Message From the Vice-President, Research
Sunnybrook Research Institute
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
As one of the youngest of Toronto's hospital-based research
institutes, Sunnybrook Research Institute (SRI) has enjoyed remarkable growth
over the last 20 years. We have evolved from 50 faculty doing $2 million of
research in 70,000 square feet in 1991, to more than 230 scientists $122
million of research in 500,000 square feet today.
Sunnybrook Research Institute is at the vanguard of integrating medical
discovery into clinical care; indeed, we are inventing the future of this care,
enabled by the excellence of our scientists and state-of-the-art facilities.
For example, our $160-million Centre
for Research in Image-Guided Therapeutic Therapeutics is the only one of
its kind anywhere in Canada, and perhaps the world.
How to summarize the past year for SRI?
Renewal. Renaissance. Reaffirmation.
We renewed the structure of SRI, paring five disciplines into three platforms,
areas of expertise that organize our pursuit of excellence. These are biological
sciences, evaluative
clinical sciences and physical
sciences. Together, they bring into relief those areas of leadership where
we most make a difference.
With this restructuring, the stage is set
for a renaissance in biological sciences. Advances
in understanding how biological systems work are yielding insights that are
leading to better methods of diagnosis, treatment and even prevention, on a
person-by-person, rather than disease-by-disease, basis. We are at the
forefront of this work.
Our new structure reaffirms our leadership position and will help propel our
growth. We are home to trailblazers not only in biology, but also in imaging.
Our scientists are inventing devices that can visualize disease at ever earlier
stages, and deliver therapies noninvasively. Clinically minded researchers
provide the critical link between lab and bedside. Never have the research and
clinical domains at SRI been more closely tethered.
None of this could happen without the support of funding agencies, private
sector partners and community allies, especially during these fiscally
challenging times. Nor could it happen without the support of our CEO,
Dr. Barry McLellan, and Chair of the Board, David Leslie, who understand that
today's research is tomorrow's care.
I invite you to explore our website to learn more about what we do and why.
