The Canadian Institutes of Health Research is really an amazing research organization, and the support they're giving to Canadian researchers across the country is phenomenal.
In my short time as health minister I've had an opportunity to see that. I'm sure you've heard on this committee from many of those innovative health researchers. It's close to 13,000 presently, and at times it has been higher. So whether it's investing in research in diabetes, personalized medicine, aboriginal health, mental health—of course, the list goes on. We've invested recently $100 million in Brain Canada for neuroscience, and we've also created the pathways to health equity for aboriginal peoples.
We have recently, not that long ago, launched the strategy for patient-oriented research, which is a great initiative, working closely with the provinces and territories, which sees additional money going to the territories to support their particular specific innovation priorities. So it's a great opportunity for the federal government to use our research capacity to support the provinces in the areas where they need help, making sure patients are getting the right kind of treatment at the right time. It also focuses on including patients in the research itself, which has been obviously welcomed by patients' advocates. I think it really helps bridge the gap between research evidence and health care practice, which has been very well received across the country. We just launched the first initiative of this kind in Alberta, and there are a number more that will follow.
Obviously, Canada has been a leader on research on HIV. Whether it's new ways to prevent chronic diseases...our support has been providing the resources needed for that work as well.
The deputy wants me to tell you that we've also invested $2.1 billion today for electronic health records. Obviously that's a huge issue for the provinces and territories because they're delivering health services on the ground, and that is a huge undertaking that has seen great success. We know that there have been a lot of challenges in different jurisdictions on electronic records, but Infoway has an impeccable record, not only from the Auditor General, but recently they just won an international award for project management. So we're glad to see the $2 billion investment actually helping people, helping those who deliver health services on the ground do it better and in a more sustainable way.