NIMH POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH TRAINING IN INTERVENTION TRIALS

Release Date:  March 11, 1999

PA NUMBER:  PA-99-072

P.T.

National Institute of Mental Health

Application Receipt Date:  May 10

PURPOSE

The National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH) invites applications for
National Research Service Award (NRSA) (T32) programs of postdoctoral research
training in the design and conduct of clinical intervention trials that focus
on the treatment, rehabilitation and prevention of severe mental disorders. 
The purpose of this program announcement (PA) is to develop a cadre of
clinically trained researchers committed to designing and implementing
treatment studies that utilize a public health model.

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, NIMH Postdoctoral Research
Training In Intervention Trials, is related  to the priority area of mental
health and mental disorders.  Potential applicants may obtain a copy of
"Healthy People 2000" at http://www.crisny.org/health/us/health7.html

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Only domestic, non-profit, private or public institutions may apply for grants
to support research training programs.  Applications will be accepted from
schools of public health, universities and research institutions. The
applicant institution must have a strong research program in the area(s)
proposed for research training and must have the requisite staff and
facilities to carry out the proposed program.  The research training program
director at the institution will be responsible for the selection and
appointment of trainees to receive NRSA support and for the overall direction
of the program.

Positions on NRSA institutional grants may not be used for study leading to
the M.D., D.D.S., or other clinical, health-professional degrees except when
those studies are a part of a formal combined research degree program, such as
the M.D./Ph.D.  Similarly, trainees may not accept NRSA support for studies
which are part of residency training leading to certification in a medical or
dental specialty or subspecialty, except when the residency program credits a
period of full-time, postdoctoral research training toward board certification
and the trainee intends to pursue a research career.

Trainees are required to pursue their research training on a full-time basis,
devoting at least 40 hours per week to the program.  Within the 40 hours per
week training period, research trainees in clinical areas must devote their
time to the proposed research training and must confine clinical duties to
those that are an integral part of the research training experience.

Postdoctoral Trainees.  Postdoctoral trainees must have received, as of the
beginning date of the NRSA appointment, a Ph.D., M.D. or comparable doctoral
degree from an accredited domestic or foreign institution.  Eligible doctoral
degrees include, but are not limited to, the following:  D.D.S., D.M.D., D.O.,
D.V.M., O.D., D.P.M., Sc.D., Eng.D., Dr. P.H., D.N.Sc., D. Pharm., D.S.W., and
Psy.D. Documentation by an authorized official of the degree-granting
institution certifying all degree requirements have been met prior to the
beginning date of training is acceptable.

The trainees appointed under this training program must hold a clinical 
doctoral degree (e.g., M.D., D.D.S., Ph.D. in a clinical discipline, or
comparable doctoral degree) from an accredited domestic or foreign 
institution and have completed postgraduate clinical training with special
emphasis in one or more areas relevant to the treatment of mental disorders. 
This would include, but not be limited to, the clinical disciplines of
psychiatry, psychology, neurology, radiology, rehabilitative medicine,
pharmacy and nursing.

Citizenship.  To be appointed to a training position supported by an NRSA
research training grant, an individual must be a citizen or noncitizen 
national of the United States or must have been lawfully admitted for
permanent residence (i.e., in possession of a currently valid Alien
Registration Receipt Card I-551, or must be in possession of other legal
verification of such status).  Noncitizen nationals are generally persons born
in outlying possessions of the United States (e.g., American Samoa and Swains
Island).  Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible.

MECHANISM OF SUPPORT

The support mechanism for grants made in response to this PA will be the NIH
Institutional National Research Service Award (NRSA) (T32), often referred to
as the institutional training grant.  The provisions of this mechanism are
detailed in the NIH-wide announcement for NRSA Institutional Research Training
Grants (T32), published in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, May 16,
1997 and available at:
(https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not97-007.html) and
apply to this initiative, except as noted in this PA.  The annual single
receipt date for this PA is May 10, and only postdoctoral level training is
supported under this PA.

Institutional NRSA research training grants may be made for periods up to 5
years and are renewable.  Awards within an approved competitive segment are
normally made in 12-month increments with support for additional years based
on satisfactory progress and the continued availability of funds.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

Background

The need to increase the number of outstanding clinical investigators in the
United States capable of transferring scientific knowledge from the laboratory
to the clinic has been underscored by several National Institutes  of Health
(NIH) advisory groups and in recent reports from the Institute of Medicine and
the National Research Council.  The lack of adequate numbers of clinically
trained researchers who can design, conduct, and interpret research findings
from large scale, public health model treatment intervention trials for mental
disorders, is the rate limiting factor in developing a national trials network
which can respond rapidly to new knowledge emerging from basic research on the
human brain.  This PA is one of several NIMH planned initiatives to address
this need.

The objective of this program is to train clinical investigators in the basic
development, conduct and interpretation of intervention trials research in
order that they may function effectively as members of clinical trials teams/
networks. It is anticipated that a high percentage of trainees will be 
encouraged to pursue further specialized training in mental health treatment
interventions research via individual research career development grants (K
mechanisms) and eventually develop the experience and expertise necessary to
direct single- and multi-center cooperative intervention trials of the
effectiveness of treatments for the mentally ill.

The emphasis of this postdoctoral research training program is on the training
of clinical investigators in the basics of a public health approach to
interventions research.  In a public health model, exclusion criteria are
minimal (and based only on concerns for safety).  Age, gender, and comorbidity
are no longer the basis for exclusion, but rather present important dimensions
to assure sample representativeness and clinical generalizability.  Outcomes
are broadly construed, to include performance, relationships (family,
interpersonal etc.), function, disability, quality of life, morbidity,
mortality, institutionalization, and health care resource use.  Settings are
widely selected from a full range of academic and nonacademic institutions,
specialty and primary care, public and private facilities.  Sample sizes are
sufficiently large as to assure adequate power.  NIMH has adopted a public
health model to accelerate the development and widespread application of
treatments for major mental disorders. Small, elegant, tightly controlled
treatment studies should be seen as the beginning of the intervention research
process and not the end.  Treatment itself is defined broadly, encompassing
the full range of pharmacotherapy, other somatic interventions, psychotherapy
and other psychosocial approaches.  Moreover, this inclusive concept of
intervention studies extends to research on rehabilitative interventions and
preventive interventions, including prevention of relapse and recurrence.

Training programs may be designed to be general or specific. Appropriate
specific foci include: specific disorders (schizophrenia); ages (child,
adolescent, adult, geriatric) or populations (ethnic minorities, women's
health).

The training program will provide each trainee with a minimum of two years of
full-time postdoctoral research training, including didactic instruction,
mentoring, and supervised research experience in the conduct of an
intervention trial or trials. Plans must be presented for each trainee to be
guided by a qualified preceptorial team experienced in the conduct of clinical
trials; a major focus of the plan must be on teaching about and assuring
trainee participation in multi-site trials and community mental health.  Plans
must also be presented for the way in which individual trainee needs and goals
will be developed and implemented. Plans for ongoing program evaluation and
mechanisms to improve course content, mentoring and supervised research
experiences should be included. Trainees may spend up to three months of a 12-
month appointment in a consortium arrangement at another institution to gain
specific methodological skills provided that there is adequate documentation
of rational, plan, mentoring and evaluation. Training programs designed as
consortia may develop clinical training rotations which exceed the three month
limit, as long as these rotations are clearly described in their plans and
integral to the program.  Such arrangements must be clearly identified in the
application and conform to all trainee requirements stated in the NRSA
Guidelines.

The training program should include, but not be limited to, instruction in the
following areas:  (1) clinical trials design and conduct; (2) multi-site
trials; (3) biostatistics; (4) data management and analysis; (5) epidemiology;
(6) experimental therapeutics; (7) reporting results of controlled clinical
trials; (8) bioethics and the responsible conduct of research, with emphasis
on clinical trials; (9) preparation for individual career development research
grants or independent research grants; (10) the recruitment and retention of
subjects (particularly special populations); (11) patient outcome and quality
of care measures; (12) compliance; (13) factors that affect health, illness
and treatment outcome such as socioeconomic and psychosocial variables;
methods of data collection (e.g., patient recall, interacting with patients);
(14) interpreting data and coming to clear conclusions; (15) the public health
role of patient oriented researchers and the set of responsibilities this
involves (e.g., developing good health research communication skills) and (16)
the use of  biotechnology, broadly defined, in the conduct of clinical trials. 
Trainees should have at least one course/seminar series that develops their
skill in transnational research.  Overall, since the orientation of the
training program is on public health, as part of their training experience,
trainees should be introduced to a full range of academic and nonacademic
treatment settings.

Trainee appointments are normally made in 12-month increments.  No trainee may
be appointed for less than 9 months during the initial period of appointment,
except with the prior approval of the NIH awarding unit or when health-
professional students are appointed to approved, short-term research training
positions.

No individual trainee may receive more than 3 years of aggregate NRSA
postdoctoral level support including any combination of support from
institutional training grants and individual fellowship awards.  Any extension
of the total duration of trainee support requires approval by the Director of
the NIMH.  Requests for extension must be made in writing by the trainee,
endorsed by the Director of the training program and the appropriate
institutional official, and addressed to the Director of the NIMH awarding
component.  The request must include a sound justification for an extension of
the statutory limits on the period of support.

Special Program Considerations

The primary objective of the NRSA program is to prepare qualified individuals
for careers that significantly impact the Nation's research agenda.  Within
the framework of the program's longstanding commitment to excellence and
projected need for investigators in particular areas of research, attention
must be given to recruiting individuals from minority groups underrepresented
nationally in the biomedical and behavioral sciences.  The following groups
have been identified as underrepresented in biomedical and behavioral research
nationally:  African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, Alaskan
Natives, and Pacific Islanders. Use of the term "minority" in this
announcement will refer to these groups.

Other considerations relate to the duration of training and the transition of
trainees to individual support mechanisms.  Studies have shown that the length
of the appointment to a training grant for postdoctoral trainees with health-
professional degrees strongly correlates with subsequent application for and
receipt of independent NIH research support.  Program directors, therefore,
should limit appointments to individuals who are committed to a career in
research and plan to remain on the training grant or in some other type of
research experience for a minimum of 2 years.  It has also been shown that
individuals who have been supported by an individual postdoctoral fellowship
are more likely to subsequently apply for and receive NIH research support
than are individuals who have received support only from a research training
grant.  Therefore, program directors should encourage trainees to apply for
individual postdoctoral fellowships or mentored career development awards (K
awards).  During the review of training grants applications, peer reviewers
will examine the training record to determine the average duration of training
appointments for health-professional postdoctoral trainees and whether there
is a record of transition to individual support mechanisms.

Trainee Reporting Requirements

The institution must submit a completed Statement of Appointment (PHS Form
2271) for each trainee appointed or reappointed to the training grant at the
beginning of the appointment period.  Additionally, a completed Payback
Agreement (PHS Form 6031) must be submitted for each trainee in their first
twelve months of postdoctoral support.  Within 30 days of the end of the total
support period for each trainee, the institution must submit a Termination
Notice (PHS Form  416-7).  Failure to submit the required forms in a timely
manner may result in an expenditure disallowance or a delay in any
continuation funding for the award.

Leave - In general, trainees may receive stipends during periods of vacation
and holidays observed by individuals in comparable training positions at the
grantee institution. For the purpose of these awards, however, the period
between the spring and fall semesters is considered to be an active time of
research and research training and is not considered to be a vacation or
holiday.

Trainees may receive  stipends for up to 15 calendar days of sick leave per
year.  Sick leave may be used for the  medical conditions related to pregnancy
and childbirth pursuant to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (42 USC 2000
e(k)).  Trainees may also receive stipends for up to 30 calendar days of
parental leave per year for the adoption or the birth of a child when those in
comparable training positions at the grantee institution have access to paid
leave for this purpose and the use of  parental leave is approved by the
program director.

A period of terminal leave is not permitted and payment may not be made from
grant funds for leave not taken. Individuals requiring periods of time away
from their research training experience longer than specified here must seek
approval from the NIH awarding component for an unpaid leave of absence.  At
the beginning of a leave of absence, the trainee must submit a Termination
Notice (PHS Form 416-7) and upon return from the leave of absence, the 
trainee must be formally reappointed to the grant by submitting an updated
Statement of Appointment (PHS Form 2271).  Trainees within the first twelve
months of postdoctoral support must also submit a Payback Agreement (PHS Form
6031) upon return from a leave of absence.

Stipends
National Research Service Awards provide funds, in the form of stipends, to
postdoctoral trainees.  A stipend is provided as a subsistence allowance to
help trainees defray living expenses during the research training experience. 
It is not provided as a condition of employment with either the Federal
Government or the awardee institution.  Stipends must be paid to all trainees
at the levels approved by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human
Services.

Postdoctoral Trainees.  The current annual stipend for postdoctoral trainees
is determined by the number of FULL years of relevant postdoctoral experience
at the time of appointment.  Relevant experience may include research
experience (including industrial), teaching, internship, residency, clinical
duties, or other time spent in full-time studies in a health-related field
following the date of the qualifying doctoral degree.  Current postdoctoral
stipend levels effective for FY99 stipends are as follows:

Years of Relevant Experience                   Annual Amount
less than  1                                     $26,256
greater than or equal to 1 but less than 2        27,720
greater than or equal to 2 but less than 3        32,700
greater than or equal to 3 but less than 4        34,368
greater than or equal to 4 but less than 5        36,036
greater than or equal to 5 but less than 6        37,680
greater than or equal to 6 but less than 7        39,348
greater than or equal to 7                        41,268

No departure from the established stipend schedule may be negotiated by the
institution with the trainee.  The stipend for each additional full year of
stipend support is the next level in the stipend structure and does not change
in the middle of an appointment.  The grantee institution is allowed to
provide funds to an individual in addition to the stipends paid by the NIH. 
Such additional amounts may be either in the form of augmented stipends
(supplementation) or in the form of compensation, such as salary or tuition
remission for services such as teaching or serving as a laboratory assistant,
provided the following conditions are met:

Stipend Supplementation.  Supplementation or additional support to offset the
cost of living may be provided by the grantee institution.  Supplementation
does not require any additional effort from the trainee.  Federal funds may
not be used for supplementation unless specifically authorized under the terms
of both the program from which such supplemental funds are to be received and
the program whose funds are to be supplemented.  Under no circumstances may
PHS funds be used for supplementation.

Compensation.  An institution may provide additional funds to a trainee in the
form of compensation (as salary and/or tuition remission) for services such as
teaching or serving as a research assistant.  A trainee may receive
compensation for services as a research assistant or in some other position on
a Federal research grant, including an NIH research grant.  However,
compensated services should occur on a limited, part-time basis apart from the
normal research training activities, which require a minimum of 40 hours per
week. In addition, compensation may not be paid from a research grant
supporting research that is part of the research training experience.

Under no circumstances may the conditions of stipend supplementation or the
services provided for compensation interfere with, detract from, or prolong
the trainee's approved NRSA training program.  Refer to the NRSA Guidelines
for additional information on compensation.

Educational Loans or GI Bill.  An individual may make use of Federal
educational loan funds and assistance under the Veterans Readjustment Benefits
Act (GI Bill).  Such funds are not considered supplementation or compensation.

Concurrent Awards.  An NRSA may not be held concurrently with another
federally sponsored fellowship or similar Federal award that provides a
stipend or otherwise duplicates provisions of the NRSA.

Tax Liability
Internal Revenue Code Section 117 applies to the tax treatment of all
scholarships and fellowships.  Under that section, non-degree candidates are
required to report as gross income all stipends and any monies paid on their
behalf for course tuition and fees required for attendance.  Degree 
candidates may exclude from gross income (for tax purposes) any amount used
for tuition and related expenses such as fees, books, supplies, and equipment
required for courses of instruction at a qualified educational organization.
The taxability of stipends, however, in no way alters the relationship between
NRSA trainees and institutions.  NRSA stipends are not considered salaries. 
In addition, trainees supported under the NRSA are not considered to be in an
employee-employer relationship with the NIH or the awardee institution.

It must be emphasized that the interpretation and implementation of the tax
laws are the domain of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the courts.  PHS
takes no position on what the status may be for a particular taxpayer, and it
does not have the authority to dispense tax advice.  Individuals should
consult their local IRS office about the applicability of the law to their
situation and for information on their tax obligations.

Tuition, Fees, and Health Insurance
Tuition, for purposes of NRSA, is defined as the cumulative amount of tuition,
all fees, and self-only medical insurance, and are allowable trainee costs
only if such charges are required of all individuals in a similar training
status at the institution, regardless of  their source of support.  Family
medical insurance coverage is not an appropriate charge to the NRSA research
training grant.  Tuition at the postdoctoral level is limited to that required
for specific courses in support of the approved research training program.  On
an annual basis, for each trainee, the training grant will cover 100 percent
of the first $2,000 of the combined cost of tuition, fees, and self-only
health insurance and 60 percent of any amount above $2,000.  Institutions are
instructed to request the full amount of these costs in competing 
applications.  Noncompeting awards will reimburse tuition, fees, and health
insurance costs in the amount paid in the previous award year, unless there is
a change in the scope of the award or the number of  trainees to be 
supported.

Other Trainee Costs

Trainee travel, including attendance at scientific meetings that the
institution determines to be necessary to the individual's research training,
is an allowable trainee expense.  In addition, support for travel to a
research training experience away from the institution may be permitted. 
Research training experiences away from the parent institution must be
justified considering the type of opportunities for training available, how
these opportunities differ from those offered at the parent institution, and
the relationship of the proposed experience to the trainee's career stage and
goals.  This type of research training requires prior approval from the NIH.
Letters requesting such training may be submitted to the NIH awarding
component at any time during the award period.

Institutional costs of up to $2,500 a year per postdoctoral trainee may be
requested to defray the costs of other research training related expenses,
such as staff salaries,  consultant costs, equipment, research supplies, and
staff travel.

A facilities and administration allowance (indirect cost allowance) based on 8
percent of total allowable direct costs (this excludes amounts for tuition,
fees, health insurance, and equipment) may be requested.  Applications from
State and local government agencies may request full indirect cost 
reimbursement (see NIH Grants Policy Statement).

Payback Provisions's specified in the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993, NRSA
recipients incur a service payback obligation only during their first 12
months of postdoctoral support.  Additionally, the NIH Revitalization Act of
1993 specifies that the second and subsequent years of postdoctoral NRSA
training will serve to pay back a postdoctoral service payback obligation. 
Accordingly, the following guidelines apply:

o  Postdoctoral trainees in the first 12 months of postdoctoral NRSA support
must sign the payback agreement form (PHS form 6031) and will incur a period
of service payback obligation equal to the period of support.

o  Postdoctoral trainees in the 13th and subsequent months of NRSA post-
doctoral support are not required to sign the payback agreement form and will
not incur a service payback obligation.

o  The 13th and subsequent months of postdoctoral NRSA support are considered
acceptable payback service for prior postdoctoral support.
Individuals who continue under that award for 2 years have fulfilled their
obligation by the end of the second year.  Service payback obligations can
also be paid back by conducting health-related research or teaching averaging
more than 20 hours per week of a full work year after terminating NRSA
support.

o  Recipients must begin to undertake obligated service on a continuous basis
within two years of NRSA support termination.  The period for undertaking
payback service may be delayed for such reasons as temporary disability,
completion of residency requirements, or completion of the requirements for a
graduate degree.  Requests for an extension must be made in writing to the
awarding component specifying the need for additional time and the length of
the required extension.

o  Recipients of NRSA support are responsible for informing the NIH awarding
component of changes in status or address.

o  For individuals who fail to fulfill their obligation through service, the
United States is entitled to recover the total amount of NRSA funds paid to
the individual for the obligated period plus interest at a rate determined by
the Secretary of the Treasury.  Financial payback must be completed within 3
years beginning on the date the United States becomes entitled to recover such
amount.

o  Under certain conditions, the Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services (or those delegated this authority) may extend the period for
starting service or repayment, permit breaks in service, or in rare cases in
which service or financial repayment would constitute an extreme hardship, the
approving official may waive or suspend the payback obligation of an
individual.

o  Officials at the awardee institution have the responsibility of explaining
the terms of the payback requirements to all prospective training candidates
before appointment to the training grant.  Additionally, all trainees
recruited into the training program should be provided with information
related to the career options available to individuals who complete the
program and whether the types of positions available are consistent with the
nature of the training provided and, where applicable, whether those positions
are likely to satisfy any outstanding service payback obligation.

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 policy results from the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993
(Section 492B of Public Law 103-43).

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 in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, Vol. 23,
No. 11, March 18, 1994 available on the web at the following URL address: 
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not94-100.html

INCLUSION OF CHILDREN AS PARTICIPANTS IN RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN SUBJECTS

It is the policy of NIH that children (i.e., individuals under that the age of
21) must be included in all human subjects research, conducted or supported by
the NIH, unless there are scientific and ethical reasons not to include them. 
This policy applies to all initial (Type 1) applications submitted for receipt
dates after October 1, 1998.

All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should read the
"NIH Policy and Guidelines on the Inclusion of Children as Participants in
Research Involving Human Subjects" that was published in the NIH guide for
Grants and Contracts, March 6, 1998, and is available at the following URL
address:  http://www.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not98-024.html.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

The research grant application form PHS 398 (rev. 4/98) is to be used in
applying for these grants.  It contains special instructions for Institutional
National Research Service Awards (T32).  Applications kits are available at
most institutional offices of sponsored research and may be obtained from the
Division of Extramural Outreach and Information Resources, National Institutes
of Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, MSC 7910, Bethesda, MD 20892-7910, telephone
(301) 710-0267, Email: GrantsInfo@nih.gov.  The application is also available
at http://www.nih.gov/grants/forms.htm

Applicants must observe the 25-page limit on the narrative section.
Applicants may request up to five years of support through the T32 mechanism.
The applicant should justify the number of full-time postdoctoral training 
positions requested.  Predoctoral and Short-term research training positions
may not be  requested through this PA.

The title and number of this PA must be typed in Section 2 on the face page of
the application.

The completed original application and four legible copies must be sent or
delivered by May 10 of each year to:

CENTER FOR SCIENTIFIC REVIEW
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
6701 ROCKLEDGE DRIVE, ROOM 1040 - MSC 7710
BETHESDA, MD  20892-7710
BETHESDA, MD  20817 (for express/courier service)

REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS

Applications that are complete and responsive to this PA will be evaluated for
scientific and technical merit by an appropriate peer review group convened by
the NIMH in accordance with NIH peer review procedures and criteria for T32
applications.  All applications judged to be competitive during the initial
merit review will be discussed, assigned a priority score and receive a second
level review by the National Institute of Mental Health Advisory Council.

The applicant must have access to a training environment with ongoing multi-
institutional clinical trials of the efficacy of therapy.  Ideally, the
applicant organization serves as a coordinating center which provides the
clinical trials with ongoing biostatistical, epidemiologic and research design
expertise.  The review criteria for applications received in response to this
PA are similar to those for unsolicited T32 applications.  Specifically, these
are:

Past research training record in terms of the success of former trainees in
obtaining individual research awards and career awards for further
development;

Past research training record of both the program, if applicable, and the
designated preceptors, as determined by the success of former trainees in
establishing independent and productive research careers in the design and
conduct of clinical trials;

Commitment to the objectives, design and direction of a research training
program responsive to this PA;

Caliber of preceptors as investigators with expertise in biostatistics,
epidemiology, and clinical trials, including successful competition for
research support;

The training environment, including access to ongoing multi-institutional
clinical trials of treatment, the institutional commitment, the quality of the
facilities, the availability of appropriate didactic courses, and the
availability of research support; and

Recruitment and selection plans for trainees, and the availability of eligible
candidates.

All applications for institutional NRSA research training must include a
specific plan to recruit and retain underrepresented minorities in the
training program.  If an applications is received without a plan, the
application will be considered incomplete and will be returned.

In addition adequacy of plans to include genders, children and adolescents, 
and their subgroups as appropriate for the scientific goals of the research,
or justification for their exclusion.  Plans for the recruitment and retention
of subjects will also be evaluated.

Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research:  Every predoctoral and
postdoctoral NRSA trainee supported by an institutional research training
grant must receive instruction in the responsible conduct of research.  (For
more information on this provision, see the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts, Volume 21, Number 43, November 27, 1992.)

Applications must include a description of a program to provide formal or
informal instruction in scientific integrity or the responsible conduct of
research.  Applications without plans for instruction in the responsible
conduct of research will be considered incomplete and may be returned to the
applicant without review.

o  Although the NIH does not establish specific curricula or formal
requirements, all programs are encouraged strongly 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.  Within the context of training in scientific
integrity it is also beneficial to discuss the mutual responsibilities of the
institution and the graduate students or postdoctorates appointed to the
program.

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.

o  The rationale for the proposed plan of instruction must be provided.

o  Program 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 continuation and 
noncompeting applications.

The NIH encourages institutions to provide instruction in the responsible
conduct of research to all graduate students and postdoctorates in a training
program or department, regardless of the source of support.

AWARD CRITERIA

The NIMH anticipates awarding up to 5 training grants in response to this PA. 
Applications for this program will compete for available funds with other T32
applications received and reviewed by the NIMH.  The following will be
considered making funding decisions:

o Responsiveness to the purpose of this announcement

o Quality of the proposed training program, as determined by peer review

o Availability of funds

INQUIRIES

Consultation with NIMH staff is strongly encouraged, especially during the
planning phase of the applications process, in order to ensure that the
application is responsive to the scientific mission and the research training
goals of the NIMH.  The staff person listed below is responsible for the NIMH
extramural research training and career development program covered by this PA
and can respond to inquiries concerning programmatic issues:

Enid Light, Ph.D. (adult and geriatric)
National Institute of Mental Health
6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 7160 MSC 9635
Bethesda, MD  20892-9635
Telephone: (301) 443-3599
FAX: (301) 594-6784
Email: elight@mail.nih.gov

Benedetto Vitiello, M.D. (child and adolescent)
National Institute of Mental Health
6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 7149 MSC 9633
Bethesda, MD  20892-9633
Telephone:  (301) 443-4283
FAX:  (301) 443-4045
Email:  bvitiell@mail.nih.gov

Direct inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:

Diana S. Trunnell
Grants Management Branch
National Institute of Mental Health
6001  Executive Boulevard, Room 6115 MSC 9605
Bethesda, MD  20892-9635
Telephone: (301) 443-2805
FAX:  (301) 443-6885
Email:  Diana Trunnell@nih.gov

AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS

This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No.
93.282.  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 66 and 45 CFR Part 74.  This program is not subject to the
intergovernmental review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health
Systems Agency review.

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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Research (OER)
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Bethesda, Maryland 20892
  Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) - Home Page Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS)
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