Health, Wellness and Our Environment is the unifying theme for research currently being done by researchers who are members of the PEI Health Research Institute. The diagram above illustrates how six dominant areas of research interact within this unifying theme and thus provide the strength of synergy to the health research community on PEI

More than 50 primary or independent investigators are engaged in research related to human health at the University of Prince Edward Island, in the provincial government, and in private organizations across the province. A primary or independent investigator is a researcher who, independently or as part of a research team, is eligible to receive grant funding from external granting organization and whose salary is not dependent on support from grant funds.

Significant research activity on PEI falls into six distinct areas as shown in the diagram. In many cases, individual researchers could be listed under several areas due to active collaborations. In the following table, however, researchers have only been listed once in their area of primary research. Since only primary or independent researchers were included in the statistics these numbers should provide an accurate picture of the number of researchers active on P.E.I. The table excludes the significant number of undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate trainees also engaged in research work.

Note: The UPEI strategic development plan, prepared for the Canada Research Chairs program, identified seven constellations of existing research strength. Three of these areas/constellations specifically pertained to human health research:

• Human Development and Health,
• Cognitive and Neurosciences and
• Comparative Medicine.

Identification of these constellations by UPEI indicates both current strengths and commitment to these areas. Other constellations identified by UPEI such as Island Studies and Environmental Research also have research components.