NL SUPPORT Patient-Oriented Research Grant

 

Details

Total Maximum Amount: $75,000
Duration: 1 year (with a possibility for a 1 year extension)
Grants per Funding Cycle: Up to 4
Application Deadline: January 31, 2016


Purpose & General Guidelines

The NL SUPPORT Patient-Oriented Research Grants (POR Grants) will support an individual or a group of individuals led by a Principal Applicant. The purpose of these grants is to support small projects of high scientific quality that may not be eligible for funding from external sources and are of direct relevance to the mandate and priorities set by NL SUPPORT. Patient-Oriented research is defined by CIHR as:

“…a continuum of research, from the initial studies in humans to comparative effectiveness and outcomes research, and the integration of this research into the health care system and clinical practice. It includes studies of therapies, diagnostic tools, pharmaceuticals, and prevention strategies as well as comparative evaluations of those interventions against each other and against existing practices. It concludes with the synthesis, dissemination and integration of evidence into the health care system and clinical practice. Patient-oriented research thus encompasses both clinical research and health services research, the synthesis, dissemination and integration of this new knowledge into the health care system and into clinical practice.”

A maximum of four $75,000 awards will be awarded in POR grants in 2015. These grants are designed to defray the normal direct costs of research including personnel costs, supplies and expendable materials, equipment, computing costs, research travel (to a maximum of 20% of the total budget), and dissemination and communications.

Grant funds will be released only upon the receipt of a letter of approval from the appropriate ethics review committee (see Ethics). Once a proposal has been funded, major changes in the project design or major departures from the budget will require the prior approval from the Granting Body.

An applicant may apply for more than one POR grant in any year but will be allowed to accept only one POR Grant as Principal Applicant or as Co-Applicant. Recipients of a POR grant as a Principal Applicant in the previous year are not eligible to apply during the current cycle, but are eligible to act as Co-Applicants.


Eligibility

Principal Applicants do not need a doctorate, but they should at least be trainees or independent researchers with Master’s qualifications in a field relevant to patient-oriented research. Researchers employed at institutions elsewhere in Canada may apply as Principal Applicant, but the work performed must include a focus on Newfoundland and Labrador and include local applicants. Researchers from non-Canadian institutions may be ‘Associates’ but not Principal Applicants or Co-Applicants.
It is, however, recommended that Principal Applicants:

  • Be employed by a post-secondary academic institution or by a health or community services institution in Newfoundland and Labrador and have dedicated time for research
  • Have a Ph.D. or a professional degree and a thesis-based Master’s degree in a health-related field.

The Principal Applicant is the person who will take primary responsibility for the intellectual direction of the research and assume administrative responsibility for the funds. POR grant funds are not intended to supplement the salary of the Principal Applicant or Co-Applicants; only research assistants may be paid salary from these grants.


Selection Criteria for POR Grants

Applications for POR Grants will be judged according to the following selection criteria:

  • Relevance of the proposed research to the NL SUPPORT mandate and priority research themes;
  • Expertise and research experience; and past contributions to patient-oriented research and related fields on the part of the applicants;
  • Merit of the proposal, based on: originality; potential contribution to patient-oriented research; quality of patient engagement throughout the project’s lifecycle; relevance to health-related decision-making, systems improvement or positive patient impacts
  • clarity of presentation and appropriateness of design and research plan; feasibility of the proposed work; and appropriateness and justification of the budget.

Priority will be given to recently established researchers (within the first five years of a first full-time appointment) and researchers who do not currently hold a major grant from an external funding agency.


Role of Host Institutions

Institutions that employ holders of POR Grants are called host institutions. Signatures are required from host institution representatives on all grant application forms. By signing, host institutions agree to accept the responsibilities outlined below on behalf of their award or grant-holding employees:

  • The financial administration of awards and grants
  • Reporting to Granting Body any change in the funding recipients’ status that may affect the fulfillment of their research commitment, for example resignation or termination
  • Submission of an annual financial statement covering the period from April 1 to March 31 for each award or grant; the statement(s) are due no later than May 1 of each year


Application Process

When completing your application, be sure to download the BLANK form to your hard drive first. Then, complete the form and save it to your hard drive using Adobe Acrobat; if you work on the forms online (e.g., fill them out in Safari or Google Chrome), changes will not be saved when the forms are downloaded for emailing.

The following information is to be submitted to NLCAHR by 4:30pm NST on January 31, 2016: