A large sum of funding will be going to pediatric and maternal research in Saskatchewan.

Announced on Thursday at the University of Regina (U of R), $1.5 million will be invested into trauma-integrated research, with the U of R being the first recipient.

“The ultimate goal is to not have kids visit our hospital, that’s why we’re really focused on research through our board of directors,” said Troy Davies, the CEO of Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation.

The conversation around the grant has been in the works for around four years.

“Unfortunately, bad things do happen to kids,” said Davies. “But we do have some of the best in the country and some of the best in the world working in our facility, and we’re happy to support that.

The Child Trauma Research Centre will be looking to put the new investment to good use, responding to “urgent, emerging, and long-term social, familial, economic, educational, health, and well-being impacts of childhood trauma and resilience”, according to the province’s announcement.

The $1.5 million in funds will go forward will be used to improve many different areas, according to Nathalie Reid, the director of Child Trauma Research Centre.

“We’re going to continue our growth in terms of supporting public safety, children and youth. We’re going to continue and grow our work with educators, mental health and wellbeing in schools. We’re also going to continue looking at the generational impacts of trauma in the perinatal period.”

The Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital wants the grant to provide “hope” for families struggling in Saskatchewan. CTV News asked Reid on what some of the biggest challenges that children face when brought into pediatric care.

“Children and mothers face layers of systemic and structural barriers that are the reality of our time. Even with access to health care right now, finding a family doctor is really difficult in this province. Then we know that there are generational cycles of trauma, and how do we bump and interrupt those so that they don’t get passed down to future generations?”

According to Reid, today’s youth are showing higher signs in self-harm, eating disorders along with mental health issues.

“This kind of investment allows us to look at the structures and supports that we could put in place to really change the face of child research in this province,” she said.

According to the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation, 85,000 children visited its Saskatchewan facility in 2025.