OTTAWA, Jan. 27, 2012 /CNW/ - The Conference Board of Canada has created an inventory of 88 organizations involved in studying Canada's health system. Who's Doing What in the Canadian Health System: A Selected List of Research Organizations identifies key players in the Canadian health and health care research industry—from academic research centres and business consultants, to government agencies and non-profit organizations.

The inventory was created under the research program of the Conference Board's Canadian Alliance for Sustainable Health Care (CASHC). The goal of this first CASHC publication is to help anyone doing research into Canadian health care to discover who else is doing what, thereby avoiding duplications and increasing the opportunity for cooperation and coordination.

"The sustainability of the health care system is a top priority for Canadian governments and public and private organizations," said Louis Thériault, the Conference Board's director of health economics. "Canadians are aware that the system faces severe and growing challenges that threaten our ability to provide publicly funded health care in the future. Organizations that produce evidence-based research will play an important role in the battle to make our health care system sustainable. And the CASHC inventory will help all parties as they work toward that goal."

The 88 organizations included in the inventory are all involved in research into one or more of the following areas: health economics research and modelling, operations management, and health human resources.

The full inventory is available on The Conference Board of Canada's website at www.conferenceboard.ca/CASHC/inventory. The Conference Board will update this inventory of health research organizations on a regular basis. Please send feedback and information to contactcashc@conferenceboard.ca.

The creation of the inventory is just one way in which the Conference Board is working to improve the sustainability of Canada's health care system. Through CASHC, the Board is providing Canadian business leaders and policy-makers with insights and analysis on what it will take to ensure the future of quality health care in this country.

CASHC provides Canadian business leaders and policy-makers with insightful, forward-looking, quantitative analysis of the sustainability of the Canadian health care system and all of its facets, and facilitates open dialogue on this research and its implications. The goal is to improve the functioning of the Canadian health system as a whole, and health care practices within firms and organizations. The work of CASHC will help Canadian leaders and all Canadians to better understand the conditions under which Canada's health care system can be sustained, both financially and more broadly. More than 30 companies and organizations have invested in the initiative, providing invaluable financial, leadership, and expert support.

Brent Dowdall, Media Relations, Tel.: 613- 526-3090 ext.  448
E-mail: corpcomm@conferenceboard.ca