Special Pilot Call: Physician-Nurse Collaborative Clinical and Translational Research

Purpose: This special call is an invitation to encourage collaboration of interdisciplinary teams of UCI physician- and nurse- clinicians and researchers based at the Medical Center in Orange ready to propose novel approaches for early exploration of innovative research ideas.

Eligible Projects:  Clinical Translational Science Projects, currently not funded and aimed at obtaining preliminary results that will inform a full application for extramural funds, are considered eligible. Emphasis will be placed on innovation and transformative potential of submitted proposals. The content of proposals, while linked to applicants’ current research, should demonstrate a clear evolution towards novel, relevant, and untested research areas.

A clinical translational science project is defined as any project aimed at accelerating the transition of discoveries arising from laboratory, clinical, or population studies into clinical or public health applications.

A grant will be awarded to a team comprised of minimum one UCI physician and one UCI nurse clinician based at the Medical Center. Proposals must demonstrate active engagement between the physician and nurse researchers and anticipated benefits to each partner of the collaboration.

Available Funding:

Two seed grants in the amount of up to $10,000 each will be awarded and can be used to establish the research strategy and do proof of principle experiments to demonstrate feasibility of new innovative approaches of translational research.

All material must include the investigator’s name at the top right corner, and use a font no smaller than 11 pts, with margins no narrower than 0.5 inches.

1. Abstract body:  A brief description of the research plan limited to 300 words.

2. Biosketch of PI (NIH new format), CO-PI, and co-investigators (if applicable).

3. Research plan (3 pages max., plus references): Must include the following:

a. Specific Aims: Describe the project deliverables

b. Significance: Describe the potential contribution to clinical care

c. Innovation: Highlight the gap in knowledge that this research will address

d. Approach: Briefly explain the research protocol

e. Plans for applying for extramural funding: Be as specific as possible

4. Implementation Plan  (click link to download form)

5. Keywords and Reviewers (click link to download form)

6. Home department letter of support

a. Budget (itemized, 1 page maximum)

b. Budget Justification

7. Funds cannot be used to support faculty salaries, computer purchases, or travel. Other personnel salaries (Project Coordinator, Post-Doc, Graduate Student, Staff Research Assistant, etc…) are allowable.

8. No overhead will be provided for outside institutions

9. UCI Financial Disclosure (Form 800 and if required Form 810; click link to download form)

Notification Emails for Receipt of Proposal

A notification email indicating the receipt of your protocol will be sent within 24 hours of submission. If you have not received an email, please contact April Bagaporo at 714-456-7524.

Milestones and Monitoring

Before funds are released; a meeting between the awardees, a department financial analyst, and ICTS staff will review specific milestones to gauge project progression. Additionally, team science services and measures will be provided to assess team science processes and outcomes for evaluation, improvement in quality of initiative, and develop best practices. Continuation of support throughout the entire award period will be contingent upon meeting the project's goals in a timely manner.

Review Process: Review criteria will include:

• Significance and potential impact of the proposed research
• Qualifications of the Research Team, including assembly of an inter-disciplinary team with the appropriate expertise in fields
• Innovative ideas
• Approach; scientific strength of the research design (please refer to NIH guidelines on scientific rigor and reproducibility http://grants.nih.gov/reproducibility/index.htm)
• Scientific environment
• Translational nature of the project
• Project feasibility within the proposed time frame
• Likelihood of generating extramural funding

Nurses may contact Dr. Miriam Bender miriamb@uci.edu for protocol review or assistance with application process.

For more information, please contact Dr. Margaret Schneider, Director of Pilot Studies for the ICTS at 949-824-8853 mls@uci.edu or April Bagaporo, ICTS Pilot Studies Administrator at 714-456-7524 abagapor@uci.edu.