Notice Number: NOT-HD-12-035

Key Dates
Release Date: December 7, 2012

Issued by
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Purpose

The purpose of this Notice is to announce the creation of two new extramural program branches within the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), and the updating of several extramural branch names and their functional statements to better reflect current scientific portfolios and future directions.

Background

The NICHD was established in 1962 to ensure that every person is born healthy, that women suffer no harmful effects from reproductive processes, and that all children have the chance to achieve their full potential for healthy and productive lives, and to ensure the health, productivity, independence, and well-being of all people through optimal rehabilitation. Today, the Institute conducts and supports biomedical and behavioral research related to human development, from preconception to adulthood, to better understand the health of children, adults, families, and communities.

The reorganization described in this Notice will increase administrative efficiencies, facilitate transdisciplinary research, facilitate the exchange of scientific ideas, and benefit the Institute’s internal and external communities.

The new organizational structure will better align the organizational components with the new strategic vision for NICHD, created from an extensive visioning process, involving attendees from a diverse set of disciplines and backgrounds, to identify major scientific opportunities of the next decade across the Institute’s broad mission. It is also expected to enhance productivity in accomplishing the goals of the Institute by improving management of an evolving research portfolio, strengthen continuity of operations, and streamline the working of the extramural program.

Specifically, the NICHD is establishing two new extramural branches, the Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch and the Pediatric Trauma and Critical Illness Branch, to more effectively align extramural organization with the NICHD research portfolio. The NICHD is also updating several of its branch names and their functional statements to better reflect current scientific portfolios and future directions.

Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch

The Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch: (1) Develops and supports basic science and clinical research programs related to gynecologic health in women and adolescent girls; (2) promotes research in gynecological health through grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts; (3) emphasizes studies of the menstrual cycle, uterine fibroids, endometriosis, pelvic floor disorders, and perimenopause/menopause transition; (4) studies the mechanisms underlying chronic pelvic pain, vulvodynia, and dysmenorrhea; and (5) supports research training and career development programs of investigators interested in women’s reproductive health.

Pediatric Trauma and Critical Illness Branch

The Pediatric Trauma and Critical Illness Branch: (1) develops and supports research and research training in pediatric trauma and critical illness; (2) investigates the continuum of psychosocial, behavioral, and physiological influences that impact child health outcomes in trauma, injury, and acute care; (3) investigates the short- and long-term impacts of acute traumatic experiences such as natural and man-made disasters, all forms of child maltreatment, violence, and violence exposure; (4) develops research linking pediatric emergency and critical care medicine and science to the epidemiology, prevention, and treatment of childhood physical disabilities; and (5) supports research on prevention, treatment, management, and outcomes of physical and psychological trauma and the surgical, medical, psychosocial, and systems interventions needed to improve outcomes for critically ill and injured children across the developmental trajectory.

Updating of Other Extramural Branch Names and Functional Statements

As part of this reorganization, the functional statements of the branches and several extramural program branch names have been updated, as described on our website and as follows:

• Child Development and Behavior Branch
  
• Contraceptive Discovery and Development Branch
  
• Developmental Biology and Structural Variation Branch
  
• Fertility and Infertility Branch
  
• Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch
  
• Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Branch
  
• Maternal and Pediatric Infectious Disease Branch
  
• Obstetric and Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics Branch
  
• Pediatric Growth and Nutrition Branch
  
• Pediatric Trauma and Critical Illness Branch
  
• Pregnancy and Perinatology Branch
• Population Dynamics Branch

Inquiries

Please direct all inquiries to:

NICHD Information Resource Center
Email: NICHDInformationResourceCenter@mail.nih.gov