Pilot Funding
ITHS Small Pilot Project Grant
The new "Institute of Translational Health Sciences" (ITHS) was funded through
the NIH Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA). The ITHS brings together scientists
at the UW, FHCRC, CHRMC and other partner institutions to advance and transform clinical
and translational research. The ITHS is pleased to announce the availability of modest pilot
grants. Grants are designed to assist investigators in obtaining preliminary findings, testing
"proof of concept," or conducting other research activities designed to prepare and
support competitive, full-scale grant applications.
Purpose:
Two types of pilots will be funded under this mechanism—"evaluation"
research grants and "general" research grants.
Evaluation grants
For the evaluation grants, priority will be given to projects that propose applying innovative
evaluation research techniques to better understanding the translational research process,
including aspects of 1) collaborative functioning, 2) successful career development, and 3)
dissemination and adoption of innovations into health-care practice from bench to bedside to
community.
Examples of types of projects include, but are not limited to:
- Identification of barriers to, and facilitators of the conduct of clinical/translational research, ranging from aspects of the research process itself to factors that influence individuals' willingness to participate in clinical trials.
- Identification of characteristics of effective cross-disciplinary research teams.
- Examination of the characteristics of mentor-scholar teams in providing a successful pipeline between training and research productivity.
- Evaluation and comparison of mentorship models.
Particular emphasis and priority will be given to applications proposing to use innovative
evaluation methodologies such as Social Network Analysis (SNA), and qualitative and mixed-methods
evaluation designs, although applications using all varieties of methodologies are welcome and
will be considered. Given the potential utility of applying these techniques and the complexity
of developing and conducting evaluations in the clinical/translational environment, awards up to
$40,000 will be available. Typical awards, however, will be in the $10,000 range, and a strong
case and justification must be presented for requests in excess of $10,000.
General grants
Applications will be considered that address any aspect of translational health science.
Examples of projects include, but are not limited to:
- Development of a serum-based test to diagnose colon cancer in patients with ulcerative colitis.
- Novel bioinformatics systems for analyzing proteomic data.
- Testing community-based translation- and dissemination models for efficacious obesity-prevention programs.
Typical awards will be in the $10,000 range, with strong justification provided for requests
in excess of $10,000.
Eligibility and Review Criteria:
- All faculty are eligible to apply.
- The proposed research MUST be readily identifiable as addressing issues in either translational or clinical research, or in career development in translational or clinical research (see appendix below for NIH definitions of clinical and translational research).
- For the evaluation pilots, it will be the responsibility of the PI to clearly demonstrate on the application form how the proposed research has the potential to positively impact the quality or the conduct of clinical and translational research. The investigator should clearly describe how the proposed evaluation methodology provides an innovative approach to conducting the proposed evaluation research.
- For the general pilots, it will be the responsibility of the PI to demonstrate the innovative aspects of the research and its potential to improve human health (e.g., prevention, diagnosis, treatment or assessment of a human disease or health outcome).
Application Process:
Applications must be received by February 1, 2008.
Applications will be reviewed and submitters notified within 1 month of the application
deadline. Unsuccessful applicants may resubmit their applications for the next round up
to a total of 3 times, unless the reviewers determine that the application does not meet
the intent of the program.
Download ITHS Small Pilot Project Grant Application
After downloading the Word document application, fill it out electronically then e-mail the
completed application to Kathy Long at
ithsapps@u.washington.edu
Appendix: NIH's Definitions of Clinical and Translational Research
Clinical Research:
NIH defines human clinical research as:
-
Patient-oriented research. Research conducted with human subjects (or on material of
humanorigin such as tissues, specimens and cognitive phenomena) for which an investigator
(or colleague) directly interacts with human subjects. Excluded from this definition are in
vitro studies that utilize human tissues that cannot be linked to a living individual.
Patient-oriented research includes:
- mechanisms of human disease
- therapeutic interventions
- clinical trials
- development of new technologies
- Epidemiologic and behavioral studies.
- Outcomes research and health services research. Source: NIH PHS 398 Instructions on Human Subjects Research
Translational Research:
Translational research includes two areas of translation. One is the process of applying
discoveries generated during research in the laboratory, and in preclinical studies, to
the development of trials and studies in humans. The second area of translation concerns
research aimed at enhancing the adoption of best practices in the community. Cost-effectiveness
of prevention and treatment strategies is also an important part of translational science.
Source: Institutional Clinical and Translational Science Award (U54)
RFA-RM-07-007 2007 CTSA RFA
For more information regarding the application process contact Kathy Long at
ithsapps@u.washington.edu or by phone at
(206) 598-4700.