Key Dates

Related Announcements

• February 25, 2022 - Notice of Special Interest (NOSI): Administrative Supplements for Complementary Health Practitioner Research Experience (Admin Supplements). See Notice NOT-AT-22-010. 
• October 9, 2020 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional). See NOFO PA-20-272.

Issued by

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Purpose

 The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) encourages applications for administrative supplements to NCCIH-supported awards to support complementary health practitioners in an intensive, supervised research experience that will lead to a better understanding of, and practical experience in, complementary and integrative health research.

The research opportunity supported under this NOSI is intended to provide a vehicle for complementary health practitioners to obtain research skills that will benefit the complementary health research community, as these individuals bring an in-depth knowledge of the complementary health practices to the research enterprise. NCCIH expects that participation in the research experience supported under this NOSI will help encourage and prepare complementary health practitioners to pursue additional NIH-supported research training (e.g., Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Postdoctoral Fellowship (Parent F32), Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (Parent K23), etc.) or other research opportunities.

A complementary health practitioner may be supported once in their career under this administrative supplement (with an opportunity to renew support one time for a maximum of two years of support). The candidate should not be supported on a federally funded research grant at the time of submitting the administrative supplement request. The complementary health practitioner candidate must devote at least 75 percent effort to research-related activities supported by this administrative supplement. Depending on the level of experience, a candidate may propose their own project within the scope of the parent grant, may propose secondary analyses related to the parent grant project, or at minimum, should propose to be sufficiently immersed and actively involved in an ongoing research project within the parent award such that the candidate has an in-depth research experience.In addition, it is expected that the candidate will take part in regular research group meetings, appropriate seminars, and regular meetings and mentoring sessions with the PD/PI of the parent grant. Candidates can propose to gain experience in basic, mechanistic, translational, and/or clinical research.This initiative will not support clinical residency training or other clinical practitioner training.

Complementary health practitioners may seek out eligible NCCIH grantees for potential research opportunities and support under this Notice of Special Interest using the NIH RePORTER system (https://nccih.nih.gov/research/extramural/awards) with the understanding that prospective NCCIH-funded recipients must determine whether a mentoring arrangement is appropriate and feasible before submitting a supplement request. The NCCIH-funded recipient will submit the application for the supplement. Supplements awarded under this NOSI will provide support to practitioners for a one year research experience, with the option to submit a new application to renew support for a second year.

Applications for this award must propose a comprehensive research plan that has the following qualities: 

• Aligned with the NCCIH Strategic Plan
• Within the scope of the of the parent research grant
• Will serve as a suitable vehicle for learning methodology, theories, and concepts needed to conduct research in complementary and integrative health
• Will support a high level of productivity

Eligible NCCIH Grants:

All grant awards made by NCCIH with the exception of the following: F30, F31, F32, T32, T35, K99, K01, K08, K23, R13, and U13. Eligibility criteria can be found within PA-20-272.

Funded PIs together with the complementary health practitioner candidates are strongly encouraged to contact NCCIH program staff to discuss their concepts and eligibility prior to submitting their application.

Candidate Eligibility:

For this NOSI, complementary health practitioners include licensed practitioners including (but not limited to): licensed acupuncturists, massage therapists, and/or art-based therapists; certified yoga therapists; chiropractic doctors; doctors of physical therapy; and naturopathic or osteopathic physicians.

Within the framework of this Program's commitment to excellence and projected need for investigators in particular areas of research, practitioners from groups underrepresented in the biomedical, behavioral, and clinical sciences are especially encouraged to work with eligible institutions to apply (see NOT-OD-20-031).

Eligible Individuals (Program Director/Principal Investigator)

Individual(s) must hold an active grant or cooperative agreement funded by NCCIH, and the research proposed in the supplement must be accomplished within the competitive segment of the active award. Individuals are encouraged to work with their organizations to develop applications for support.

For supplements to parent awards that include multiple PDs/PIs, the supplement may be requested by any or all the PDs/PIs (in accordance with the existing leadership plan) and submitted by the awardee institution of the parent award. Do not use this administrative supplement application to add, delete, or change the PDs/PIs listed on the parent award. Visit the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide for more information.

Description of circumstances for which administrative supplements are available.

Application and Submission Information

Applications for this initiative must be submitted using the following opportunity or its subsequent reissued equivalent.

• PA-20-272 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional)

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide and PA-20-272 must be followed, with the following additions:

• A statement from the candidate outlining his/her research objectives and career
  goals.
  • Application Due Dates: March 1, and June 3, and November 1, 2024., March 3, and June 2, and November 3, 2025, and March 2, and June 1, and November 2, 2026; by 5:00 p.m. local time of applicant organization
  • For funding consideration, applicants must include “NOT-AT-24-032” (without quotation marks) in the Agency Routing Identifier field (box 4B) of the SF424 R&R form. Applications without this information in box 4B will not be considered for this initiative.
  • Application budgets are limited to no more than $100,000 total direct costs per year and must reflect the actual needs of the proposed project. These funds may be used for salary and fringe benefits for the complementary health practitioner, research supplies, travel, and/or tuition for courses if they enhance the research experience. Tuition is an allowable cost only if the individual is enrolled in a degree-granting program and is considered part of compensation. Salary and fringe benefits for the candidate should be consistent with the institution's salary structure. No funds may be requested to supplement the salaries of the PD/PI or other personnel, or to purchase equipment.
  • The project and budget periods must be within the currently approved project period for the existing parent award. The parent award must have at least one year of active funding remaining at the time of the supplement award.
  • Research Plan: The Research Strategy section is limited to 6 pages and must include a summary or abstract of the funded parent award or project, along with proposed plans for the candidate’s research experience. Other sections should also be included if they are being changed by the proposed supplement activities. Applicants should incorporate a plan for the candidate to interact with other individuals on the parent grant, to contribute intellectually to the research, and to enhance her/his research skills and knowledge regarding the selected area of biomedical, behavioral, clinical or social sciences science. It must also provide evidence of a focus on the enhancement of the research capability of the candidate and that the research experience is intended to provide opportunities for career development. Finally, it must demonstrate that the PD(s)/PI(s) is willing to provide appropriate mentorship and has developed a mentoring plan to facilitate the research and career development of the candidate.
  • Project/Performance Sites section (Form Page 2): Include the primary site where the proposed supplement activities will be performed. If a portion of the proposed supplement activities will be performed at any other site(s), identify the locations in the fields provided.
  • Sr/Key Personnel form: List the PD/PI as the first person (regardless of their role on the supplement activities). List the candidate proposed to be added through this supplement. Candidates for this supplement support must have an eRA Commons account and the candidate's Commons Username must be entered in the Credential field. Do not include any other senior/key personnel on this form.
  • Biographical sketch: Include a biographical sketch for the PD/PI and the proposed candidate. The personal statement of the candidate's biographical sketch should address the following:
    • Evidence of scientific achievement or interest
    • Any source(s) of current funding

Review Process

NCCIH will conduct administrative reviews of all applications.

Criteria:

• Is the candidate qualified for this administrative supplement, based on their degree background, career goals, prior research training, research potential, and any relevant experience?
• Is there evidence of educational achievement and interest in science (if the candidate is a student)?
• Is the plan and timeline for the proposed research and career development experiences in the supplemental request appropriate and achievable within the timeline of the parent grant?
• Will the proposed experience expand and foster the research capabilities, knowledge, and/or skills of the candidate?
• Will the activities of the candidate be an integral part of the project?
• Will the proposed experience provide career mentoring and enhance the candidate's potential for, and commitment to, a productive, independent scientific research career in a complementary health-related field?

Inquiries

Lanay M. Mudd, Ph.D., FACSM
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Phone: 301-594-9346
Email: lanay.mudd@nih.gov