in.

 

I have a question for Ms. Grant. One of the things that I wondered about over the last few years is the government made a number of sole-sourced investments in health care with U.S. companies and there’s been some concerns about that. I’m actually not trying to ask a political question. My question has always been - that has niggled in the back of my head - with that same amount of funding and with the health sciences sector that we have in this province, could capacity be built amongst companies and researchers to actually be able to provide - is the sector ready to sort of be able to step up on a specific project? If, for instance, One Person One Record had been an option, could the sector have, with support and investment, been able to respond to those needs?

 

DORIS GRANT: I think from the technologies and tools that are used within the Nova Scotia Health Authority, not everything can be provided through Nova Scotian companies. We know that. That’s why organizations like Life Sciences Nova Scotia and others are working so hard to be able to grow that sector, to provide the solutions that the Nova Scotia Health Authority and other health systems need. I think we’re in a good place, but we need to be able to scale our companies.

 

The partnership that we have with the Nova Scotia Health Authority helps get better insight for these companies so they can go faster, they can work to meet the needs of the health system. That doesn’t guarantee procurement for them, because they do have to compete with other companies, but at the end of the day we do want Nova Scotian companies to be able to solve Nova Scotian problems.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Turning back to the question of representation and equitable health outcomes, thus equitable health research. In 2025, researchers found that only 7 percent of national health research in Canada is dedicated to conditions that exclusively affect women and people with uteruses. This is important. We know that women and other folks spend 25 percent more of their lives in poor health compared with men. I’m wondering if Dr. Shoveller, or others, could speak more to the impact that the gender research gap has on people in our province.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Thank you for pointing this out. We’re at a special juncture in this province in terms of progress with regards to women’s health. I’m very excited about what may lie ahead in this domain, and I’m equally confident, based on what has already been achieved with regards to women’s health, that we’re starting from a strong foothold, which is encouraging.

 

That said, to your point, there are miles to go before we sleep. The long-standing gap in research knowledge between women and men is extremely well documented - leaving half of our population underserved, underrepresented, and not sufficiently well understood in a number of very important scientific areas. I think we have reached a juncture where that will not do. I look forward to a much more coordinated, less fragmented approach to addressing these kinds of equity gaps in research. I think we will see, on the national/federal level, a more systematic focus on funding women’s health research, not simply - some might call it opportunistic - the opportunity may crop up every now and then under a special initiative. I’m very hopeful that we’ll see some progress on that stage.

 

I think we also will continue to see, in Nova Scotia, a number of excellent scientific programs of research dedicated to women’s health, as I alluded to, as a means to springboard into that next phase of growing that knowledge base here in the province.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Just to follow up on that before we move to my next question - I’m wondering if there are any specific programs you can highlight from the Nova Scotia Health Authority that are focused on women’s health, gender-diverse folks’ health, and I also want to talk about engaging the African Nova Scotian community in health research. If you have any examples, that would be appreciated.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Please, I welcome my colleagues to speak to these important questions, as well. Let me say that at the Nova Scotia Health Authority, I’m very pleased and proud that we have launched, in partnership with the QEII Health Sciences Centre Foundation, the first-ever equity fund. This provides an opportunity for researchers who are focused on equity issues to pursue scientific questions, take those findings, and apply them within Nova Scotia's health care system. It’s an exciting opportunity because it was built in concert with - in collaboration with - the voices of women, African Nova Scotians, 2SLGBTQIA+, and Indigenous partners.

 

We are absolutely delighted to see that first round of funding be awarded to some important projects that will help to address the gap that we talked about earlier. In part, we also hope that, by creating that fund, we will be able to enhance the competitiveness, which was referenced earlier, of Nova-Scotia-based grant applications to the federal funders and to be able to enhance their opportunities and their chances to make a success in those competitive, extremely heavily subscribed application cycles.

 

THE CHAIR: MLA Lachance.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Oh, sorry. Go ahead.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. MacMaster.

 

FRANK MACMASTER: I was going to add that, at IWK Health, we’ve also created the Dr. Margaret Oulton Accelerate Chair in Women+ Health Research. The point of that chair - and as someone with a background in knowledge translation, you’ll appreciate this - is to create a person, Dr. Justine Dol right now, to coalesce a lot of our women’s health research and gender diverse health research so we can raise the game for everyone involved. Again, using a lot of the people with lived experience lens about - are we doing the things that people need us to do, not just research that’s interesting to the researchers themselves - it’s a different set of questions. Developing key investments that will allow us to put the science to work - much more of an implementation science kind of lens for that work itself - an innovative and a different kind of approach than the traditional academic chair type of approach.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Dr. Dol was just ahead of me in our program. She has always been a model for getting things done well, so it’s great.

 

I wanted to ask about that question of knowledge mobilization and implementation. There is this huge gap. I don’t know if we have any updated documentation around - from discovery and clinical research to implementation in a doctor’s office is 18 years or something. For children and youth, that’s their entire childhood. Things that we are finding out today about asthma might not be in place in clinical practice with children who are no longer children, so it’s important.

 

I’m wondering, with the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub, what role do you play in terms of knowledge mobilization and implementation. I think we probably won’t have time for you to talk about that, so I’ll stop there.

 

DORIS GRANT: Thank you for that. I’ll certainly turn it to my colleagues when we’re finished, but one of the programs and sort of hallmark innovation models that we have within the hub is what we call test and try. The idea is that we test new solutions for time-boxed periods, whether it’s six months or a year. During that time, we are collecting the evidence and evaluating whether that solution, program, or model of care is right for that operational team and is solving the right problems.

 

After that test and try is complete, we work with our clinical and operational colleagues to be able to scale that solution across the organization. Right now, within the hub, almost 64 percent of the tests and tries that we’ve completed have scaled across the Nova Scotia Health Authority. We are getting faster because we know we don’t want any lapse in anything that is working for the system, providers, or our patients.

 

[9:30 a.m.]

 

THE CHAIR: Anyone else like to jump in on that? Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I’d be happy to offer another example. It was recently featured in the media, the report out of Cape Breton about the Oncology Diagnostic Assessment Clinic, a great example of a local oncologist working in Cape Breton alongside a health outcomes scientist. Dr. Graydon Lucas partnering up with Dr. Enam Alsrayheen, who is a health outcomes scientist at the Nova Scotia Health Authority, just powered through together to create this new way of shepherding suspected instances of cancer through the system much more effectively and rapidly than was ever possible before. That began, and is a great example of something that began as a research project, morphed into a test-and-try kind of situation, and now is being looked at not only by the rest of the province; the whole country is interested in this way of changing.

 

There are shining examples of hope, but I will acknowledge your point earlier. That gulf is still very long from the inception of an idea and the original discovery, bench-based research, all the way through to the patient. For some reason - there are, of course, the complexities of some of those treatments, and it should take that long. They are very complex.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. MacMaster with one minute remaining.

 

FRANK MACMASTER: I’ll be quick. The thing I wanted to add is, yes. What CIHR used to call it was “Death Valley” between bench to bedside; it would take so long. At IWK Health, we’ve been implementing a number of different implementation scientist positions throughout the hospital to tackle different key problems. Like I said earlier, on the women’s health side it really is that lens of: How do we put the science to work? How do we use what we already know? How do we develop those next questions that we need to know? Using that implementation science lens embedded within the health system itself has been a fantastic tool for moving the needle. It really has been.

 

THE CHAIR: MLA Lachance with 15 seconds remaining.

 

LISA LACHANCE: That’s great. Thank you so much. I’ll look forward to the second round.

 

THE CHAIR: We’ll now move on to the Liberal caucus and MLA Mombourquette.

 

HON. DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: I appreciate everybody being here. I appreciate the work that you do to support communities every day, and that example in Cape Breton is a great one. We have really wonderful medical folks on the ground at home who are doing some pretty incredible work.

 

I’m going to jump into some of my questions. They’re just around some of the cuts that we’ve seen throughout the budget. Nova Scotia has some of the highest rates of chronic illness in Canada, unfortunately, and a lack of physical activity is a contributor to diseases like diabetes and obesity. This is a particular concern in rural Nova Scotia. In the last budget, the government cut $1 million of sport, recreation, and physical activity programming, including programming for marginalized groups. Physical activity, recreation, and movement is increasingly understood to be a preventive measure and treatment for a swath of illnesses and diseases, as you know.

 

My first question is to the Nova Scotia Health Authority and Life Sciences Nova Scotia: How does a substantial reduction in program funding for recreation and physical activity put an increased strain on our health care system?

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I think the social determinants of health are clearly recognized as having vast and profound impacts on the population’s health at large as well as on individuals and groups within those populations. The opportunity for research to be able to address those kinds of concerns in a timely, cost-effective manner, I think, should not be overlooked. Research offers opportunities for Nova Scotia to attract the best and brightest clinicians who want to be here and scientists who know they can come here and feel well supported doing work that makes a difference, including work that alters the social determinants of health.

 

I will also say that informing research is crucial for informing those kinds of policy choices that all of you make every day. We appreciate how complex that is, and I think research has an important role to play in helping inform those decisions.

 

I also would say that Nova Scotia, because of its ability to succeed in the face of its relatively small size compared with some of the other big hitters, is really taking research and innovation as an opportunity to build our economy, and to build back where we need enhanced strengths. I think it’s important to recognize that research can play those kinds of roles in addressing some of the issues you raised in your question. Doris, would you care to make some additional remarks?

 

THE CHAIR: Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: One of the partners that we have in the hub is the YMCA. They bring tremendous value across the province. They’re such great community partners. One of the programs - or the tests and tries, if you will - that we’re going to announce soon - and I hope I’m not speaking too soon - is how we incorporate physical activity into a cancer patient’s journey and their treatment, to be able to ensure that they maintain a level of physical fitness. The YMCA has been a tremendous partner with their talent, their resources, and their commitment to Nova Scotia. We are always looking for ways to include that in some of our programs.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: That kind of flows into my next question and it is really wonderful. The YMCA is an integral organization at home with a lot of programming for a lot of families. My next question is a follow-up on it. Obviously, there have been some funding cuts in the last budget. Some of these funding reductions have been detrimental to organizations that support families every day. My next question is: Have funding reductions harmed Life Sciences Nova Scotia in any way, or other research organizations’ ability to attract investors or innovators to come to the province to conduct their studies?

 

DORIS GRANT: Right now, we are not seeing the impact of those cuts in terms of our companies. We continue to work across the province to be able to support the companies in their journey. I feel as though there are other things that could potentially impact those companies, like some of the regulatory things that are coming in this week, but I feel as though right now, our companies continue to do okay.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: If I may, I would want folks in this room to understand that research and innovation is an attraction piece when it comes to investment. Between 2018 and 2023, more than $220 million in research funding was negotiated by the Nova Scotia Health Authority. There was an analysis conducted in 2023 that showed in that year alone, clinical research funding was estimated to contribute approximately $40.6 million into the Nova Scotia economy through direct, indirect, and induced economic activity. Research supports - as I think someone else referenced earlier - high-level, well-paying employment opportunities.

 

It’s exciting to think - I can tell you this: After 40 years in the research business, success begets success. As this province continues to accumulate its successes, I can only anticipate greater success. I think we could safely say that I’ve heard Doris make that observation about the life sciences sector as well.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: I appreciate your answers to these questions because we hear it, we hear across the province, the cuts to programs that promoted physical activity. These are great organizations around the province that had to lay off people. They had to scale back on the programming they provide.

 

I think we’re going to feel the repercussions of that for a while, and I suspect the next budget is not going to be easy, as well.

 

My next question is to everyone. We’re trying to promote systemic change and improve overall health. Where can the government improve their spending to better support preventive health measures in Nova Scotia? Are there any specific areas where you notice gaps through work at Life Sciences Nova Scotia?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Thank you for the opportunity to speak to that. What we need to continue to be successful: First, we feel and we know that our government and all parties have an appreciation for research being an important priority and a worthwhile pursuit. Being part of this conversation today helps bolster the nerds who are represented across this panel - that you get us, you really get us.

 

I would also say that we have accomplished a great deal thus far, and we are ready and poised to do more good work on behalf of Nova Scotians along those lines. As I’ve said, we are now building from an intensive two- to three-year period within the research portfolio at the Nova Scotia Health Authority, where we have doubled down on research excellence, and it is paying off in dividends.

 

If I may be so bold: If members could speak with communities to emphasize how important it is for Nova Scotians to have the opportunity, no matter where they live, to be availed the opportunity to participate in research, that would be one of the most exciting contributions that could be made. We have every aim of trying our best to facilitate that conversation, but each of you is out there in your communities every day, talking with constituents and bringing the story to them about how they, too, can contribute to research. That would be a marvellous intervention.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: For the record, I don’t know if “nerd” has ever been said in committee (laughter). Maybe it’s the first time in history of committee.

 

It’s important research. I would suggest - I don’t think the word research is used enough in the high school system, where people are - it’s where you can really engage. My experience - I was in the department for a while, in education. It’s not a word that - maybe students are involved with physical activity, or they’re involved with certain aspects of it. If I could offer a suggestion, the more you could expose our high school students to what research means, how to conduct it, and how they can participate not only in the school system but in the community would go a long way.

 

My next question is around a major portion of the life sciences - what Life Sciences Nova Scotia does is support innovation within the life and health sciences environment. From what we know about Accelerate Nova Scotia at this point is part of their mandate will also be to oversee and support innovation in the life and health sciences landscape.

 

My question is: Can you tell us whether the mandates of these two organizations overlap?

 

DORIS GRANT: Thank you for the question; it was certainly one we anticipated today. The mandates are complementary. With Accelerate Nova Scotia, it’s looking across the province to be able to identify opportunities that may have been generated by the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub or may have come forward with Life Sciences Nova Scotia.

 

The idea is that, again, Accelerate Nova Scotia would take a coordinated approach to recognizing the full economic potential of those opportunities. We work with Accelerate Nova Scotia a lot.

 

[9:45 a.m.]

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: Will the implementation of Accelerate Nova Scotia change the way that Life Sciences Nova Scotia functions at all?

 

DORIS GRANT: Not at all.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: My question is: Are you at Life Sciences Nova Scotia concerned that your funding will be stretched thin and competed for with the creation of Accelerate Nova Scotia?

 

DORIS GRANT: I want to say no. One of the things that Life Sciences Nova Scotia has been working on over the past several years is to diversify our funding. Before, we received most of our funding through the federal government, through ACOA here. You know ACOA is such an incredible supporter of industry in our region. Last year, we were also able to receive some money from the province through the Community Economic Development Fund. That has really enabled us to do more of the good work on behalf of our companies. That has attracted more companies.

 

We do have new members, so our funding model is, again, very much trying to focus on diversifying. We have federal government support; we have provincial government support. We also have membership and sponsorship dollars that for us continue to grow year after year. We’re hoping that, with the creation of Accelerate Nova Scotia, the work of Life Sciences Nova Scotia only raises in importance because we’re able to highlight so many of the incredible companies in this province.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: You mentioned you received money from the province through the Community Economic Development Fund, so I’ll put my plug in at committee that hopefully you’ll get it next year. Was that a one-time commitment, or do you have any sense that that money will be there next year through the fund?

 

DORIS GRANT: It was a one-time commitment, and our team is ready to be able to support another application for funds because the work that we have done through that program, I think, has helped over 70 companies in this province. We need to keep doing more.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: My next question: In the last budget session, the government cut 100 percent of the grant to the - I’m really going to pronounce this wrong, so I apologize - Tajikeimɨk. Indigenous people across Canada face significant health inequalities as a nation, as we know, including in Nova Scotia. Sadly, Indigenous peoples have experienced significantly worse health outcomes compared to non-Indigenous populations, including higher rates of chronic diseases, infectious diseases, and mental health challenges. These inequalities are very closely linked to systemic inequalities like worse access to health care and social determinants of health. My first question to all witnesses is: How much of your research conducted within your organization focuses on closing the gap for Indigenous health outcomes?

 

FRANK MACMASTER: We have been a key supporter for one of the focused research investments in developing Indigenous health, partnered with Margot Latimer and John Sylliboy, and basically bringing an Indigenous lens to a lot of their work, starting with pediatric pain and kind of growing out from there. That has been a very key effort on our part: to try to help in supporting the growth of research activity in that space and doing it in a way that is truly partnered in that space, and being led by Indigenous researchers and such.

 

One of the key things is that the history of research connections with Indigenous communities historically has not been great, to be quite blunt. One of the ways to try to rectify that is by working with the communities on community-led initiatives that are really focused directly on the needs that they’re facing and applying a research tool kit to help answer some of those questions.

 

I think that would be a great example of where those efforts can go and where they can really have quite a powerful effect. Indeed, the work that they’re doing right now, the core bit of that project started - God, it’s got to be at least 15 years ago. It’s been ongoing for such a long time. It’s really developed deep roots and effectiveness within the community. It’s opened up an understanding of what those key questions are that have to be answered to be able to do better. It’s something that I think we as Nova Scotians can be extremely proud of.

 

THE CHAIR: Anyone else like to speak to it? Ms. Grant?

 

Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Frank, thank you for mentioning that. The work of Dr. Margot Latimer and John Sylliboy is incredibly inspiring. I’ve had the privilege of working on a Ph.D. student committee with both of them for a young person who is taking her work into the social determinants of educational readiness for school. This is a great example of the nexus between health outcomes and social determinants of health. That research of Katie Gloade’s is really inspiring work. I reference your attention to that.

 

To pick up on Frank’s comments, there is so much more work to do in working alongside our colleagues at Tajikeimɨk. I’m very proud to say that Nova Scotia Health Authority Research works closely with our colleagues at Tajikeimɨk, as well as in specific instances with the Mawkim + Mi’kmaw Ethics Watch work. I think the key is learning how to do research differently, learning how to conduct research in a manner that is arm in arm, not one leading another. Respecting and taking action on the actions that are specified within the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada to do better and to continue that good work. That can be as straightforward as ensuring that all of our administrative staff at Nova Scotia Health Authority Research have completed the OCAP training - the ownership, control, access, and possession training - to help them understand how most appropriately to...

 

THE CHAIR: Order. Thank you, Dr. Shoveller. We’ll now move onto the Progressive Conservative caucus, and we’ll start with MLA Robicheau.

 

RYAN ROBICHEAU: Thank you, Chair, and thank you all for being here this morning. Nova Scotia is increasingly recognized for its clinical trial density and research infrastructure. What does that mean in practical terms for a Nova Scotian who is diagnosed with a serious illness today?

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Hilchie.

 

DR. ASHLEY HILCHIE: I think that what that means is really access that might not have otherwise been available if you lack such infrastructure. As Dr. Shoveller noted, at Nova Scotia Health Authority we are currently running 360 active clinical trials. Those clinical trials do offer alternatives to those patients that aren’t available through other pathways. I think that if we think about some of the strategic projects that have been activated over the last couple of months including the consent framework, this work really aims to further extend the opportunity to participate in these studies to all Nova Scotians which is where our focus has been for the last number of years. It’s trying to take what we have cultivated in central Nova Scotia and really scaling it across the rest of the province.

 

We’ve seen some success with that as well. In my tenure at the Nova Scotia Health Authority, we’ve gone from about 1 percent of clinical trials being active in Cape Breton to 4 percent of clinical trials being active in Cape Breton, and a 200 percent increase in patient recruitment to those trials that are active in Cape Breton. What it means is improved access in Nova Scotia. Collectively between our organizations, we have the highest number of clinical trials per capita of any province in the country, and we’re looking to do more and to bring more opportunities to the citizens of Nova Scotia.

 

RYAN ROBICHEAU: You mentioned the new consent framework. How does the new consent framework build on work already under way through NovaStudies Connect and other digital health tools?

 

ASHLEY HILCHIE: Traditionally, recruitment across the province - and I can’t speak for IWK Health, but I assume it would be very similar - has been dependent on the study team and the investigators leading that work. In 2023, NovaStudies Connect was implemented. What it does is it serves as the front door for all Nova Scotians to see what clinical trials are actively recruiting and to essentially serve as a digital bridge between the citizen and the individual who wishes to be considered for such an opportunity. Really, what it includes is the permission to consent to be contacted for research. It also involves the patient actively seeking such opportunities and looking through studies, trying to find something that works for them.

 

The consent framework is a different approach to a similar problem, plus, plus. With the consent framework, we do have the ability to signal our interest in being considered for clinical trials. But what this framework does is that it takes the responsibility off the citizen and brings it onto us. It’s no longer a requirement for you to actively search and engage. What we have now is the foundation required to actively match you to a trial that may benefit you. What else that does is that it helps us understand the trials that are most likely to benefit our population so that we can go and obtain additional trials in these areas to better fit the needs of our population.

 

RYAN ROBICHEAU: Could you walk the committee through how the new medical research consent framework actually works for someone renewing their health card?

 

ASHLEY HILCHIE: If you are renewing your health card, if you are - I’ll use a member of my family. You’ll get the mailer and it will have the health card renewal form. On that form, you will have a new consent form - it’s a one-page form. It describes the intent of the program and gives you four different options to choose from in how you want to engage in research. It’s no longer just permission to contact; it allows us additional ways to engage in research as citizens.

 

In addition to the paper form being filled out, you are also able to log into MSI online, which was announced at the same time on April 28th of this year, where you can go through the process online instead of via paper. It gives the ability to trigger your consent either way, depending on your preferences as an individual. And because one of the requirements of informed consent is that it be ongoing, there is also the ability to change your consent preferences at any time. You can do this through MSI online or simply by calling MSI to change your preferences.

 

THE CHAIR: MLA Vanexan.

 

JULIE VANEXAN: Thank you to our guests today. I’m learning so much about what’s going on in our province on the research front. Building on some of my colleague’s questions around consent and digital tools - we know that public trust is critical to health research. What safeguards are in place to ensure that Nova Scotians’ health information is protected and that the participation remains voluntary and informed?

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: All of us on this panel were part and parcel of a very broad group of constituents who helped to shape the development of the consent framework. I’m again acknowledging the contributions of everyone.

 

Health data - as you noted - is a precious piece worth guarding. In Nova Scotia, we have exceptionally rigorous privacy legislation, data governance, ethical oversight, and secure data management practices pertaining to research. In fact, we have the legal responsibility to safeguard that information when it is used for research purposes.

 

Data are always securely stored. There are clear requirements about what kinds of uses data can be put towards. Many, many questions are asked on behalf of doing due diligence, on behalf of citizens, to assure them that we always put their privacy first.

 

[10:00 a.m.]

 

I think it is an absolutely wonderful opportunity to watch researchers, the community, and government come together around a unifying priority, and that is the privacy and safeguarding of health research data.

 

There is a multi-step process. I haven’t described it but I will just give you a sense: There are a lot of Ws and a lot of Hs. In order to make its way through our system, a request for data needs to clearly express what information would be required. We release only a minimum amount of data as required for use. It needs to indicate how it will be protected when it’s being used, who would have access to it, and where and how it will be stored.

 

Those are enshrined in formal agreements that are established and include legal agreements wrapped around them. Every project proposal that comes in goes through this very rigorous vetting process to make it to the final stage of approval.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. MacMaster.

 

FRANK MACMASTER: If I could add to it as well, the oversight of it is why we have the research ethics boards that also provide an incredible, valuable service of overseeing all the research projects that are under way. Also, there’s an expectation with the researchers themselves and their staff members and such to be properly trained in all those procedures and understand them as well.

 

There are multiple checks and balances that really try to ensure that at the very core of what’s being attempted is following those best practices, following regulations, following legislation to make sure that safety, privacy, and any ethical concerns are covered. There are mechanisms, as well, if someone does have an issue and they need to have it looked at and addressed and that sort of thing.

 

JULIE VANEXAN: Thank you - very thorough. I really appreciate the Ws and the Hs. They cross over a couple of different things like what we’re collecting, how, and how it’s being stored.

 

I know it’s probably not just my constituents who are concerned - I think that’s broadly - but I hear mostly from my own constituents about privacy and how data is being collected and how it’s going to be used. Maybe we could continue to build on that.

 

I know Medavie Blue Cross is a private company, and they are involved in collecting this consent through MSI online. What specific contractual or legal safeguards - we did touch on that a little bit - prevent that data from being used? Can we get into a little more of a specific framework about what’s being used in those contracts? How can we make sure the data is being secured?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I’m not sure I would be in the best position to speak to the legal details. I would be happy to have follow-up with our legal department and come back to you with the specifics around those kinds of details, if that would be helpful.

 

JULIE VANEXAN: Maybe we can talk a little more about the collaboration between the government, Nova Scotia Health Authority, and IWK Health. I’m grateful folks are all here, and the life sciences sector, and how you collaborated in designing the framework.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Hilchie.

 

ASHLEY HILCHIE: I can start, and I’m sure that my colleagues would have a couple of comments they would like to say. I would say if we’re talking about the inception of the framework, one of the jobs that all of us around the table have is to make sure we continue to stay engaged with the folks who are doing research at the ground level.

 

Working closely with our investigators is something we do prioritize. I can speak candidly in saying that when I first joined the Nova Scotia Health Authority, the first time that I had an opportunity to engage across our investigator core, the lack of something along the lines of the consent framework was very, very common feedback to be receiving just because there wasn’t a unifying process for any of this. When procedures and process aren’t unified, they slow down.

 

There has been a desire from our research core to build this out. I would say that certainly in the early days, in the design of the framework, it was heavily driven and motivated by feedback that we had received across the community. When it came to the language that was used and the nuances therein, it was robust collaboration that included folks across research and privacy, legal information, policy, and surely others that I’m forgetting - oh, and communications, and of course patient family advisers we worked with to draft the framework, as well. We wanted to make sure that we could create a form and a process that was as easy as we could make it, certainly in the first iteration.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: If I could just add by way of anecdote, the day that the framework was launched and the next day, our phones started to blow up. Our inboxes were overwhelmed by requests from colleagues across the country who wanted to know how we did this in Nova Scotia. Those requests continue to come in. My favourite request was from someone in a meeting in Ottawa, where someone exclaimed, “Look at your phones.” Everyone stopped what they were doing, of course, and then looked at their phones. Then the next breath was, “You won’t believe what Nova Scotia has just done. That’s amazing. Why haven’t we done this already?” This took all of us and all of the disciplinary expertise that Dr. Hilchie described a moment ago to pull it together. I think we are now the envy of the rest of the country.

 

THE CHAIR: MLA Hilton.

 

NICK HILTON: Every time I come to committee, I’m always blown away by the progress that we have made in Nova Scotia over the last few years. When you hear things like Nova Scotian companies to solve Nova Scotia problems, what does that look like? What does that mean? What growth have we seen in the last few years that will really push that narrative forward? I have heard words like growth, unity, collaboration. We are moving Nova Scotia forward not just on a provincial level but on a national level and all across the world. I’m really lucky. I have a background in nursing. I have been attached to the Department of Health and Wellness for the last two years, and when I go to a meeting, I hear that same narrative. Nova Scotia is succeeding, and we’re leading, and that’s really impressive. Thank you for everything that you guys are doing and bringing to the table. I’m really looking forward, over the next little bit, to see where your work and the work of Accelerate Nova Scotia leads.

 

Just a few questions: Our government has emphasized growing the life sciences sector as part of the broader economic plan. You guys mentioned the $640 million, and growing, in GDP. Can you speak to the economic impact of this sector on jobs and GDP, how you see it unfolding in the future?

 

THE CHAIR: Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: Again, life sciences is a very significant part of the economy and the economic success of this province. You’re right: GDP, $642 million. Last year, those companies representing that industry had tax revenue of over $44 million. That’s a big number. Right now, we know there are well over 2,000 people employed in that sector directly in those companies. We also know that folks in the sector are paid premium dollars. From an FTE, they do get paid 22 percent average higher than their peers in other sectors.

 

For us within Life Sciences Nova Scotia, our membership - we’re seeing signs that our membership is growing. We know that we had 25 new members last year. I think there were 41 new companies started in the province last year, and we have built programs that support companies from the very beginning through scale. We know start-ups are incredibly important - almost 65 percent of our membership is start-ups - but we’ve got to get them from start-up to scale up, because we need them to grow and to be able to increase their footprint here in this province. We’re seeing signs of that, and we’ve been able to support them through the funds that we’ve received through the Community Economic Development Fund.

 

One of the more important programs that we’ve leveraged in order to support these companies is a program that we call lift. It really helps these companies secure C-suite level people to be able to come into these companies and really shorten their commercialization journey. Time matters, and we need to get these companies going much faster. I think from an indicator perspective, the sector is growing and we are here to support them.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Shoveller, with one minute remaining.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Very quickly, rapid fire. First, the Nova Scotia Health Authority has achieved a number of firsts-in-world and firsts-in-Canada accomplishments, altogether serving over 5,700 Nova Scotians in clinical trials who would otherwise not be receiving that advanced, cutting-edge care. That’s why these firsts really matter.

 

I’ll just rapid fire a list of them. The Nova Scotia Health Authority became the first site globally to activate a study called the ARTEMIDE-Biliary02 study which addresses, for the first time, gallbladder and biliary tract cancers in advanced cases. The first patient was randomized in Canada for another study that enables biliary cancers to be treated in advanced settings. Those treatments could be received for the very first time in a decentralized manner, meaning that patients could receive those treatments closer to home - very important for people living in the Annapolis Valley, Yarmouth, or Cape Breton.

 

THE CHAIR: Order. Thank you very much for that, Dr. Shoveller. We’ll now move onto our second round of questioning. It’ll be 11 minutes per caucus, and we’ll start with the NDP. MLA Wilson - MLA Lachance, sorry.

 

LISA LACHANCE: I wanted to return to this question of how to grow the capacity in the life sciences sector in Nova Scotia. Particularly, I’m thinking about Accelerate Nova Scotia because I guess my question, again, is: Wouldn’t there have been a member of the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub? Isn’t there a company that’s already existing that could have taken on that work, or is that something that the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub could have taken on?

 

Our concern is that essentially without due process that someone’s been placed in a position without an organization. We have concerns about the accountability and transparency around that. More practically, what I’m interested in is couldn’t this have created more jobs in Nova Scotia? Couldn’t this have been done from within the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub?

 

THE CHAIR: Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: I think with Accelerate Nova Scotia, they will serve a very important function. Right now, the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub works within the health system. We do work with partners but, again, situated within the health system. With Life Sciences Nova Scotia, we are focused on our companies and being able to help support them and really growing what we consider to be a life sciences community. With Accelerate Nova Scotia, their mandate is larger than just those two. I think that bringing all of those pieces together will allow us to go faster and further on behalf of this province. I don’t worry about competing with Accelerate Nova Scotia. I feel as though we’re very complementary.

 

[10:15 a.m.]

 

LISA LACHANCE: I’m also looking forward to learning more, perhaps, in the legislative sitting because, at this point, the publicly available information about Accelerate Nova Scotia has been limited to the appointment of the CEO. I don’t know who you’ve been with or how they’ve been hired or what the mandate is going to be. It hasn’t been explained publicly as well as you have done in this session. I think we still have a lot of questions about that creation and that appointment in particular.

 

Obviously, there is so much research happening across Canada. There is not enough. Lots of things are not being studied or answered, as we’ve discussed. In New Brunswick, for instance, there was a patient-oriented project that started in 2023 that looked at midwifery and the misconceptions of the profession. Now, the government is increasing the number of midwives based on that research that was done in New Brunswick. How do you connect with other provinces? I know that academics read articles and they go to conferences and I know all that, but often, I’m wondering: Institutionally, how do you keep track of what research is happening in other provinces and look for ways in which we can fill gaps through the research of others?

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Certainly, our academic partners here in Nova Scotia, where we are so incredibly fortunate to have some of the best universities and colleges within the province; it’s an incredible resource. We work very closely and effectively across the health system, university system nexus, and that’s very encouraging.

 

In terms of - and to your point, that involves more than just the occasional meetup at a conference. That involves rolling up your sleeves and really digging in on how we can all work together with the talent that we have here, scientifically, to engage in that ultimate team sport, which is research.

 

In terms of connecting with research colleagues across Canada and across the world, I would say that Nova Scotia takes no back seat to anyone on that. Oftentimes, we will see work that has been conducted and completed here in Nova Scotia featured on programs that are featuring the latest and greatest in clinical practice. When I talked about the ODAC experience early on in my remarks - there are people literally calling up from across the country to understand how they might learn from that - to your point around knowledge mobilization being an important part of those kinds of partnerships.

 

I think the other thing that is absolutely astounding about Nova Scotia as a site for health research is this collaborative, we-are-an-ecosystem feeling or raison d’être. We’re not here to compete with or against one another. We’re here to link arms and go forward together. Over the past two, two and a half years, we have absolutely dedicated ourselves jointly across the universities, across all of the health systems and the life sciences, to do just that. I think we’re only just beginning to see what the outcomes will be in terms of securing that all-important external funding for answering the questions that need to be answered here for Nova Scotians.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Do we know from the Nova Scotia Health Authority or perhaps IWK Health what our success rate is currently in healthy research applications?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I apologize. I don’t have the results off the top of my head for the most recent round, but our results overall are not that dissimilar to the overall results that we see across the country. To your point, they are low. It is a tremendous amount of work, as you’ve noted and you well know, to prepare the necessary documentation and scientific proposals to submit for consideration and peer review at funding agencies. The application pressure is enormous, and the pot, federally, has simply not grown significantly in the past several years to keep pace with the demand for new knowledge.

 

Does that mean we will stop trying? Absolutely not. Does that mean that the Nova Scotia Health Authority has not had - which we have had - number one ranked applications at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research competitions? We have, and we are proud of that. Through our mentorship programs and outreach, we plan to continue to unlock the secrets to success that make Nova Scotia a successful and important site for attracting that kind of funding and support.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. MacMaster, is that…

 

FRANK MACMASTER: Just quickly, one of the other things that - echoing the point that our success rates federally are similar to the overall federal numbers, we’ve also been nimble at trying to find alternative sources of funding through various foundations and other types of granting agencies. When you look at the spread of investment, it’s not all from CIHR at IWK Health; it’s from all over the place. We’ve also been lucky to be heavily supported by our foundation, as well. We’ve been pushed to have a diversified portfolio to ensure that the work that needs to get done gets done.

 

LISA LACHANCE: I wanted to ask a question. I saw last week that the new impact scholars program - that the results were announced across the country. This is not just in health sciences. The disappointing result was that there were none awarded past Quebec. There were none awarded in the four Atlantic provinces. This is a bigger problem than all of us can solve in this room. In health sciences, in particular, is there going to be follow-up on that disappointing result?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: In my former life, I served as the chairperson for the Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and so have a fairly extensive career in understanding the insights of funding mechanisms. Your point around the fact that no applications were funded or approved east of Quebec has not gone unnoticed, is certainly being identified as a concern, and, we hope, something that will change as next rounds go forward.

 

There were competitive applications submitted. I can’t go into any more details than that because of the sanctity of the peer review process, but suffice to say, together, the Nova Scotia Health Authority, IWK Health, Life Sciences Nova Scotia, and our universities put forward a strong suite. We will continue to pursue every avenue for ensuring that kind of research talent is attracted and retained and that the kinds of work that they propose - which is targeted right on the needs for Nova Scotians - we will find a way to make that happen.

 

THE CHAIR: MLA Lachance, with 20 seconds remaining.

 

LISA LACHANCE: Thank you so much for being here today.

 

THE CHAIR: We’ll now move on to the Liberal caucus and MLA Mombourquette.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: I’m happy to have a few more minutes. I’ll start off by saying that this relationship - it’s going to be interesting to watch - with Accelerate Nova Scotia. I appreciate what we’ve heard today. I know you all and your teams are working extremely hard to do what’s right for research in this province, health outcomes in this province, and the social determinants of health. This has been a great conversation.

 

The moral of the story for me is that it works. You’re receiving investment coming in, and you’re working closely with funding organizations. I have some big concerns around some of the cuts. I’m going to talk about that again in a second.

 

One of the real themes that came out of the conversation today is what this relationship is going to be like with Accelerate Nova Scotia. That Community Economic Development Fund seems important to the work that you’re doing. I would be disappointed to see if you lost that because you are the pros, you’re doing the work now. Based on the conversation today, I just hope this new creation of the government doesn’t impact that work because the work is already happening. I just wanted to say that I think this has been an important conversation. I think that’s one of the key takeaways today: What does that look like moving forward? What does that look like for your funding moving forward? The government should really take a step back before they make any big decisions around Accelerate Nova Scotia that may impact the work that you’re doing. I wanted to get that on the record.

 

I will go back to the funding cuts we’ve seen over the last year - and I talked a bit about it before. Governments are always trying to make it easier for Nova Scotians to participate in clinical trials in research. To all the witnesses: if research, investments, and programming are increasingly defunded, as we’ll continue to see over the next few years because the government has said that it’s four years of deficits, four years of program cuts are coming - very clear on the record in their last budget. This goes for everyone. How is that going to impact the work you do every day? It’s really a four-year plan of decline.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I cannot speak to the hypothetical of what may happen but respect your characterization of that. I can say that at Nova Scotia Health Research we operate very efficiently and we are completely dedicated to continuing this work in the most cost-effective manner possible.

 

Our work is absolutely central to many functions within the health care system. As you’ve heard, the provision of treatments for 5,700 patients across Nova Scotia occurs because we undertake clinical trials at the Nova Scotia Health Authority. Those are not the kinds of impacts we will walk away from. They are impacts made possible not only by one partner but by many partners. It’s back to that team sport idea. Being able to continue to build on our reputation, which is an excellent one, of a health system where clinical trials can happen very efficiently and effectively will continue to attract industry investment.

 

Those kinds of partnerships, I hope, will be exactly what we need to either sustain and/or, in my hope, grow the research capacity that already exists here in Nova Scotia.

 

THE CHAIR: Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: Thank you for the opportunity to add on to that. When I think about the work that happens within the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub, we have done a lot of tests-and-tries over the years. We have been working to make those more sustainable, more efficient.

 

For the tests-and-tries we have ongoing now - we have 12 ongoing - we have been able to leverage dollars from our foundation partners, through other federal organizations. In essence, for every one operational dollar we’ve spent, we bring in three others to be able to continue the good work happening.

 

Many of us who work within the Health Innovation Hub have come from industry, have come from that mindset, to be able to support the work and leverage those dollars and to figure out how we can make dollars go further.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: I appreciate that. Based on the conversation today, you are doing what you can exceptionally to try to raise those external dollars, which is critical. We talked about Indigenous health in my last round and that was an organization that lost their funding, right? It had a big impact on them, but obviously, the work that you’re doing is keeping that relationship strong, which most importantly is providing stronger research and support for Indigenous communities across the province.
 

[10:30 a.m.]

 

My next question is around the capacity to involve everyone who wishes to participate in research if research projects are continually being defunded. I’m sticking on this theme because it is important. I appreciate that it’s more hypothetical for you to answer some of these questions, but for us, on our end, we’ve been told on the record to plan for four years of budget decline. That was the plan that was presented by the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board when he tabled the largest deficit in the history of this province. The Premier has now talked about a $2 billion deficit at the Chamber of Commerce meeting in Sydney.

 

I go back to - the issue for me is this defunding of programs like the Brain Repair Centre. That was another program that was cut in the last budget in the spring. Do you see the ability for people to participate in these clinical trials and in research? Will it become harder if we continually have cycles where there’s continuous budget decline?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I appreciate the concern. One of the important things to understand about our capacity to continue with clinical trials work and continue to grow that is to understand our partnerships with industry and the ability to - if there’s one thing that’s more efficient than perhaps even industry experience, if I might say, it’s the graduate student who lives on - who is frugal. Putting those skills to good work in partnership with the investments of our important partners in industry makes the clinical trials magic happen. I have a great deal of confidence in our ability to maintain those partnerships going forward.

 

Another one of my colleagues - I think they’ve all spoken to the importance of diversification. Please, I hope I didn’t give the impression that, at Nova Scotia Health Authority Research, we are pinning all of our hopes on federal funding - most certainly not. We are actively and aggressively continually pursuing every opportunity, not only through foundations that exist here in Nova Scotia but other foundations and philanthropic resource pools. As well, the non-governmental organizations, like the Canadian Cancer Society’s research arm, also provide many opportunities - the Terry Fox Foundation. All of these opportunities provide a plethora of ways in which we will continue our commitment to a diversified investment portfolio in the work that we know we need to advance on behalf of Nova Scotians.

 

THE CHAIR: With one minute and 30 seconds remaining, MLA Mombourquette.

 

DEREK MOMBOURQUETTE: I’ll end with this final question. I go back to the conversation around how we engage folks in research, and I go to the school system. I always say, if you give students the opportunity to engage in research, engage in trials, or engage in consent - there are all of those things. What is, ultimately, the plan when you look at youth across this province and how you engage them in the idea of doing more research or getting involved with research?

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: It’s so wonderful to have a hopeful note struck, as well. I referenced the experience of working with graduate students. We’ve all done that kind of work, and it is the most hopeful exercise about what brings some positive outlooks to the Nova Scotia Health Authority Research ecosystem. Continuing those opportunities to have young people - Nova Scotians - who believe that they can and they will have an opportunity to launch a research career here in Nova Scotia is incredibly inspiring for all of us. It is one of the reasons that we get out of bed every morning. It is an incredible opportunity.

 

Your point is well taken. Being able to communicate that to young people in communities, whether it be through their 4-H clubs, their boys and girls clubs, or what have you, to take those opportunities to engage with folks through school…

 

THE CHAIR: Order. Sorry, Dr. Shoveller. Time has elapsed.

 

We will now move on to the Progressive Conservative caucus.

 

MLA Hilton.

 

Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: Only to say that I think this province, we have an incredible generation of young people coming forward and giving them the opportunity to realize this could be them in 10 years’ time - many more years than that in my case.

 

NICK HILTON: I find that really encouraging. The current generation looks at TV shows like The Big Bang Theory, and the idea of a nerd is no longer - it’s now cool. It’s now the thing you want to be. Hopefully, when kids are in high school, they get inspired by things like that and inspired by yourselves to go out and do that work.

 

As you can tell from some of the questioning today, we’re headed back to the Legislature later today. There are lots of topics that people are going to want to talk about. What I find really positive is hearing directly from you the work that you’re doing with Accelerate Nova Scotia and the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub and the direction that that has taken. To me, when you talk about the health of a population and the health of the economy, we’re taking steps forward for the first time in a long time. We’re really looking forward to seeing where you guys go in the future and the work that you’re going to be doing. In saying that, are there any specific cases that you could talk about or give examples of where Nova Scotia-based research or technology has made breakthroughs that we’re seeing push forward?

 

THE CHAIR: Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: Maybe I’ll speak about some of the Nova Scotia technologies and the companies that have just done remarkable things, and then I’ll turn it to my colleagues in research to talk about some of the amazing things that are happening on that side.

 

One of the things that the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub does is it acts as a front door for industry and partnership. We know that some of the companies in this province have had a difficult time trying to figure out who to go to. “Where do I go to talk about my project? Is it the clinician? Is it procurement? Who is it?” We’ve really heard that from our companies’ perspective. We’ve tried to truly streamline the work that we are doing so companies can come in, and their technologies can get evaluated.

 

Just as a point, 18 months ago, we launched at the hub an online intake form. People can submit ideas and technologies. They’re coming in from everywhere. We have evaluated over 300 opportunities that are coming in. They all tend to be very, very good: 20 percent of those opportunities that are coming in the door are actually from innovators within the Nova Scotia Health Authority. That’s exciting. Before, where did they go?

 

Through the work of the teams that are designed to be able to help triage those opportunities, we have identified some gold. I think that there are a number of companies that are certainly worth mentioning. One of those companies is called DeCell Technologies. It’s a small startup to spin up out of Dalhousie University. It develops a product to be able to help with wound care.

 

I’m going to speak about this because there was actually a press release, so I’m not sharing anything confidential. We did have a patient; her name is Donna Timmons. She had a very problematic open wound on one of her lower limbs. She was headed towards a foot amputation. Then she was treated with a DeCell product. In very short time, she started to heal, and now she walks. When you think about that - Wounds Canada says that the cost of an amputation to the system is about $80,000. How do we define the impact and the benefit to Donna and her family and the community? That was a Nova Scotia company that developed that technology.

 

I have all kinds of others, so I’m going to steal the mic and keep it for one more minute. The other one is - they’ve received so many national awards - Virtual Hallway. Virtual Hallway was developed and created by a team of psychiatrists who saw a problem within the health system. Really, what it was was the ability of primary care to consult with specialists. We know wait times have been generally too long, and sometimes, when a primary care physician just says, “This is complex. Am I on the right path? What do I do for that patient?” A five-minute, ten-minute call with a provider, with a specialist, can make all the difference.

 

They’ve created the technology and the platform to be able to do that. The hub has helped implement that technology within the Nova Scotia Health Authority, and within those specialists who are on the platform, we’ve actually seen an 84 percent reduction in deferrals from specialists. When you think about the impact of that on the system, because our specialists can then know that the patients who are out in community are well cared for, also it’s freeing up their capacity to be able to take care of the patients who do need their care.

 

I could go on and on. There’s incredible technology innovation happening here in our province.

 

THE CHAIR: Is there anyone else who would like to chime in on that one? Are we okay? Dr. Hilchie.

 

ASHLEY HILCHIE: I can provide a couple of examples of research really that are both industry sponsored and also research that is led by investigators within our health system. On the industry-sponsored side, I spoke earlier about growth in Cape Breton and some of the achievements that have been made. It wasn’t too long ago that Cape Breton achieved its first global site activation and patient enrolled in a clinical trial. This was a clinical trial looking at a novel therapy that is expected to prevent heart failure in patients who are at high risk.

 

We were the first site in the entire world that put a patient on this trial. There was an article that was published, and it is being led by Dr. Paul MacDonald out of Cape Breton Regional Hospital. We’ve had patients show up to clinic with the article printed off and highlighted, looking to understand how they can get involved in that trial.

 

On the topic of research that’s being led by our own clinician champions, there are two examples that immediately come to mind: The work of Dr. John Sapp, who is a clinician at the QEII Health Sciences Centre. His clinical trial was VANISH2, and it was a major international randomized clinical trial. What they were looking at was whether catheter ablation or antiarrhythmic drug therapy should be used in the initial treatment strategy for patients with ventricular tachycardia and ischemic cardiomyopathy. What the trial demonstrated was that the initial strategy with catheter ablation reduced the risk of primary composite outcomes compared to drug therapy - so improved outcomes with an intervention led by one of our own trialists. This work was published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2024, if I’m not mistaken.

 

More recently, also if I’m not mistaken, in July 2026, we had one of our investigators, Dr. Sudeep Shivakumar - a hematologist working out of Central Zone as well - he and his team showed that Aspirin, which we all know as a generic, was actually not significantly different than more expensive direct oral anticoagulants in patients who had elective knee and hip replacements. Really, what this is showing is that you could have a cheaper, more accessible therapy that could potentially have the same outcomes as a more complicated therapy.

 

In addition to potential system impacts and cost impacts, there’s also a medication management consideration here on the patients who need to be mindful of all the courses of medications that they’re taking. Again, this work was published recently, and it was a Canadian study. There are at least a dozen or more organizations that were involved in this Canada-wide study - speaking again to the fact that research really is a team sport and there are a lot of examples of this work taking place.

 

[10:45 a.m.]

 

THE CHAIR: We’ll move on to MLA Palmer with 50 seconds remaining.

 

CHRIS PALMER: I guess it’s up to me to wrap it up. This has been fantastic. I appreciate this today. I was very fortunate to sit on this committee for the first three and a half years as an MLA and I was fortunate to be able to come in today to sit in for one of my colleagues. This has been fantastic.

 

Dr. Shoveller, you referenced you and your colleagues as nerds. I speak on behalf of everybody in saying we’re very thankful for nerds and all the work you’re doing. It’s fantastic. You reminded us about what we have to do as MLAs to further this. We’ve talked about how it could impact rural Nova Scotians. We didn’t get a chance to get into that too in depth. Again, thank you for the numbers: 5,700 Nova Scotians who are taking advantage of the great work you are doing. It’s so encouraging to know we are set for the future and can be leaders in this. Thank you for everything that you do.

 

THE CHAIR: Now we’ll move on to closing remarks. We’ll start with Ms. Grant.

 

DORIS GRANT: Thank you for the opportunity to be here today to share some of the insights into the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub, as well as Life Sciences Nova Scotia.

 

Through the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub, we’re bringing our clinicians and teams together with partners who bring expertise, technology, ideas, and investment to help solve some of the most pressing health care challenges. We want partners who are invested in Nova Scotia, who will work alongside us, build capabilities here, invest here, and help solve the problems that matter to Nova Scotians.

 

At the same time, Nova Scotia’s life sciences sector has tremendous momentum. We have innovative companies, exceptional talent, strong universities, and a health system increasingly open to partnership.

 

Life Sciences Nova Scotia is working to turn that momentum into stronger companies to bring more investment and highly skilled jobs for economic growth. These are not separate agendas. A stronger life sciences sector brings new ideas and expertise in investment into our health care system, and a health system that embraces innovation makes Nova Scotia a more attractive place to invest and grow.

 

I will close with an invitation. This year marks the 25th anniversary of BioPort Atlantic. That is Life Sciences Nova Scotia’s annual life sciences conference. It’s happening here, September 22nd to 24th, just at the Nova Centre. I encourage every member of this committee to join us. Come, meet the companies, the clinicians, the researchers, investors, and partners who are building this sector and see first-hand the momentum and the opportunity we have right here in our province. We would be delighted to welcome you.

 

THE CHAIR: Dr. MacMaster.

 

FRANK MACMASTER: Just briefly, the big take-home message I would like to communicate to you all is whatever may be going on politically or economically, things like that, there’s always one constant we have. Nobody shows up at a hospital or a doctor’s office looking for a meh level of care. They are looking for what’s best, especially when it comes to taking care of their loved ones.

 

Pushing that needle forward is research and innovation. That’s at the heart of that. We’re very lucky here in Nova Scotia to have a tremendous number of people working on that day in and day out. One of the things I like to tell folks is that one of the special things about being here is that we’re big enough to face all the problems big places have, but we’re still small enough that we all talk to each other. The example just in this room alone - a really great example of how we can do that to help push things forward for the people we all, as a group, serve.

 

We work very closely together. I’m starting to feel that we probably see way too much of each other - getting comfortable enough to call me a nerd (laughter). Point of order (laughter). It’s that spirit that makes the attraction for industry folks to come here, want to do their work, want to answer those questions, and want to move the needle forward. That’s why we’re different, as a place, and why we can really make this a crown jewel for us all. We’ve got the right urban/rural mix. We’ve got everything to make this happen. Thank you for the opportunity to talk to you today.

 

THE CHAIR: We’ll close with Dr. Shoveller.

 

JEANNIE SHOVELLER: I withdraw my remark about nerds. (Laughter)

 

Thank you very much to all of you. If there are two things that I hope we have demonstrated today, it’s that supporting research excellence is fundamental to shaping the future of health care in Nova Scotia and beyond, and that Nova Scotia Health Authority Research, in collaboration with our partners, is poised to capitalize on the positive momentum that exists here.

 

Every clinical trial, every research study, and every partnership begins with a question that will ultimately shape how we advance the health of Nova Scotians: How can we prevent illness? How can we diagnose it earlier? How can we provide better treatments or improve care delivery? Answering those questions takes time, it takes scientific expertise, and as we have discussed today, it takes collaboration with patients, communities, clinicians, researchers, our universities, government, industry, and many others.

 

Nova Scotia has built a strong health research enterprise. We have demonstrated that we can compete for investment, that we can lead important clinical trials, and that we contribute to discoveries that have an impact at home and well beyond our province. Our opportunity, now, is to build on that momentum. That means continuing to attract leading researchers, clinical trials, and research investment. It means creating more opportunities for Nova Scotians, regardless of where they live, to participate in research and to access promising new treatments through that research. It means making the best possible use of our research expertise and partnerships to generate evidence that helps our health system continuously learn and improve.

 

We also know that this can only happen if we continue to live our commitments to patient choice, privacy, ethics, and responsible research stewardship. That is both the responsibility and the opportunity we have before us, and I can assure you we are ready and committed to doing so.

 

I only have one other thing to ask. I cannot leave any opportunity to meet with an elected representative without a leave-behind. This little leave-behind - which I hope you will feel encouraged to share with your colleagues and your constituents - describes in very “lay” language the new research framework, consent framework, for the Province of Nova Scotia. I think we can all be very proud of that as an important accomplishment going forward, so thank you very much.

 

THE CHAIR: We appreciate all your time and your contributions today. It was a very informative session so thank you very much. We’ll now take a four-minute break until we get back to committee business. (Interruption) Three-minute break.

 

[10:53 a.m. The committee recessed.]

 

[10:58 a.m. The committee resumed.]

 

THE CHAIR: Order. Committee business: There’s correspondence from the Department of Health and Wellness regarding the Nova Scotia Brotherhood and Nova Scotia Sisterhood programs from our June 9th meeting. Any discussion on that piece of correspondence? Hearing none, moving on. Is there any other discussion?

 

Our next meeting is Tuesday, October 13th, at 1:00 p.m. It’ll be Progress in Physician Recruitment. Witnesses will be the Office of Healthcare Professionals Recruitment, Nova Scotia Health Authority, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia.

 

With that, the meeting is adjourned. Thank you very much.

 

[The committee adjourned at 10:58 a.m.]