Research funding of psychiatric disorders in Canada: a snapshot, 1990-1991

Although mental illness accounts for up to 14% of total direct health care costs and an estimated cost of over five billion dollars annually, research funding of psychiatric disorders is regarded as underfunded relative to other biomedical research. This study was conducted to determine the amount of funds allotted to the research of specific psychiatric disorders in Canada. Data was obtained from a national database of peer-reviewed health research funding. Based on the title of the research grant, all projects that pertained to psychiatric disorders were identified and classified according to diagnosis. Research funding for psychiatric disorders totalled $16,391,000 from 1990 to 1991, or 3.7% of all biomedical research funding for that period. The relative contributions of federal, provincial and private (nonprofit) agencies to the funding total were 54%, 39% and 8%, respectively. Research funding for mental illness remains disproportionately low relative to other medical illnesses. The role of private nonprofit agencies, in particular, is much more limited for psychiatric disorders than for other identified medical illnesses. These data suggest that increased attention to research advocacy is required to increase psychiatric research support. Advocacy strategies should include: 1. publicizing the value and scope of psychiatric research in Canada; 2. working to de-stigmatize mental illness; 3. strengthening personal and professional affiliations with patient advocacy groups; 4. increasing the number and the qualifications of psychiatric researchers; 5. improving the scientific quality of research programs; and 6. organizing national research collaborations.