Responsible Research
The Unity Health Toronto Responsible Research Assessment framework acknowledges diverse strengths across various disciplines and values the array of contributions, understanding that not all scientists excel uniformly across every indicator.
Recent studies on research evaluation methods have shown that an over-reliance on traditional metrics, such as publications and funding, will not adequately manifest the scope, quality and impact of the researchers’ work and may disproportionately affect the research ecosystem.
Responsible Research Assessment (RRA) has emerged to address this issue. RRA promotes the appropriate use of equity-informed quantitative and qualitative indicators to assess research performance, supporting diverse and inclusive research cultures that reflect institutional values. RRA aims to expand the visibility of scholarly contributions and broaden the scope of success indicators.
To demonstrate our commitment to RRA, Unity Health Toronto, an affiliated hospital of the University of Toronto, is a signatory of the More Than Our Rank initiative, and the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).
The More Than Our Rank initiative, led by the International Network of Research Management Societies (INORMS), was developed to address some problematic features and effects of global university rankings. While Unity Health continues to value traditional metrics, our commitment to this international initiative underscores our dedication to key indicators such as equity, diversity, and social impact. These indicators are essential as we move research from bench to bedside and beyond, influencing health outcomes on both national and global levels.
Unity Health has a long tradition of improving health equity and healthcare access for populations experiencing marginalization. The More Than Our Rank initiative allows us to highlight our mission and the impact of our work, which traditional rankings often overlook.
By participating in the More Than Our Rank initiative, we are committed to responsibly evaluating how research improves healthcare systems and overall community health.
The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) is a global initiative promoting best practices in evaluating researchers and their scholarly outputs. Unity Health Toronto signed DORA in 2019, joining thousands of institutions and individuals worldwide. By signing DORA, we commit to exploring best practices and implementing an RRA framework based on equity-informed quantitative and qualitative indicators that represent our values as a research institute.
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