Full Text PA-96-007

RESEARCH ON THE MENTAL HEALTH OF MINORITY POPULATIONS

NIH GUIDE, Volume 24, Number 40, November 24, 1995

PA NUMBER:  PA-96-007 (see replacement PAR-04-060)

P.T. 34, FF

Keywords: 
  Population Studies 
  Emotional/Mental Health 


National Institute of Mental Health

PURPOSE

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) announces support for
the development, conduct, and maintenance of research program
projects (RPPs) (P01) focusing on the mental health of minority
populations.  RPPs should provide stimulating and productive research
environments in which a multidisciplinary group of experienced and
junior mental health researchers can interact and direct their
energies toward research activities and projects on a unified issue
related to the mental health of minority populations.

All research areas supported by NIMH are relevant to the mental
health of minority populations and are appropriate as the central
focus for program project research.

The specific minority populations NIMH will award grants to study
include:  American Indians/Alaskan Natives, Asian Americans, African
Americans, Hispanics, and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders.
Studies of ethnic subpopulations within these broad categories are
also encouraged.

This program announcement supersedes PA-92-122, Minority Mental
Health Research Centers, issued September 1992.

HEALTHY PEOPLE 2000

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the health
promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2000,"
a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas.  This PA,
Research on the Mental Health of Minority Populations, is related to
the priority area of mental health and mental disorders.  Potential
applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2000" (Full Report:
Stock No. 017-001-00474-0 or Summary Report: Stock No.
017-001-00473-1) through the Superintendent of Documents, Government
Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325 (telephone 202-512-1800).

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applications may be submitted by domestic, for-profit and non-profit
organizations, public and private, such as universities, colleges,
hospitals, laboratories, units of State and local governments, and
eligible agencies of the Federal government.  Foreign institutions
are not eligible for program project grants.  Racial/ethnic minority
individuals, women, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to
apply as Principal Investigators.

MECHANISM OF SUPPORT

The program project (P01) grant mechanism will be used. This
mechanism supports broadly-based, multidisciplinary, multiproject,
often long-term research programs that have a specific major
objective or basic theme.  To qualify for support, a program project
must consist of at least three research subprojects as recommended by
peer review.  Applications may request support for up to five years.
Annual awards will be made subject to continued availability of funds
and progress achieved.

The funding cap for these RPPs is $600,000 direct costs per year per
award plus negotiated indirect costs.  Investigators who are
developing RPPs are encouraged to discuss budgetary issues with
program staff listed under INQUIRIES.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The principal objective of this program is to provide a research
environment in which state-of-the-art research methodologies may be
applied to an interdependent set of projects relating to a single
major focus in mental health research.  The research focus may
include the understanding and improvement of mental health and the
prevention and treatment of mental illness among the specific
minority group(s) selected under this announcement.  Each RPP should
provide an environment of scientific excellence that will ensure the
highest quality research and leadership in its particular area of
investigation.  Through its activities, the RPP should be, or
demonstrate that it has the potential to become, a major national
scientific research resource.  It is expected that other research
projects will be developed by the RPP investigators with support from
separate research and research training grants from private
foundations and from NIMH and other research grant awarding sectors
of the Federal government.  However, applicants who are developing
RPPs are not expected to have extensive additional research funding.

Infrastructure

The RPP should enable investigators to conduct both pilot and
comprehensive studies and to formulate, develop, and test new
hypotheses, methodologies, and data-gathering techniques.  Models for
organization of RPPs may vary, but they all must contain the
infrastructure for implementing an overarching research plan and a
plan that includes sophisticated, multidisciplinary, integrated
research projects.  This infrastructure must include, at minimum, an
administrative core and a methodology and statistics core, as
described below.

Administrative Core.  Program projects must have a scientifically and
administratively well-qualified director who has primary
responsibility for the scientific leadership and administration of
the research program and a strong administrative structure.  The
description of that structure should include the following
information:

o  Relationship to the applicant institution

o  Description of the administrative structure of the RPP, including
delineation of responsibilities and authorities of the RPP Director
and his/her assistants

o  Description of any committee whose role is advisory on specific
aspects of the RPP's research program

o  Arrangements for planning, coordinating, and evaluating the RPP
research projects

o  Procedures for coordinating and supervising the work of individual
investigators

o  Procedures for coordinating specific studies conducted under the
auspices of the RPP

If the applicant plans to involve another corporate entity (e.g.,
research institute, medical school, local government, etc.) in the
functions of the RPP, the following should be included:

o  Description of the nature of the arrangements and lines of
authority

o  Letter(s) of agreement signed by the responsible officer of each
associated organization stating that cooperation, research
facilities, services, or other relevant assistance will be available
on a continuing basis (Submit as an appendix to the application)

o  Appropriate clearances from each associated organization that
state that the proposed research meets that institution's research
review requirements (including Institutional Review Boards
responsible for activities involving human subjects)

Methodology and Statistics Core.  Applicants should describe an
organizational structure to provide on-site expertise in research
design methodology, data-base management, psychometrics (if
instrument development is to be included in the research activities),
and statistical analysis to the investigators of the RPP.

Research Focus and Projects

An RPP will focus, in general, on methodological development,
feasibility studies, and pilot studies in its initial years.  Early
phases of major studies can be supported by the RPP's initial grant.

Research Focus.  The research plan should describe the overarching
research focus for the RPP.  The research plan must specify the
following:

o  The overall research goals and objectives of the RPP

o  The principal area of research to be emphasized

o  The importance and significance of the proposed research

o  The professional disciplines to be included among the research
faculty

o  Plans for coordination among the various research activities and
components of the RPP

Selection of the specific research focus and projects must be
justified in terms of:

o  Their concordance with research areas of interest to NIMH

o  The state of scientific knowledge

o  The feasibility of performing proposed research (e.g.,
availability of measurement instruments, populations to study)

o  Access to the target minority groups or subgroups in sufficient
numbers

o  The potential impact of the research on the mental health of the
minority populations under study

The research plan should describe how the individual research
projects are linked to the central focus of the RPP.  Applicants
should also describe the types of further programmatic steps that
might be taken in future years to build upon early findings.  In
addition, a statement describing relevant, current and planned
research, training, and service grant support that will be available
to the RPP should be included.

Research Projects.  For each individual project to be funded by the
RPP grant, all of the sections of the PHS 398 application are
required, including Specific Aims, Background and Significance,
Progress Report, Research Design and Methods, Inclusion of Women and
Minorities, and Protection of Human Subjects.  Applicants must show
how each project is related to the central research focus of the
program project.  In addition, separate budgets and budget
justifications for each project are also required (see below).

General Characteristics of the RPP

The following elements should be specifically addressed in each
application:

o  An RPP must have the following:  (a) strong intellectual
leadership, at the administrative level and in each of the research
projects; (b) the availability of mental health researchers,
especially members of the minority group(s) who have experience in
mental health-relevant research for that minority group; and (c) the
availability of promising junior researchers who are either graduate
students or junior faculty.

o  An RPP must be multidisciplinary, including, as appropriate,
researchers from biological sciences (e.g., neuroscience, molecular
biology, genetics) and the social and behavioral sciences (e.g.,
health economics, sociology, public health, epidemiology, psychiatry,
nursing, social work, psychology, statistics, and demography).

o  An RPP must include a central conceptual focus for the research
and involve strong, collaborative, synergistic relationships among
the researchers, which will form the basis for further research and
research training activities.  All activities must be interrelated to
reflect an integrative RPP rather than a loosely allied network of
researchers.

o  An RPP must have access to the target minority groups or subgroups
in sufficient numbers to accomplish its goals.  This access must be
documented by letters of collaboration from relevant local and
national groups.  Clinically-focused RPPs should provide access to
and appropriate levels of administrative control over sufficient
inpatient and/or outpatient facilities to ensure availability of
patients/clients for specific research projects.

o  An RPP must have an administrative structure headed by the
Principal Investigator/RPP Director that will ensure maximum
effectiveness and efficiency of operation and sound financial
practices, and facilitate coordination among program project
personnel.  The administration will be responsible for program
planning, monitoring, execution, preparation of the budget, control
of expenditures, staff appointments, and space allocation.

o  An RPP must have a Principal Investigator, who serves as Director
of the RPP, providing scientific leadership by devoting no less than
60 percent of his/her time to the program project, including time
spent on program project research.  The intent of this requirement is
to ensure that the RPP and its related research projects comprise the
major activity of the Principal Investigator/RPP Director.  The
Director should be an experienced senior researcher who has made
contributions to mental health research.

o  The RPP Director is responsible for the planning and coordination
of the program project, preparation of the budget, control of
expenditures, staff appointments, and space allocation.  The RPP
Director must have sufficient authority to establish the necessary
administrative and management procedures to operate an efficient
program project.  However, the day-to-day management and the
responsibility for the administrative and operational aspect of the
RPP may be delegated.

o  An important product of the research effort is to develop
scientists who are familiar with the complex techniques and advanced
theories of contemporary mental health-related research.  Funds from
the RPP grant may not be used to support formal research training
activities.  However, each RPP should include a plan for providing
opportunities for research training experiences in disciplines
relevant to mental health.  RPPs may take advantage of National
Research Service Award (NRSA) Fellowships and Institutional Research
Training Grants, Research Scientist Development Awards for support of
appropriate developing scientists, and Supplements for
Underrepresented Minorities in Biomedical and Behavioral Research.
The RPP Director is encouraged to contact NIMH program staff
regarding application for these support mechanisms.

o  An RPP should establish, when appropriate to the central focus of
the research, a collaborative relationship with public facilities
where severely mentally ill patients are cared for on both inpatient
and outpatient basis (e.g., State hospitals, community mental health
centers, or ambulatory programs).

Since establishment of a new program project requires considerable
effort to form administrative, scientific, and community linkages
within the team of collaborating investigators and their projects,
the initial phase of a program project's life is generally given
close scrutiny by NIMH review and monitoring processes.

The RPP will be required to submit detailed annual progress reports,
including substantive information about research results to date,
status of ongoing research, research plans for the next year, and any
modification in long-term research plans.  Presentation in scientific
meetings and publication in refereed journals should be included.
Also, inventions reporting, financial status reports, final reports,
and other reports are required to be filed in accordance with PHS
policy.

Budget

Budgets for the RPP administrative core, methodological and
statistical core, and individual research projects should be
presented in aggregate and separately and must be fully justified.
In addition, the following need to be reflected in the budgets:

o  The travel budget request should include funds for the Program
Project Director and one other key professional staff member to
attend one annual meeting with other RPP directors and NIMH staff in
the Washington, DC area.

o Information should be presented on cash and in-kind support, if
any, for the RPP by the applicant institution.  In-kind support may
include such items as university- supported faculty and graduate
students who will participate in the program to supplement the core
staff, funding of joint tenure-line appointments for RPP staff,
office space, supplies, and equipment.

Grant funds may be used for:

o  Support for resources essential to the RPP program including
salaries of personnel responsible for the management of the RPP,
including the Program Project Director

o  Support for resources shared across projects through the
coordinating program project, such as equipment and personnel to
provide research design and statistical consultation, data base
management services, reference services, or scientific secretarial
services

o  Expenses clearly related and necessary to conduct research
projects

o  Support for individual projects at the developmental stage, which
can include salaries, supplies, travel, special consultations, and
publication costs

o  Direct costs that can be specifically identified with the project

o  Allowable indirect costs of the institution

o  Only costs required by the research may be requested for research-
related treatment, rehabilitation, or prevention services and
programs

These costs must be justified in terms of research objectives,
methods, and designs that promise to yield generalizable knowledge
and/or make a significant contribution to theoretical concepts.

Grant funds may not be used for establishing, adding a component to,
or operating a treatment, rehabilitation, or prevention/intervention
service program or for formal research training activities.

The RPP grant is neither expected nor intended to cover all of the
costs of a successful program project.  NIMH expects and encourages
the institution and personnel attracted to such program projects to
actively compete for and seek additional funding.

INCLUSION OF WOMEN AND MINORITIES IN RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN
SUBJECTS

It is the policy of the NIH that women and members of minority groups
and their subpopulations must be included in all NIH supported
biomedical and behavioral research projects involving human subjects,
unless a clear and compelling rationale and justification is provided
that inclusion is inappropriate with respect to the health of the
subjects or the purpose of the research.  This new policy results
from the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 (Section 492B of Public Law
103-43) and supersedes and strengthens the previous policies
(Concerning the Inclusion of Women in Study Populations, and
Concerning the Inclusion of Minorities in Study Populations), which
have been in effect since 1990. The new policy contains some
provisions that are substantially different from the 1990 policies.

All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should
read the "NIH Guidelines For Inclusion of Women and Minorities as
Subjects in Clinical Research," which have been published in the
Federal Register of March 28, 1994 (FR 59 14508-14513) and reprinted
in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, Volume 23, Number 11,
March 18, 1994.

Investigators also may obtain copies of the policy from the program
staff listed under INQUIRIES.  Program staff may also provide
additional relevant information concerning the policy.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Applications are to be submitted on the grant application form PHS
398 (rev. 5/95) and, if assigned to the NIMH, will be accepted on a
once a year receipt date of June 1.  Application kits are available
at most institutional offices of sponsored research and may be
obtained from the Office of Grants Information, Division of Research
Grants, National Institutes of Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room
3032 - MSC 7762, Bethesda, MD 20892-7710, telephone 301/710-0267,
Email: [email protected]. The title and number of the program
announcement must be typed in Section 2 on the face page of the
application.

Applications for an RPP grant must include: (1) an overall
organizational plan; (2) an overarching research plan; (3) detailed
plans for the research projects; and (4) letters of collaboration
from relevant local and national groups assuring access to target
minority groups.  For purposes of the page limitations of sections 1
through 4 of PHS 398 form, the RPP organizational plan (including the
administrative core and the methodology and statistics core) and the
overarching research plan should be considered one component with a
25-page limit.  A maximum of 10 additional pages may be used to
describe each research project that the program project will
undertake.

The completed original application and five legible copies must be
sent or delivered to:

DIVISION OF RESEARCH GRANTS
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
6701 ROCKLEDGE DRIVE, ROOM 1040 - MSC 7710
BETHESDA, MD  20892-7710
BETHESDA, MD  20817 (for courier/overnight service)

REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS

Applications will be assigned on the basis of established PHS
referral guidelines.  Applications that are complete will be
evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate peer
review group convened in accordance with the standard NIH peer review
procedures.  As part of the initial merit review, all applications
will receive a written critique and undergo a process in which only
those applications deemed to have the highest scientific merit,
generally the top half of applications under review, will be
discussed, assigned a priority score, and receive a second level
review by the appropriate national advisory council or board.

Review Criteria

o  scientific, technical, or medical significance and originality of
proposed research;

o  integration of research projects and adherence to a central
research theme;

o  appropriateness and adequacy of the experimental approach and
methodology proposed to carry out the research;

o  qualifications and research experience of the Principal
Investigator and staff, particularly, but not exclusively, in the
area of the proposed research;

o  availability of the resources necessary to perform the research;

o  appropriateness of the proposed budget and duration in relation to
the proposed research;

o  adequacy of plans to include both genders and minorities and their
subgroups as appropriate for the scientific goals of the research.
Plans for the recruitment and retention of subjects will also be
evaluated.

The initial review group will also examine the provisions for the
protection of human and animal subjects, the safety of the research
environment, and conformance with the NIH Guidelines for the
Inclusion of Women and Minorities as Subjects in Clinical Research.

A minimum of three subprojects recommended for support by the review
committee is required for a program project to be considered for
funding.

AWARD CRITERIA

Applications will compete for available funds with all other approved
applications.  The following will be considered in making funding
decisions:  Quality of the proposed project as determined by peer
review, availability of funds, and program priority.

INQUIRIES

Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact program staff listed
below before they begin the application process. This contact can
provide the applicant the opportunity to clarify issues and ask
questions.  It will also provide NIH notice that an application under
this program announcement will need review.

Direct inquiries regarding programmatic issues to:

Division of Epidemiology and Services Research

The Division of Epidemiology and Services Research directs, plans,
supports, and conducts programs of research, research demonstrations,
research training, and resource development in prevention, clinical
services and service systems research, epidemiology, psychopathology,
assessment, classification, violence and traumatic stress, law and
mental health, and health and behavior, with special attention to
minority and other populations.

Ann A. Hohmann, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Division of Epidemiology and Services Research
National Institute of Mental Health
5600 Fishers Lane, Room 10C-06
Rockville, MD  20857
Telephone:  (301) 443-3364
FAX:  (301) 443-4045
Email:  [email protected]

Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Science

The Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Science directs, plans,
supports, and conducts programs of research, research demonstrations,
research training, and resource development to further understand the
etiology, and pathophysiology of mental disorders with a focus on:
behavioral and social sciences, cognitive sciences, and
neurosciences, including neuroimaging, neurophysiology,
neuropsychopharmacology, and cellular and molecular neurobiology,
with special attention to minority and other special populations.

Henry Khachaturian, Ph.D.
Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Science
National Institute of Mental Health
5600 Fishers Lane, Room 11-103
Rockville, MD  20857
Telephone:  (301) 443-8033
FAX: (301) 443-1731
Email:  [email protected]

Division of Clinical and Treatment Research

The Division of Clinical Research directs, plans, supports, and
conducts programs of research, research demonstrations, research
training, and resource development in psychopathology,
classification, assessment, etiology, genetics, clinical course,
outcome, and treatment of mental disorders with emphasis on
schizophrenic disorders, affective and anxiety disorders, and mental
disorders of children and adolescents, the elderly, minorities, and
other special populations.  The Division also coordinates the
Institute's medications development program.

Matthew Rudorfer, M.D.
Division of Clinical and Treatment Research
National Institute of Mental Health
5600 Fishers Lane, Room 18-105
Rockville, MD  20857
Telephone:  (301) 443-4527
FAX: (301) 443-6000
Email:  [email protected]

Applicants including a focus on the mental health issues for persons
with AIDS, persons who are HIV positive, or persons who are at risk
of contracting the virus are encouraged to contact the following
staff member:

Leonard L. Mitnick, Ph.D.
Office on AIDS
National Institute of Mental Health
5600 Fishers Lane, Room 10-75
Rockville, MD  20857
Telephone:  (301) 443-7281
FAX:  (301) 443-9719
Email:  [email protected]

Applicants including a focus on mental health issues for persons who
live in rural areas are encouraged to contact the following staff
member:

Kathryn M. Magruder, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Office of Rural Mental Health Research
National Institute of Mental Health
5600 Fishers Lane, Room 10-104
Rockville, MD  20857
Telephone:  (301) 443-9001
FAX:  (301) 443-4045
Email:  [email protected]

Direct inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:

Diana S. Trunnell
Grants Management Branch
National Institute of Mental Health
Parklawn Building, Room 7C-08
Bethesda, MD  20857
Telephone:  (301) 443-3065
FAX:  (301) 443-6885
Email:  [email protected]

AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS

This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance No. 93.242.  Awards are made under authorization of the
Public Health Service Act, Title IV, Part A (Public Law 78-410, as
amended by Public Law 99-158, 42 USC 241 and 285) and administered
under PHS grants policies and Federal Regulations 42 CFR 52 and 45
CFR Part 74.  This program is not subject to the intergovernmental
review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health Systems Agency
review. Awards will be administered under PHS grants policy as stated
in the Public Health Service Grants Policy Statement (April 1, 1994).

The PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to
provide a smoke-free workplace and promote the nonuse of all tobacco
products.  In addition, Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of
1994, prohibits smoking in certain facilities (or in some cases, any
portion of a facility) in which regular or routine education,
library, day care, health care or early childhood development
services are provided to children.  This is consistent with the PHS
mission to protect and advance the physical and mental health of the
American people.

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