EXPIRED
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
U24 Resource-Related Research Projects Cooperative Agreements
June 03, 2024 - This RFA has been reissued as RFA-AT-24-009.
March 19, 2024 - Notice of Intent to Publish a Funding Opportunity Announcement for REsearch Across Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions (REACH) Virtual Resource Centers (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed). See Notice NOT-AT-24-037
NOT-AT-22-033 -Notice of Information: NCCIH Teaming Activity for Virtual Resource Centers for Research Across Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions (REACH) RFA-AT-23-007 (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOT-AT-22-029 - Notice of Need to Expire and Reissue RFA-AT-23-004 Research Across Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions (REACH) Virtual Resource Centers (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) to Correct Review Criteria
NOT-OD-22-190 - Adjustments to NIH and AHRQ Grant Application Due Dates Between September 22 and September 30, 2022
This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) invites applications for REsearch Across Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions (REACH) virtual resource centers. REACH virtual resource centers will foster institutional partnerships and provide resources to support research activities and research training for faculty who work at accredited complementary and integrative health clinical institutions, such as: Schools of acupuncture, chiropractic, osteopathy, naturopathy, physical therapy, and music and art therapy. The REACH virtual resource centers will provide a variety of services and resources including, but not limited to Administrative Support, Research Support, Grantsmanship, Mentoring and Training, and Team Building to support clinician scientists located at complementary and integrative health clinical institutions to form multi and interdisciplinary research teams and pursue externally funded research aligned with NCCIH Strategic Priorities for symptom management. REACH centers should focus on resources to support investigators pursuing clinical research (e.g., observational, epidemiological, mechanistic clinical research, mixed methods, feasibility studies, etc). It is expected that REACH virtual resource centers will (1) improve the quality and quantity of federal research grant applications submitted by clinician scientist faculty at complementary and integrative health clinical institutions; (2) aid the formation of multi and interdisciplinary research partnerships across partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions; (3) help to enhance the research environment at complementary and integrative health clinical institutions; and (4) support a pipeline for clinician scientists trained in complementary and integrative health practices to pursue research careers at clinical institutions.
October 10, 2022
Application Due Dates | Review and Award Cycles | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
New | Renewal / Resubmission / Revision (as allowed) | AIDS | Scientific Merit Review | Advisory Council Review | Earliest Start Date |
November 10, 2022 | Not Applicable | November 10, 2022 | March 2023 | May 2023 | July 2023 |
All applications are due by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization.
Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.
Not Applicable
It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the Research (R) Instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, except where instructed to do otherwise (in this FOA or in a Notice from NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts ).
Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the FOA) is required and strictly enforced. Applicants must read and follow all application instructions in the Application Guide as well as any program-specific instructions noted in Section IV. When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions.
Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.
Background
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) recognizes a compelling need to support the development of clinician scientists trained in complementary and integrative health practices to pursue clinically informed research careers. Academic institutions training health care practitioners in the use of complementary approaches (i.e. complementary and integrative health clinical institutions) often lack key resources to fully support clinician scientist research careers of their faculty. The REACH Virtual Resource Centers are intended to fill that gap by fostering partnerships with accredited, academic institutions providing clinical degrees in complementary and integrative professions and by providing a wide array of research and training resources to support clinician scientist faculty at accredited complementary and integrative health clinical institutions, such as: schools of acupuncture, chiropractic, osteopathy, naturopathy, physical therapy, music and art therapy.
This initiative aligns with NCCIH Strategic Priorities for workforce development and with recommendations of the NCCIH Working Group Report on Clinician-Scientist Workforce Development, specifically the following recommendations:
NCCIH currently invests in several individual-level efforts to support complementary health practitioner clinician scientists, including administrative supplements for individual practitioners to gain a research experience on a funded grant (NOT-AT-22-010), supplemental slots on funded T32 programs to support a practitioner at the pre- or post-doctoral level pursue research training (NOT-AT-21-014), and supplemental slots on funded KL2 programs to support complementary health practitioner clinician scientists at the early career level (NOT-AT-20-010). This FOA will support institutional level partnerships and provide resources for clinician-scientist faculty located at complementary and integrative health clinical institutions to pursue research careers.
Objectives
The REACH virtual resource centers will be scientific hubs that provide resources to virtually support the research environment and provide resources for faculty at partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions to pursue a research career. It is expected that the REACH Virtual Resource Centers program will lead to the following outcomes:
Scope
The REACH Virtual Resource Centers are expected to provide a range of resources for clinician scientist faculty at partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions to support the development, submission, and management of federal research grant applications (e.g., NIH, VA, DoD sources of funding). REACH centers should propose resources that would support investigators pursuing clinical research aligned with NCCIH Strategic Priorities on complementary and integrative health approaches for symptom management.
Approaches may include natural products, such as dietary supplements, plant-based products, and probiotics, as well as approaches with physical and/or psychological therapeutic inputs, (often called mind and body interventions) such as spinal manipulation or mobilization, massage, tai chi, qi gong, yoga, acupuncture, hypnosis, guided imagery, breathing exercises, progressive relaxation, meditation, biofeedback, mindfulness techniques, or music or art therapies; and multicomponent interventions such a naturopathic medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, chiropractic care, or a combination of two or more of the specific complementary health approaches. Proposed resources should support investigators utilizing clinical research designs including observational or epidemiological studies, clinical mechanistic studies, qualitative and mixed methods research, and work to develop and test clinical interventions.
For this FOA, a resource is defined as an activity that provides research and technical capabilities and expertise to researchers and is available to faculty located at a partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institution. Plans for overall financial support of the resource can include fees for service if they are well justified.
Overall, REACH virtual resource centers should provide a scientific hub that virtually supports clinician scientist faculty at partnering complementary and integrative health institutions to expand their research skills, develop collaborative interdisciplinary research teams that may span multiple institutions, and to develop and submit competitive NIH research grant proposals. The REACH center resources should also help support the preparation, submission, management and execution of successfully funded grant proposals. Applicants may consider proposing resources in the following categories, but do not need to provide resources in all categories:
Applicants for the REACH virtual resource centers should provide a strong rationale for the resources they propose based on the needs of their partnering clinical institutions and should demonstrate their ability to provide expertise for the proposed resources. Administrative and research support costs that are directly charged should be integral to the project and not costs that are also recovered as indirect costs.
The REACH center should propose specific milestones and metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed resources, such as tracking outreach efforts, engagement, training, mentoring, team building, and grant applications. Funded REACH Centers will be evaluated based on NCCIH approved milestones and metrics, which must include goals for the number of NIH grant applications submitted, scored, and funded to faculty located at the partnering integrative health clinical institutions.
Partnerships with Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions
The proposed REACH Center should demonstrate their ability to partner with accredited, U.S. domestic complementary and integrative health clinical institutions, such as: Schools of acupuncture, chiropractic, osteopathy, naturopathy, physical therapy, and music and art therapy. Please note that for schools of osteopathy, only those institutions that teach manual manipulation as part of the core curriculum required for all students for a doctoral degree will be considered as an eligible partnering complementary and integrative health institution.
The application must include letters of support from at least three different, accredited, complementary and integrative health clinical institutions who agree to partner with the REACH center to provide access for their faculty to the available resources, as well as plans to outreach and expand partnerships to additional institutions throughout the course of funding. The initial partnerships must demonstrate a breadth of clinical disciplines and cannot all come from a single complementary or integrative health discipline (e.g., letters of support from three schools of acupuncture would not be acceptable, but letters of support from two schools of acupuncture and one school of chiropractic would be acceptable). The letters of support must demonstrate the willingness of the partnering complementary and integrative health institutions to engage with the REACH center to support the research careers of their faculty, and must commit in kind support to provide at least 20% effort protected time for selected faculty to participate in REACH center activities for at least one year.
This RFA requires a Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives (PEDP) as part of the application. As described in the Notice of NIH’s Interest in Diversity (NOT-OD-20-031), research shows that diverse teams working together and capitalizing on innovative ideas and distinct perspectives outperform homogenous teams. Scientists and trainees from diverse backgrounds and life experiences bring different perspectives, creativity, and individual enterprise to address complex scientific problems. REACH center applicants should consider strategies to enhance diverse perspectives from partnering institutions, faculty, staff and students within the PEDP. The PEDP will be assessed as part of the scientific and technical peer review evaluation, as well as considered among programmatic matters with respect to funding decisions.
Responsiveness Criteria:
Applications nonresponsive to terms of this RFA will not be reviewed.
Technical Assistance Webinar
NCCIH will provide a technical assistance webinar for potential applicants and institutional partners for REACH Virtual Resource Centers on Wednesday, September 21, 2022 from 2-3pm ET. Please register to attend the webinar at https://nih.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_eHIplM_tQ4qFoH8y_CffhQ. Attending the technical assistance webinar is encouraged for all potential applicants, but is not required for submission of an application.
See Section VIII. Other Information for award authorities and regulations.
Cooperative Agreement: A support mechanism used when there will be substantial Federal scientific or programmatic involvement. Substantial involvement means that, after award, NIH scientific or program staff will assist, guide, coordinate, or participate in project activities. See Section VI.2 for additional information about the substantial involvement for this FOA.
The OER Glossary and the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide provide details on these application types. Only those application types listed here are allowed for this FOA.
Not Allowed: Only accepting applications that do not propose clinical trials.
The number of awards is contingent upon NIH appropriations and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications.
NCCIH intends to commit $2.5 million total costs in FY2023 to support up to two awards.
Application budgets may not exceed $750,000 per year in direct costs and should reflect the actual needs of the proposed project.
The scope of the proposed project should determine the project period. The maximum project period is 5 years.
NIH grants policies as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made from this FOA.
1. Eligible Applicants
Higher Education Institutions
The following types of Higher Education Institutions are always encouraged to apply for NIH support as Public or Private Institutions of Higher Education:
Nonprofits Other Than Institutions of Higher Education
For-Profit Organizations
Local Governments
Federal Governments
Other
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are not eligible to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are not eligible to apply.
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.
Applicant Organizations
Applicant organizations must complete and maintain the following registrations as described in the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide to be eligible to apply for or receive an award. All registrations must be completed prior to the application being submitted. Registration can take 6 weeks or more, so applicants should begin the registration process as soon as possible. The NIH Policy on Late Submission of Grant Applications states that failure to complete registrations in advance of a due date is not a valid reason for a late submission.
Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD(s)/PI(s))
All PD(s)/PI(s) must have an eRA Commons account. PD(s)/PI(s) should work with their organizational officials to either create a new account or to affiliate their existing account with the applicant organization in eRA Commons. If the PD/PI is also the organizational Signing Official, they must have two distinct eRA Commons accounts, one for each role. Obtaining an eRA Commons account can take up to 2 weeks.
Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) (PD(s)/PI(s)) is invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from diverse backgrounds, including underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities, and women are always encouraged to apply for NIH support.
For institutions/organizations proposing multiple PDs/PIs, visit the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy and submission details in the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Component of the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
For the FOA, the Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) must devote at least 2.4 person-months of effort. If multiple PD/PIs are proposed, the combined effort must equal at least 2.4 person-months, and each of the multiple PD/PIs must devote at least 1.2 person-months.
2. Cost Sharing
This FOA does not require cost sharing as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
Applicant organizations may submit more than one application, provided that each application is scientifically distinct.
The NIH will not accept duplicate or highly overlapping applications under review at the same time, per 2.3.7.4 Submission of Resubmission Application. This means that the NIH will not accept:
1. Requesting an Application Package
The application forms package specific to this opportunity must be accessed through ASSIST, Grants.gov Workspace or an institutional system-to-system solution. Links to apply using ASSIST or Grants.gov Workspace are available in Part 1 of this FOA. See your administrative office for instructions if you plan to use an institutional system-to-system solution.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission
It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the Research (R) Instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide except where instructed in this funding opportunity announcement to do otherwise. Conformance to the requirements in the Application Guide is required and strictly enforced. Applications that are out of compliance with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.
Letter of Intent
Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows IC staff to estimate the potential review workload and plan the review.
By the date listed in Part 1. Overview Information, prospective applicants are asked to submit a letter of intent that includes the following information:
The letter of intent should be sent to:
Martina Schmidt, PhD
Telephone: 301-594-3456
Email: [email protected]
Page Limitations
All page limitations described in the SF424 Application Guide and the Table of Page Limits must be followed.
Instructions for Application Submission
The following section supplements the instructions found in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide and should be used for preparing an application to this FOA.
SF424(R&R) Project/Performance Site Locations
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
SF424(R&R) Cover
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
SF424(R&R) Other Project Information
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
Other Attachments: The following attachments must be included in the application:
Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives (PEDP)
In an "Other Attachment" entitled "Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives," all applicants must include a summary of strategies to advance the scientific and technical merit of the proposed project through expanded inclusivity. The PEDP should provide a holistic and integrated view of how enhancing diverse perspectives is viewed and supported throughout the application and can incorporate elements with relevance to any review criteria (significance, investigator(s), innovation, approach, and environment) as appropriate. Where possible, applicant(s) should align their description with these required elements within the research strategy section. The PEDP will vary depending on the scientific aims, expertise required, the environment and performance site(s), as well as how the project aims are structured. The PEDP may be no more than 1-page in length and should include a timeline and milestones for relevant components that will be considered as part of the review. Examples of items that advance inclusivity in research and may be part of the PEDP can include, but are not limited to:
SF424(R&R) Senior/Key Person Profile
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
Key personnel should describe their experience and record of accomplishments in facilitating the development of interdisciplinary collaborations, managing clinical research on complementary and integrative health approaches for symptom management, and providing support for developing federal grant applications. Teams should include personnel with scientific, technical, and administrative expertise.
R&R Budget
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
The PD/PI is required to devote 2.4 person-months to provide overall center guidance and resource management. If multiple PD/PIs are proposed, the combined effort must equal at least 2.4 person-months, and each of the multiple PD/PIs must devote at least 1.2 person-months.
In the budget justification, provide detailed information about support received or anticipated from other entities. This could include additional funding from another government agency, user fees, or institutional support, for example. These costs should not be included in the SF-424 budget pages; only the budget justification. Administrative and research support costs that are being charged as direct costs should be integrical to the project and not also recovered as indirect costs.
When transition to other means of support is feasible for specific resources, the funding requested should align with a transition plan. A reduction in requested support as the project period progresses and the resource transitions to other sources of support is appropriate.
Funds to support pilot projects are not allowed.
PEDP Implementation costs:
R&R Subaward Budget
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
PHS 398 Cover Page Supplement
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
PHS 398 Research Plan
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:
Specific Aims: Describe the overall aims of the resources the REACH center proposes to provide. Include an aim focused on outreach, capacity building and sustainability activities to develop partnerships with additional complementary and integrative health clinical institutions throughout the period of support.
Research Strategy: The application must detail virtual resources that the REACH center will provide to qualified investigators located at partnering accredited complementary and integrative health clinical institutions. Applicants may propose to provide resources in Administrative Support, Research Support, Grantsmanship, Mentoring and Training, and/or Team Building categories, but do not need to cover every category. Applicants must provide strong justification for how the proposed resources will enable the REACH center to meet the overall objectives of the program based on the needs of their initial partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions. The proposed resources should be well designed to support investigators interested in pursuing clinical research on complementary and integrative health approaches and symptom management, including observational or epidemiological studies, clinical mechanistic studies, qualitative and mixed methods research, and/or work to develop and test clinical interventions. The REACH center may propose many different models for supporting NIH grant applications from faculty at partnering institutions, which may include submitting applications as a multiple PD/PI partner when appropriate.
Applicants must demonstrate partnerships with at least three complementary and integrative health clinical institutions representing a breadth of clinical practices. The Research Strategy must provide plans for how the REACH center and the partnering institutions will interact, and how faculty at the partnering institutions will access and use the proposed resources. Applications should also address outreach and must include plans to expand partnerships to additional integrative health clinical institutions over the course of the award.
Applications must describe milestones appropriate for assessing the use and value of proposed resources, as well as the overall productivity of the REACH center including benchmarks for the total number of NIH grant applications submitted, scored and awarded to faculty from the partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions.
Letters of Support: Letters of support from at least three partnering accredited, U.S. domestic complementary and integrative health clinical institutions representing at least two different clinical disciplines are required. Eligible clinical institutions include, but are not limited to Schools of acupuncture, chiropractic, osteopathy, naturopathy, physical therapy, and music and art therapy. For schools of osteopathy, only those institutions that teach manual manipulation as part of the core curriculum required for all students for a doctoral degree will be considered as an eligible partnering complementary and integrative health institution.
The letters of support must demonstrate the willingness of the partnering complementary and integrative health institutions to engage with the REACH center to support the research careers of their faculty, and must commit in kind support to provide at least 20% effort protected time for selected faculty to participate in REACH center activities for at least one year.
Resource Sharing Plan: Individuals are required to comply with the instructions for the Resource Sharing Plans as provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
The following modifications also apply:
Appendix:
Only limited Appendix materials are allowed. Follow all instructions for the Appendix as described in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information
When involving human subjects research, clinical research, and/or NIH-defined clinical trials (and when applicable, clinical trials research experience) follow all instructions for the PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, with the following additional instructions:
If you answered Yes to the question Are Human Subjects Involved? on the R&R Other Project Information form, you must include at least one human subjects study record using the Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form or Delayed Onset Study record.
Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
Delayed Onset Study
Note: Delayed onset does NOT apply to a study that can be described but will not start immediately (i.e., delayed start).All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
PHS Assignment Request Form
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)
See Part 1. Section III.1 for information regarding the requirement for obtaining a unique entity identifier and for completing and maintaining active registrations in System for Award Management (SAM), NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code (if applicable), eRA Commons, and Grants.gov
4. Submission Dates and Times
Part I. Overview Information contains information about Key Dates and times. Applicants are encouraged to submit applications before the due date to ensure they have time to make any application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission. When a submission date falls on a weekend or Federal holiday, the application deadline is automatically extended to the next business day.
Organizations must submit applications to Grants.gov (the online portal to find and apply for grants across all Federal agencies). Applicants must then complete the submission process by tracking the status of the application in the eRA Commons, NIH’s electronic system for grants administration. NIH and Grants.gov systems check the application against many of the application instructions upon submission. Errors must be corrected and a changed/corrected application must be submitted to Grants.gov on or before the application due date and time. If a Changed/Corrected application is submitted after the deadline, the application will be considered late. Applications that miss the due date and time are subjected to the NIH Policy on Late Application Submission.
Applicants are responsible for viewing their application before the due date in the eRA Commons to ensure accurate and successful submission.
Information on the submission process and a definition of on-time submission are provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
5. Intergovernmental Review (E.O. 12372)
This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental review.
6. Funding Restrictions
All NIH awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
Pre-award costs are allowable only as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
7. Other Submission Requirements and Information
Applications must be submitted electronically following the instructions described in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide. Paper applications will not be accepted.
Applicants must complete all required registrations before the application due date. Section III. Eligibility Information contains information about registration.
For assistance with your electronic application or for more information on the electronic submission process, visit How to Apply Application Guide. If you encounter a system issue beyond your control that threatens your ability to complete the submission process on-time, you must follow the Dealing with System Issues guidance. For assistance with application submission, contact the Application Submission Contacts in Section VII.
Important reminders:
All PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile form. Failure to register in the Commons and to include a valid PD/PI Commons ID in the credential field will prevent the successful submission of an electronic application to NIH. See Section III of this FOA for information on registration requirements.
The applicant organization must ensure that the unique entity identifier provided on the application is the same identifier used in the organization’s profile in the eRA Commons and for the System for Award Management. Additional information may be found in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
See more tips for avoiding common errors.
Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness and compliance with application instructions by the Center for Scientific Review and responsiveness by NCCIH. Applications that are incomplete, non-compliant and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed.
Applications must include milestones and a timeline. Applications that fail to include milestones and a timeline will be considered incomplete and will be withdrawn. Applications must include a PEDP submitted as Other Project Information as an attachment. Applications that fail to include a PEDP will be considered incomplete and will be withdrawn.
In order to expedite review, applicants are requested to notify the NCCIH Referral Office by email at [email protected] when the application has been submitted. Please include the FOA number and title, PD/PI name, and title of the application.
Post Submission Materials
Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in the policy. Any instructions provided here are in addition to the instructions in the policy.
1. Criteria
Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process. Applications submitted to the NIH in support of the NIH mission are evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the NIH peer review system.
Reviewers will provide an overall impact score to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved, in consideration of the following review criteria and additional review criteria (as applicable for the project proposed).
Reviewers will consider each of the review criteria below in the determination of scientific merit and give a separate score for each. An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact. For example, a project that by its nature is not innovative may be essential to advance a field.
Does the proposed Center address the needs of the research resource that it will administer? Is the scope of activities proposed for the Center appropriate to meet those needs? Will successful completion of the aims bring unique advantages or capabilities to the research resource?
For this FOA:
Will the Resource Center support progress in the field?
Will the Resource Center serve the partnering complementary and integrative health institutions?
Is it likely that the Resource Center activities will support the overall objectives of the REACH program to (1) improve the quality and quantity of grant applications submitted by faculty at complementary and integrative health clinical institutions; (2) aid the formation of multi and interdisciplinary research partnerships across partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions; (3) help to enhance the research environment at complementary and integrative health clinical institutions; and (4) support a pipeline for clinician scientists trained in complementary and integrative health practices to pursue research careers at clinical institutions?
Are the resources well designed to support investigators pursuing clinical research on complementary and integrative health approaches for symptom management?
To what extent do the efforts described in the Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives further the significance of the project.
Are the PD(s)/PI(s) and other personnel well suited to their roles in the Center? Do they have appropriate experience and training, and have they demonstrated experience and an ongoing record of accomplishments in managing clinical research? Do the investigators demonstrate significant experience with coordinating collaborative clinical research? If the Center is multi-PD/PI, do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise and skills; are their leadership approach, governance, plans for conflict resolution, and organizational structure appropriate for the Center? Does the applicant have experience overseeing selection and management of subawards, if needed?
For this FOA:
Are the investigators able to devote adequate effort to the resource activities?
Is a sound plan in place for recruiting and retaining staff with the appropriate skills, knowledge, and experience with providing administrative and research support related to the proposed resources?
Is a sound plan in place for rapidly replacing staff who leave the resource center to minimize service disruptions?
To what extent will the efforts described in the Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives strength and enhance the expertise required for the project?
Does the application propose novel organizational concepts in coordinating the research resource the Center will serve? Are the concepts, strategies, or instrumentation novel to one type of research program or applicable in a broad sense? Is a refinement, improvement, or new application of organizational concepts proposed?
For this FOA:
Are innovative plans presented to ensure virtual access for all proposed resources?
Are innovative approaches to increasing the utility or efficiency of the proposed resources proposed?
To what extent will the efforts described in the Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives meaningfully contribute to innovation?
Are the overall strategy, operational plan, and organizational structure well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the goals of the research resource the Center will serve? Will the investigators promote strategies to ensure a robust and unbiased scientific approach across the resource, as appropriate for the work proposed? Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the resource is in the early stages of operation, does the proposed strategy adequately establish feasibility and manage the risks associated with the activities of the resource? Are an appropriate plan for work-flow and a well-established timeline proposed? Have the investigators presented adequate plans to ensure consideration of relevant biological variables, such as sex, for studies of vertebrate animals or human subjects?
For this FOA:
How well does the application demonstrate partnerships with complementary and integrative health clinical institutions?
How are proposed resources in Administrative Support, Research Support, Grantsmanship, Mentoring and Training, and/or Team Building justified to meet the needs of partnering institutions?
How will faculty at partnering institutions access and use the proposed resources?
Are there clear plans to outreach to additional complementary and integrative health clinical institutions during the period of support?
How feasible and comprehensive is the plan for evaluation of the Resource Center activities?
Does it include both short-term and long-term measures of utility and success, quantifiable measures of intermediate results and success, as well as plans to utilize evaluation results to improve operations?
If applicable, how will an adequate and feasible plan to transition to other sources of support be achieved?
Are the contingency plans to manage unexpected shutdowns of operations and/or loss of personnel well-reasoned and sufficient?
Are the timeline and milestones associated with the Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives well-developed and feasible?
Will the institutional environment in which the Center will operate contribute to the probability of success in facilitating the research program it serves? Are the institutional support, equipment and other physical resources available to the investigators adequate for the Center proposed? Will the Center benefit from unique features of the institutional environment, infrastructure, or personnel? Are resources available within the scientific environment to support electronic information handling?
For this FOA:
Will the environment of the Resource Center provide virtual resources to support the research environment of the partnering institutions?
To what extent will features of the environment described in the Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives (e.g., collaborative arrangements, geographic diversity, institutional support) contribute to the success of the project?
As applicable for the project proposed, reviewers will evaluate the following additional items while determining scientific and technical merit, and in providing an overall impact score, but will not give separate scores for these items.
For research that involves human subjects but does not involve one of the categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR Part 46, the committee will evaluate the justification for involvement of human subjects and the proposed protections from research risk relating to their participation according to the following five review criteria: 1) risk to subjects, 2) adequacy of protection against risks, 3) potential benefits to the subjects and others, 4) importance of the knowledge to be gained, and 5) data and safety monitoring for clinical trials.
For research that involves human subjects and meets the criteria for one or more of the categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR Part 46, the committee will evaluate: 1) the justification for the exemption, 2) human subjects involvement and characteristics, and 3) sources of materials. For additional information on review of the Human Subjects section, please refer to the Guidelines for the Review of Human Subjects.
When the proposed project involves human subjects and/or NIH-defined clinical research, the committee will evaluate the proposed plans for the inclusion (or exclusion) of individuals on the basis of sex/gender, race, and ethnicity, as well as the inclusion (or exclusion) of individuals of all ages (including children and older adults) to determine if it is justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed. For additional information on review of the Inclusion section, please refer to the Guidelines for the Review of Inclusion in Clinical Research.
The committee will evaluate the involvement of live vertebrate animals as part of the scientific assessment according to the following criteria: (1) description of proposed procedures involving animals, including species, strains, ages, sex, and total number to be used; (2) justifications for the use of animals versus alternative models and for the appropriateness of the species proposed; (3) interventions to minimize discomfort, distress, pain and injury; and (4) justification for euthanasia method if NOT consistent with the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals. Reviewers will assess the use of chimpanzees as they would any other application proposing the use of vertebrate animals. For additional information on review of the Vertebrate Animals section, please refer to the Worksheet for Review of the Vertebrate Animal Section.
Reviewers will assess whether materials or procedures proposed are potentially hazardous to research personnel and/or the environment, and if needed, determine whether adequate protection is proposed.
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
Are the proposed milestones feasible, well developed, and quantifiable regarding the specific goals and accomplishments of the Resource Center? Are they appropriate for assessing the ongoing value of the proposed activities? Are appropriate benchmarks for the total number of federal grant applications submitted, scored and awarded to faculty from the partnering complementary and integrative health clinical institutions included?
As applicable for the project proposed, reviewers will consider each of the following items, but will not give scores for these items, and should not consider them in providing an overall impact score.
Reviewers will assess whether the project presents special opportunities for furthering research programs through the use of unusual talent, resources, populations, or environmental conditions that exist in other countries and either are not readily available in the United States or augment existing U.S. resources.
Not applicable.
Reviewers will assess the information provided in this section of the application, including 1) the Select Agent(s) to be used in the proposed research, 2) the registration status of all entities where Select Agent(s) will be used, 3) the procedures that will be used to monitor possession use and transfer of Select Agent(s), and 4) plans for appropriate biosafety, biocontainment, and security of the Select Agent(s).
Reviewers will comment on whether the following Resource Sharing Plans, or the rationale for not sharing the following types of resources, are reasonable: (1) Data Sharing Plan; (2) Sharing Model Organisms; and (3) Genomic Data Sharing Plan (GDS).
For involving key biological and/or chemical resources, reviewers will comment on the brief plans proposed for identifying and ensuring the validity of those resources.
Reviewers will consider whether the budget and the requested period of support are fully justified and reasonable in relation to the proposed research.
2. Review and Selection Process
Applications will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by (an) appropriate Scientific Review Group(s) convened by NCCIH, in accordance with NIH peer review policy and procedures, using the stated review criteria. Assignment to a Scientific Review Group will be shown in the eRA Commons.
As part of the scientific peer review, all applications will receive a written critique.
Applications may undergo a selection process in which only those applications deemed to have the highest scientific and technical merit (generally the top half of applications under review) will be discussed and assigned an overall impact score.
Appeals of initial peer review will not be accepted for applications submitted in response to this FOA.
Applications will be assigned on the basis of established PHS referral guidelines to the appropriate NIH Institute or Center. Applications will compete for available funds with all other recommended applications submitted in response to this FOA. Following initial peer review, recommended applications will receive a second level of review by the appropriate national Advisory Council or Board. The following will be considered in making funding decisions:
3. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates
After the peer review of the application is completed, the PD/PI will be able to access his or her Summary Statement (written critique) via the eRA Commons. Refer to Part 1 for dates for peer review, advisory council review, and earliest start date.
Information regarding the disposition of applications is available in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
1. Award Notices
If the application is under consideration for funding, NIH will request "just-in-time" information from the applicant as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
A formal notification in the form of a Notice of Award (NoA) will be provided to the applicant organization for successful applications. The NoA signed by the grants management officer is the authorizing document and will be sent via email to the recipient's business official.
Recipients must comply with any funding restrictions described in Section IV.6. Funding Restrictions. Selection of an application for award is not an authorization to begin performance. Any costs incurred before receipt of the NoA are at the recipient's risk. These costs may be reimbursed only to the extent considered allowable pre-award costs.
Any application awarded in response to this FOA will be subject to terms and conditions found on the Award Conditions and Information for NIH Grants website. This includes any recent legislation and policy applicable to awards that is highlighted on this website.
Institutional Review Board or Independent Ethics Committee Approval: Recipient institutions must ensure that protocols are reviewed by their IRB or IEC. To help ensure the safety of participants enrolled in NIH-funded studies, the recipient must provide NIH copies of documents related to all major changes in the status of ongoing protocols.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements
All NIH grant and cooperative agreement awards include the NIH Grants Policy Statement as part of the NoA. For these terms of award, see the NIH Grants Policy Statement Part II: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart A: Generaland Part II: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart B: Terms and Conditions for Specific Types of Grants, Recipients, and Activities, including of note, but not limited to:
If a recipient is successful and receives a Notice of Award, in accepting the award, the recipient agrees that any activities under the award are subject to all provisions currently in effect or implemented during the period of the award, other Department regulations and policies in effect at the time of the award, and applicable statutory provisions.
Should the applicant organization successfully compete for an award, recipients of federal financial assistance (FFA) from HHS must administer their programs in compliance with federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age and, in some circumstances, religion, conscience, and sex (including gender identify, sexual orientation, and pregnancy). This includes ensuring programs are accessible to persons with limited English proficiency and persons with disabilities. The HHS Office for Civil Rights provides guidance on complying with civil rights laws enforced by HHS. Please see https://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/for-providers/provider-obligations/index.html and https://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/for-individuals/nondiscrimination/index.html
HHS recognizes that research projects are often limited in scope for many reasons that are nondiscriminatory, such as the principal investigator’s scientific interest, funding limitations, recruitment requirements, and other considerations. Thus, criteria in research protocols that target or exclude certain populations are warranted where nondiscriminatory justifications establish that such criteria are appropriate with respect to the health or safety of the subjects, the scientific study design, or the purpose of the research. For additional guidance regarding how the provisions apply to NIH grant programs, please contact the Scientific/Research Contact that is identified in Section VII under Agency Contacts of this FOA.
Please contact the HHS Office for Civil Rights for more information about obligations and prohibitions under federal civil rights laws at https://www.hhs.gov/ocr/about-us/contact-us/index.html or call 1-800-368-1019 or TDD 1-800-537-7697.
In accordance with the statutory provisions contained in Section 872 of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 110-417), NIH awards will be subject to the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) requirements. FAPIIS requires Federal award making officials to review and consider information about an applicant in the designated integrity and performance system (currently FAPIIS) prior to making an award. An applicant, at its option, may review information in the designated integrity and performance systems accessible through FAPIIS and comment on any information about itself that a Federal agency previously entered and is currently in FAPIIS. The Federal awarding agency will consider any comments by the applicant, in addition to other information in FAPIIS, in making a judgement about the applicant’s integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under Federal awards when completing the review of risk posed by applicants as described in 45 CFR Part 75.205 and 2 CFR Part 200.206 Federal awarding agency review of risk posed by applicants. This provision will apply to all NIH grants and cooperative agreements except fellowships.
The following special terms of award are in addition to, and not in lieu of, otherwise applicable U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) administrative guidelines, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) grant administration regulations at 45 CFR Part 75 and 2 CFR Part 200, and other HHS, PHS, and NIH grant administration policies.
The administrative and funding instrument used for this program will be the cooperative agreement, an "assistance" mechanism (rather than an "acquisition" mechanism), in which substantial NIH programmatic involvement with the recipients is anticipated during the performance of the activities. Under the cooperative agreement, the NIH purpose is to support and stimulate the recipients' activities by involvement in and otherwise working jointly with the recipients in a partnership role; it is not to assume direction, prime responsibility, or a dominant role in the activities. Consistent with this concept, the dominant role and prime responsibility resides with the recipients for the project as a whole, although specific tasks and activities may be shared among the recipients and the NIH as defined below.
The PD(s)/PI(s) will have the primary responsibility for:
Recipients will retain custody of and have primary rights to the data and software developed under these awards, subject to Government rights of access consistent with current DHHS, PHS, and NIH policies.
NIH staff have substantial programmatic involvement that is above and beyond the normal stewardship role in awards, as described below:
Areas of Joint Responsibility include:
All responsibilities are divided between awardees and NIH staff as described above.
Dispute Resolution:
Any disagreements that may arise in scientific or programmatic matters (within the scope of the award) between recipients and the NIH may be brought to Dispute Resolution. A Dispute Resolution Panel composed of three members will be convened. It will have three members: a designee of the Steering Committee chosen without NIH staff voting, one NIH designee, and a third designee with expertise in the relevant area who is chosen by the other two; in the case of individual disagreement, the first member may be chosen by the individual recipient. This special dispute resolution procedure does not alter the recipient's right to appeal an adverse action that is otherwise appealable in accordance with PHS regulation 42 CFR Part 50, Subpart D and DHHS regulation 45 CFR Part 16.
3. Reporting
When multiple years are involved, recipients will be required to submit the Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) annually and financial statements as required in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
A final RPPR, invention statement, and the expenditure data portion of the Federal Financial Report are required for closeout of an award, as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement. NIH FOAs outline intended research goals and objectives. Post award, NIH will review and measure performance based on the details and outcomes that are shared within the RPPR, as described at 45 CFR Part 75.301 and 2 CFR Part 200.301.
The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act), includes a requirement for recipients of Federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under Federal assistance awards issued in FY2011 or later. All recipients of applicable NIH grants and cooperative agreements are required to report to the Federal Subaward Reporting System (FSRS) available at www.fsrs.gov on all subawards over the threshold. See the NIH Grants Policy Statement for additional information on this reporting requirement.
In accordance with the regulatory requirements provided at 45 CFR 75.113 and 2 CFR Part 200.113 and Appendix XII to 45 CFR Part 75 and 2 CFR Part 200, recipients that have currently active Federal grants, cooperative agreements, and procurement contracts from all Federal awarding agencies with a cumulative total value greater than $10,000,000 for any period of time during the period of performance of a Federal award, must report and maintain the currency of information reported in the System for Award Management (SAM) about civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings in connection with the award or performance of a Federal award that reached final disposition within the most recent five-year period. The recipient must also make semiannual disclosures regarding such proceedings. Proceedings information will be made publicly available in the designated integrity and performance system (currently FAPIIS). This is a statutory requirement under section 872 of Public Law 110-417, as amended (41 U.S.C. 2313). As required by section 3010 of Public Law 111-212, all information posted in the designated integrity and performance system on or after April 15, 2011, except past performance reviews required for Federal procurement contracts, will be publicly available. Full reporting requirements and procedures are found in Appendix XII to 45 CFR Part 75 and 2 CFR Part 200 Award Term and Condition for Recipient Integrity and Performance Matters.
We encourage inquiries concerning this funding opportunity and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants.
eRA Service Desk (Questions regarding ASSIST, eRA Commons, application errors and warnings, documenting system problems that threaten submission by the due date, and post-submission issues)
Finding Help Online: http://grants.nih.gov/support/ (preferred method of contact)
Telephone: 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 (Toll Free)
General Grants Information (Questions regarding application instructions, application processes, and NIH grant resources)
Email: [email protected] (preferred method of contact)
Telephone: 301-480-7075
Grants.gov Customer Support (Questions regarding Grants.gov registration and Workspace)
Contact Center Telephone: 800-518-4726
Email: [email protected]
Lanay M. Mudd, Ph.D.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Telephone: 301-594-9346
Email: [email protected]
Martina Schmidt, Ph.D.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Telephone: 301-594-3456
Email: [email protected]
Debbie Chen
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Telephone: 301-594-3788
Email: [email protected]
Recently issued trans-NIH policy notices may affect your application submission. A full list of policy notices published by NIH is provided in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts. All awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
Awards are made under the authorization of Sections 301 and 405 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 241 and 284) and under Federal Regulations 42 CFR Part 52 and 45 CFR Part 75 and 2 CFR Part 200.