training highly qualified health research personnel: the Pain in child Health consortium

Pain is a major challenge to the healthy development and quality of life of children of all ages. Inadequately treated pain can affect children’s cognitive, emotional, social and physical development (1), and induce suffering in siblings, parents and caregivers (2). Children remember pain and may avoid future health care because of painful experiences (3). Pain is often underestimated and undertreated, espe-cially in vulnerable populations such as children (4), yet most pain can be prevented, treated or reduced (5). To improve prevention, assessment, diagnosis and treatment of pedi-atric pain, high-quality research conducted by highly qualified personnel (HQP) is needed. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) created its Strategic Training Initiative in Health Research (STIHR), with funding initially available in 2002, to “increase [Canada’s] competitiveness internationally in attracting new, bright, creative research talent and to ensure innovation and excellence in the next generation of Canadian health research training programs ” (6). Unde