EXPIRED
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Office of AIDS Research (OAR)
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)
Sexual and Gender Minority Research Office (SGMRO)
All applications to this funding opportunity announcement should fall within the mission of the Institutes/Centers. The following NIH Offices may co-fund applications assigned to those Institutes/Centers.
Division of Program Coordination, Planning and Strategic Initiatives, Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)
Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR)
Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS)
Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH)
U24 Resource-Related Research Projects Cooperative Agreements
See Notices of Special Interest associated with this funding opportunity
March 28, 2023 - Notice of Early Expiration of NOT-HD-22-043 "Notice of Special Interest ( NOSI ): Implementation Science to Advance Maternal Health and Maternal Health Equity for the IMPROVE initiative". See Notice NOT-HD-23-008
September 22, 2022 - Notice Announcing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for the Maternal Health Centers of Excellence Funding Opportunity Announcements. See Notice NOT-HD-22-048.
September 08, 2022 - Notice of Pre-Application Webinar for the Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence Funding Opportunity Announcements. See Notice NOT-HD-22-044.
NOT-HD-22-022 - Notice of Intent to Publish a Funding Opportunity Announcement for Centers of Excellence in Maternal Health Research
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) seeks applications for the Data Innovation and Coordinating Hub/Resource Center (hereafter referred to as the Innovation Hub ) for the Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence initiative. This FOA runs in parallel with companion FOAs that seek applications for Research Centers of Excellence (RFA-HD-23-035) and an Implementation Science Hub/Resource Center (RFA-HD-23-037).
It is expected that the Data Innovation Hub will provide 1) a coordination infrastructure to foster communication and collaboration for participating Research Centers and the Implementation Science Hub under the Maternal Health Centers of Excellence initiative, 2) Support data collection, facilitate data curation, and ensure high-quality data is shared with Centers of Excellence researchers and submitted to public repositories when appropriate, and 3) provide cutting edge biomedical research informatics and data science expertise to maximize data comparability and facilitate data harmonization. The Data Innovation Hub itself will not generate new experimental data, but rather will serve as a resource, analysis tools, and portal for available analytical and data tools.
November 2, 2022
Application Due Dates | Review and Award Cycles | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
New | Renewal / Resubmission / Revision (as allowed) | AIDS | Scientific Merit Review | Advisory Council Review | Earliest Start Date |
December 05, 2022 | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | April 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.
Purpose
This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) seeks applications for the Data Innovation and Coordinating Hub/Resource Center (hereafter referred to as the Data Innovation Hub ) for the Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence initiative. This FOA runs in parallel with companion FOAs that seek applications for Research Centers of Excellence (RFA-HD-23-035) and an Implementation Science Hub/Resource Center (RFA-HD-23-037). The primary goal is to support the Centers of Excellence and second goal is to facilitate the reuse of data. Annual Centers of Excellence meetings will be held. The annual meeting will foster the initiation and maintenance of collaborative efforts and resource sharing among the Centers. Applicants should budget funds for the PD/PI and one to -two designees to attend an annual meeting in the Bethesda, Maryland / Washington DC area or virtually, if necessary.
This FOA seeks applications from investigators with broad expertise and experience in providing an environment of excellence in clinical and public health informatics and in maximizing data comparability with projects proposed in the Research Centers to facilitate harmonization with existing large-scale research efforts. Investigative teams with diverse areas of expertise are encouraged. Data types or sources relevant to the Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence initiative include patient reported outcomes, electronic health records, claims data, patient registries, vital statistics, healthcare facility organizational data, and national datasets (surveillance, household surveys, US Census, environmental data indexes, etc.). The Data Innovation Hub will support the Research Centers to maximize research efforts and rapidly implement approaches to address the caues of severe maternal morbidity (SMM) and maternal mortality (MM). Whenever possible, applicants should leverage, adopt, or adapt resources from ongoing NIH-supported efforts (e.g., NIH Common Data Elements Repository or the PhenX Toolkit) or other nationally recognized efforts to facilitate comparisons across datasets and/or data integration.
Background
The collaborative Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence FOAs represent one part of the multipronged initiative, Implementing a Maternal health and Pregnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone (IMPROVE), launched by the NIH in response to the rising rates of MM in the U.S. Over the past 25 years, the MM rate has more than doubled in the U.S. and is now higher than any high-income country in the world. Approximately 700 women die each year from conditions related to or associated with pregnancy or childbirth. In addition, severe maternal morbidities affect more than 65,000 women in the U.S. per year. Women experiencing SMM are at increased risk for future adverse health concerns (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, mental health conditions, strokes, and heart disease). High rates of maternal deaths disproportionately affect Black/African American and American Indian/Alaskan Native women. There are also disparities by age, education, socioeconomic status, and geographic region.
One-third of pregnancy-related deaths occur during pregnancy, one-third occur during or in the week after delivery, and one third occur between one week to one year postpartum. Causes of SMM and MM are multifaceted. In the U.S., the leading causes are cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, hemorrhage, infection, hypertensive disorders, and thromboembolism. Significant contributing factors include comorbid conditions (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, immune-mediated diseases, organ-specific diseases, mental illness, and substance use disorders) and social determinants of health, which include structural racism and health care system factors. It is estimated that 60 to 70 percent of maternal deaths in the U.S. are preventable.
Maternal Health Centers of Excellence Structure
As described above, the Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence structure will consist of one Data Innovation and Coordinating Hub/Resource Center, one Implementation Science Hub/Resource Center, and up to seven Research Centers. The Data Innovation and Coordinating Hub, the Implementation Science Hub, and the Research Centers are each integral components of the Centers of Excellence. Success will require close, active cooperation and collaboration to assimilate these elements into a highly effective research structure.
Specific Objectives and Scope of this FOA
It is expected that the Data Innovation Hub will provide 1) a coordination infrastructure to foster communication and collaboration for participating Research Centers and the Implementation Science Hub under the Maternal Health Centers of Excellence initiative, 2) a centralized resource to support data collection, facilitate curation, and ensure high-quality data capture and exploration, and 3) provide cutting edge biomedical research informatics and data science expertise to maximize data comparability and facilitate data harmonization. The Innovation and Data Hub itself will not generate new experimental data, but rather will serve as a resource, analysis tools, and portal for available analytical and data tools and will facilitate sharing of data with the broad research community through submissions to existing data repositories such as the NICHD Data and Specimen Hub (DASH).
Functions of the Data Innovation Hub include but are not limited to:
Key Definitions
The following key definitions apply:
Common Data Elements:Common data elements (CDEs) are a type of health data standard that is commonly used and reused in both clinical and research settings. CDEs provide a way to standardize data collection ensuring that data are collected consistently, and otherwise-avoidable variability is minimized.
Populations that experience health disparities: Populations defined in section 464z-3(d)(1) of the Public Health Service Act, 42 U.S.C. 285t(d)(1) as health disparity populations based on higher overall rates of disease incidence, prevalence, morbidity, mortality, or survival rates in the population as compared to the health status of the general population. Populations that experience maternal health disparities, include but are not limited to, Blacks/African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, underserved rural populations (e.g., living in maternity care deserts), or sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations. Persons with disabilities are also a priority population.
Community organization: A non-Federal, non-academic organization that provides goods, services, support, resources, or advocacy to members of a defined community. Examples include community or faith-based organizations, Tribal health community partners, local businesses, neighborhood associations, labor unions, patient or consumer advocacy groups, public health departments, healthcare systems, school systems, law enforcement or criminal justice agencies, social service agencies, or departments of commerce, labor, transportation, housing, recreation. Governmental organizations at the local, regional, tribal, or state level fall within this definition.
Rural: For the purposes of this FOA, the follow areas are defined as rural: non-metro counties; all metro census tracts with RUCA codes 4-10; large area Metro census tracts of at least 400 sq. miles in area with population density of 35 or less per sq. mile with RUCA codes 2-3; and all outlying metro counties without an Urbanized Area (UA).
Pregnancy-associated mortality:Death while pregnant or within one year of the end of the pregnancy, irrespective of cause. This is the starting point for analyses of maternal deaths.
Pregnancy-related mortality:Death during pregnancy or within one year of the end of pregnancy from a pregnancy complication; a chain of events initiated by pregnancy; or the aggravation of an unrelated condition by the physiologic effects of pregnancy. Used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to report U.S. trends, this measure is typically reported as a ratio per 100,000 live births.
Maternity care desert: Maternity care deserts are counties in which access to maternity health care services is limited or absent, either through lack of obstetric services or barriers to a woman's ability to access that care within counties. A maternity care desert is any county in the United States without a hospital or birth center offering obstetric care and without any obstetric providers. Low access to appropriate preventive, prenatal and postpartum care is defined as counties with one or fewer hospitals or birth centers that provide obstetric care, few obstetric providers (fewer than 60 per 10,000 births) or a high proportion of women without health insurance (10 percent or more). Moderate access to care is defined as living in a county with access to few hospitals/birth centers or obstetric providers and adequate health insurance coverage (less than 10 percent of women of reproductive age uninsured). Full access to maternity care can be defined by availability of hospitals or birth centers providing obstetric care and availability of providers offering obstetric care.
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.
NIH intends to fund one award, corresponding to total costs of up to $2 million in Fiscal Year 2023. Future year amounts will depend on annual appropriations.
The scope of the proposed project should determine the project period. The maximum project period is 7 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 Government
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 not 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.
The PD/PI should be an experienced investigator in the informatics field and capable of providing both administrative and scientific leadership to the development and implementation of the proposed activities. The PD(s)/PI(s) should have a strong track record coordinating and administrating large and collaborative projects and datasets, demonstrated experience in effectively communicating, messaging and disseminating various resources and information to stakeholders and to the broader scientific community.
Applicants should document the PD/PI's (and, as relevant, additional senior/key personnel's) experience in 1) expertise and experience in the area of informatics, 2) effectively communicating, messaging and disseminating various resources and information to stakeholders and to the broader scientific community.
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:
Nahida Chakhtoura, M.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Telephone: 301-435-6872
Email: [email protected]
All page limitations described in the SF424 Application Guide and the Table of Page Limits must be followed.
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.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
R&R Budget
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:
Specific Aims: Outline the general objectives of the proposed Innovation and Data Hub and the overall approach to achieve these goals.
Research Strategy: Specific Sections to be included in Research Strategy are described below.
The responsibilities of the Innovation Hub are diverse. Each of the responsibilities described in the section "Section I. Funding Opportunity Description: 1. Research Objectives is relevant to the overall performance of the Maternal Health Centers of Excellence.
Describe how the Innovation Hub will:
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:
Plans NICHD Plans for Sharing Human and Non-Human Data and/or Biospecimens
NICHD expects that data, biospecimens, and results of NICHD-funded research will be shared with the wider scientific community to the extent feasible and in a timely manner, per NIH Policy, as amended.
NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy expects the timely release and sharing of data to be no later than the time of an associated publication, or the end of the award/support period, whichever comes first. Per the Policy, all applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, are required to include a Data Management and Sharing Plan ( the Plan ) outlining how scientific data and any accompanying metadata will be managed and shared, regardless of whether the data are used to support scholarly publication. For this cooperative agreement, applications to the Research Centers will include a detailed Plan that will be approved by NIH. Each Plan should describe data types, file formats, submission timelines, standards used in collecting or processing the data and other elements described in Supplemental Information to the NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing: Elements of an NIH Data Management and Sharing Plan (NOT-OD-21-014). The Plan will be subject to assessment and approval by NIH Program Staff prior to funding. The approved Plan may be incorporated into the Terms & Conditions of each award, and awardees are required to comply with the approved Plan and any approved updates to the Plan. The Plan should be included with relevant IRB approved protocols as well.
For sharing human and non-human data, unless stipulated otherwise in each award's approved Plan, the Data Innovation /Hub is responsible for preparing and submitting datasets to the NICHD Data and Specimen Hub (DASH) and/or other NIH-approved repositories on behalf of the program. For protocols that generate large-scale human genetic data, recruiting sites will have to provide a Provisional or Institutional Certification specifying whether the individual-level data can be shared through an NIH-approved repository, such as dbGaP, in line with the NIH Genomic Data Sharing Policy (see NOT-OD-14-124). This will be done on a project-by-project basis. If any projects require this, it will be requested before the Awardee can start recruiting into the study.
Where appropriate, NIH encourages the use of data standards include common data elements (CDEs), such as those available through the NIH CDE repository, terminologies and ontologies such as the NCI Thesaurus, Mondo Disease Ontology, and Human Phenotype Ontology, and common data models such as the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP). Some Research Centers may propose research within Indian Country or tribal communities, thus applicants must propose a data sharing plan that respects and enforces principles and practices of Tribal data sovereignty, The applicant is required to propose a data sharing plan that includes a description of how the Maternal Health Centers of Excellence will work with PD s/PI’s and respect sovereignty-based data management and sharing requirements.
It is expected that tools, workflows, and/or other software created or used with support from this FOA will be well-documented and shared with the wider scientific community in a timely manner that would enable other researchers to replicate and build on the analyses for future research efforts, aligned with the open source regime used to distribute software to the extent practicable. In the Resource Sharing Plan, applicants must describe the anticipated timeline, formats, and methods of sharing code for analytical tools, pipelines, or workflows used or created under this FOA through open access channels (e.g. public GitHub repositories), including source code, use cases, and system design documentation. If commercial or proprietary resources will be used, provide a justification for this approach including a description of how requirements for data transparency and interoperability will be maintained.
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.
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
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.
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.
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 fieldof 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 components of participating organizations, NIH. Applications that are incomplete, non-compliant and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed.
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.
Overall Impact
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).
Scored Review Criteria
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.
Significance
Does the proposed Data Innovation Hub address the needs of the Research Centers and the Implementation Science Hub that it will serve? Is the scope of activities proposed for the Data Innovation Hub appropriate to meet those needs? Will successful completion of the aims bring unique advantages or capabilities to the Research Centers and the Implementation Science Hub?
Specific to this FOA:
To achieve the purpose and objectives of the Centers of Excellence, how well does the applicant’s team meet the needs of a Data Innovation Hub in terms of:
Investigator(s)
Are the PD(s)/PI(s) and other personnel well suited to their roles in the Data Innovation Hub? Do they have appropriate experience and training, and have they demonstrated experience and an ongoing record of accomplishments? Do the investigators demonstrate significant experience with coordinating collaborative clinical research? If the Data Innovation Hub is multi-PD/PI, do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise and skills; are their leadership approach, governance, and organizational structure appropriate? Does the applicant have experience overseeing selection and management of subawards, if applicable?
Specific to this FOA:
To achieve the purpose and objectives of the Centers of Excellence, how well does the applicant’s team meet the needs of a Data Innovation Hub in terms of:
Innovation
Does the application propose novel organizational concepts, management strategies, or instrumentation in coordinating the Research Centers and the Implementation Science Hub that it 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, management strategies or instrumentation proposed?
Specific to this FOA:
To achieve the purpose and objectives of the Centers of Excellence, how significant are the applicant innovations for:
Approach
Are the overall strategy, operational plan, and organizational structure well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the goals of the Research Centers and the Implementation Science Hub that it will serve? Will the investigators promote strategies to ensure a robust and unbiased scientific approach across the Research Centers and Implementation Science Hub, as appropriate for the work proposed? Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the program is in the early stages of operation, does the proposed strategy adequately establish feasibility and manage the risks associated? Is 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 human subjects?
If the project involves human subjects and/or NIH-defined clinical research, are the plans to address 1) the protection of human subjects from research risks, and 2) 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), justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed?
Specific to this FOA:
To achieve the purpose and objectives of the Centers of Excellence, how adequately does the applicant meet the following requirements:
Environment
Will the institutional environment in which the Data Innovation Hub will operate contribute to the probability of success in facilitating the program it serves? Are the institutional support, equipment and other physical resources available to the investigators adequate for the work proposed? Will the Data Innovation Hub benefit from unique features of the environment, infrastructure, or personnel? Are resources available within the environment to support electronic information handling?
Specific to this FOA:
To achieve the purpose and objectives of the Centers of Excellence, how well does the applicant’s team meet the needs of a Data Innovation Hub in terms of:
Additional Review Criteria
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.
Protections for Human Subjects
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.
Inclusion of Women, Minorities, and Individuals Across the Lifespan
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.
Vertebrate Animals
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.
Biohazards
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.
Resubmissions
Not Applicable
Renewals
Not Applicable
Revisions
Not Applicable
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.
Applications from Foreign Organizations
Not Applicable.
Select Agent Research
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).
Resource Sharing Plans
Reviewers will comment on whether the following Resource Sharing Plans, or the rationale for not sharing the following types of resources, are reasonable: (1) Sharing Model Organisms; and (2) Genomic Data Sharing Plan (GDS).
Authentication of Key Biological and/or Chemical Resources:
For projects involving key biological and/or chemical resources, reviewers will comment on the brief plans proposed for identifying and ensuring the validity of those resources.
Budget and Period of Support
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 the Center for Scientific Review , 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.
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.5. 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: General and 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 the 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, 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's purpose is to support and stimulate the recipients' activities by involvement in and otherwise working jointly with the award 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 reside with the recipient 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:
NIH staff have substantial programmatic involvement that is above and beyond the normal stewardship role in awards, as described below:
During the performance of the award, the NIH Project Scientists, with assistance from other NIH scientific staff will provide appropriate assistance, advice, and guidance in the design of the activities; the analysis of data; management and technical performance, and the preparation of publications. The Project Scientists will serve as liaison/facilitators between the recipient, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, and other government agencies (e.g., FDA, USDA, and CDC) and will serve as a resource for scientific and policy information related to the goals of the recipient's research.
The NIH Project Scientist will additionally:
The NICHD Program Official will additionally:
Areas of Joint PD/PI and NIH staff Responsibility include:
Dispute Resolution:
Any disagreements that may arise in scientific or programmatic matters (within the scope of the award) between award 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 $25,000. 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 Appendix XII to 45 CFR Part 75, 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 Award Term and Conditions 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]
Nahida Chakhtoura, M.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Telephone: 301-435-6872
Email: [email protected]
Afrouz Azari Anderson
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
Phone: 301-496-4558
E-mail: [email protected]
Deidra Roach, M.D.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Phone: 301-443-5820
E-mail: [email protected]
Jennifer Alvidrez, PhD
Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)
Telephone: 301-827-0071
Email: [email protected]
Leslie Jean Marshall Ph.D.
Office of AIDS Research
Phone: 301-402-1839
Email: [email protected]
Keisher’s Highsmith
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Phone: 301-402-1984
E-mail: [email protected]
Yanli Wang
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
Phone: 301-594-4933
E-mail: [email protected]
Jyoti Dayal
National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
Phone: 301.480.2307
E-mail: [email protected]
Mercy PrabhuDas, Ph.D., M.B.A.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Telephone: 240-627-3534
Email: [email protected]
Gina Wei
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Phone: 301-435-0416
E-mail: [email protected]
Elena K Gorodetsky, M.D., Ph.D.
Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH)
Phone: (301) 594-9004
E-mail: [email protected]
Beda Jean-Francois
National Center for Complementary & Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Phone: 202-313-2144
Email: [email protected]
Jean Marie Lawrence, Sc.D., M.P.H., M.S.S.A.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Phone: (301) 435-6243
E-mail: [email protected]
Christopher Barnhart, PhD
Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office (SGMRO)
Telephone: 301-594-8983
Email: [email protected]
Tamara Lewis Johnson, MPH, MBA
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Telephone: (301) 594-7963
Email: [email protected]
Rada K Dagher
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
Phone: 301-451-2187
E-mail: [email protected]
Yewande A Oladeinde
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
Phone: 301-402-1366
E-mail: [email protected]
Lillian Shum, PhD
National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
Phone: 301-594-0618
E-mail: [email protected]
Abee Boyles, PhD
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
Phone: 984-287-3241
E-mail: [email protected]
Soju Chang
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)
Phone: (301) 827-9206
E-mail: [email protected]
Patricia A. Haggerty, Ph.D.
Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS)
Tel: 301-529-4884
Email: [email protected]
Sung Sug (Sarah) Yoon, RN, PhD
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Telephone: 301-402-6959
Email: [email protected]
Argenia Doss, PhD
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
301-827-1373
[email protected]
Center for Scientific Review (CSR)
Email: [email protected]
Margaret Young
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Telephone: 301-642-4552
Email: [email protected]
Katie Ellis
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
Phone: 301-451-4791
E-mail: [email protected]
Judy Fox
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Phone: (301) 443-4704
E-mail: [email protected]
Pamela G Fleming
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Phone: 301-480-1159
E-mail: [email protected]
Samantha J Tempchin
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
Phone: 301-496-4222
E-mail: [email protected]
Annmarie Brasilemejac
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Phone: (301) 827-8016
E-mail: [email protected]
Natasha Loveless
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Phone: 301-594-8853
E-mail: [email protected]
Terri Jarosik
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Telephone: 301-443-3858
Email: [email protected]
Priscilla Grant
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
Phone: 301-594-8412
E-mail: [email protected]
Diana Rutberg, MBA
National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
Phone: (301) 594-4798
E-mail: [email protected]
Jenny L Greer
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
Phone: 984.287.3332
E-mail: [email protected]
Randi Freundlich
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Telephone: 301-594-5974
Email: [email protected]
Chief Grants Management Officer
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
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 2 CFR Part 200, 42 CFR Part 52, and 45 CFR Part 75.