REMINDER AND UPDATE:  REQUIREMENT FOR INSTRUCTION IN THE RESPONSIBLECONDUCT OF RESEARCH IN NATIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE AWARD INSTITUTIONAL

TRAINING GRANTS



NIH GUIDE, Volume 23, Number 23, June 17, 1994



P.T. 44



Keywords:

  Ethics/Values in Science & Technol 

  Grants Administration/Policy+ 



National Institutes of Health



Since July 1990, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has required

all applications for Institutional National Research Service Award

(NRSA) Research Training Grants (T32, T34) to include a description

of a program to provide instruction in the responsible conduct of

research.  This requirement was announced in the NIH Guide for Grants

and Contracts on December 22, 1989 (Vol. 18, No. 45), and again on

August 17, 1990 (Vol. 19, No. 30).



With this notice, the NIH updates and reinforces the commitment to

ensure that all NRSA supported trainees are provided an opportunity

for training in the responsible conduct of research.  Plans for

instruction in the responsible conduct of research will continue to

be required in all applications for institutional NRSA research

training grants.  But, beginning with applications for research

training grants received on or after January 10, 1993, this

requirement will be modified as follows:



o  Applications without plans for instruction in the responsible

conduct of research will be considered incomplete and will be

returned to the applicant without review.



o  Every predoctoral and postdoctoral NRSA trainee supported by a T32

or T34 institutional research training grant must receive instruction

in the responsible conduct of research.



o  Plans that incorporate instruction in the responsible conduct of

research for all graduate students and postdoctorates in a training

program or department, regardless of the source of support, are

particularly encouraged.



o  Although the NIH will not establish specific curriculum or format

requirements, all programs are strongly encouraged to consider

instruction in the following areas:  conflict of interest,

responsible authorship, policies for handling misconduct, policies

regarding the use of human and animal subjects, and data management.



o  Plans must address:  the subject matter of the instruction, the

format of the instruction, the degree of faculty participation,

trainee attendance, and the frequency of instruction.  A rationale

for the proposed plan of instruction must be provided.



o  Progress reports on the type of instruction provided, topics

covered, and other relevant information such as attendance by

trainees and faculty participation must be included in future

competing and noncompeting applications.



The procedures for the review of the plans for instruction in the

responsible conduct of research will be as follows:



o  At initial review, one or more reviewer(s) will be assigned to

evaluate the plan for providing training in the responsible conduct

of research.



o  The plan will be discussed after the overall determination of

merit so that the quality of the plan will not be a factor in the

determination of the priority score.



o  The assessment of the plan will include consideration of the

appropriateness of the topics, the format, the amount and nature of

faculty participation, and the frequency and duration of instruction.

Plans will be judged either acceptable or unacceptable.



o  The plan and its acceptability will be described in an

administrative note in the summary statement.



o  Regardless of the priority score, applications with unacceptable

plans will not be funded until a revised, acceptable plan is provided

by the applicant.  The acceptability of the revised plan will be

judged by staff within the awarding component at the NIH.



INQUIRIES



The contact for general information about this policy is:



Dr. Walter T. Schaffer

Director, Research Training and Special Programs Office

National Institutes of Health

Building 31, Room 5B44

Bethesda, MD  20892

Telephone:  (301) 496-9743



Questions regarding a specific training program or grant application

should be directed to the appropriate NIH Institute.



.

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