NLM Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities (G08)

NLM Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities (G08) is sponsored by National Library of Medicine (NLM)/NIH. This program supports projects that aim to bring useful, usable health information to populations that experience health disparities and their healthcare providers. Proposed projects should leverage computer and information technology and health sciences libraries.

Expired RFA-LM-12-001: NLM Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities (G08) This notice has expired. Check the NIH Guide for active opportunities and notices. Part 1.

Overview Information Participating Organization(s) National Institutes of Health ( NIH ) Components of Participating National Library of Medicine ( NLM ) Funding Opportunity Title NLM Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health G08 Resources Project Grant (NLM) April 29, 2014 - This RFA has been reissued as RFA-LM-14-001. Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Number Additional Information on Eligibility .

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s) The National Library of Medicine (NLM) solicits resource grant applications for projects that will bring useful, usable health information to health disparity populations and the health care providers who care for those populations. Access to useful, usable, understandable health information is an important factor during health decisions.

Proposed projects should exploit the capabilities of computer and information technology and health sciences libraries to bring health-related information to consumers and their health care providers. Preference will be given to applications that show strong involvement of health science libraries.

Because this FOA focuses on providing health information to health disparity populations, institutions with demonstrated commitment to the needs of health disparity communities (including Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) and other institutions in rural and socially disadvantaged areas) are encouraged to apply.

Open Date (Earliest Submission Date) Letter of Intent Due Date May 22, 2012, by 5:00 PM local time of applicant AIDS Application Due Date(s) Required Application Instructions It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in 424 (R&R) Application Guide , except where instructed to do otherwise (in this FOA or in a Notice from the 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. Part 1. Overview Information Part 2.

Full Text of the Announcement Section I. Funding Opportunity Description Section II. Award Information Section III.

Eligibility Information Section IV. Application and Submission Section V. Application Review Information Section VI.

Award Administration Information Section VII. Agency Contacts Section VIII. Other Information I.

Funding Opportunity Description The National Library of Medicine (NLM) solicits resource grant applications for projects that will bring useful, usable health information to health disparity populations and the health care providers who care for these populations. Access to useful, usable, understandable health information is an important factor during health decisions.

Proposed projects should exploit the capabilities of computer and information technology and health sciences libraries to bring health-related information to consumers and their health care providers. Preference will be given to applications that show strong involvement of health science libraries.

Because this FOA focuses on providing health information to health disparity populations, institutions with demonstrated commitment to the needs of health disparity communities (including Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) and other institutions in rural and socially disadvantaged areas) are encouraged to apply.

In the Charting the Course , NLM’s Long Range Plan for 2006-2016, http://www. nlm. nih.

gov/pubs/plan/lrpdocs. html , Goal 2 addresses information to promote health literacy, improve health outcomes, and reduce health disparities worldwide. That report notes: NLM’s free, high quality consumer information services are heavily used by members of the public and by clinicians as aids to patient education, but they reach only some of their intended users.

At a time when the amount of doctor-patient face time for discussing and explaining health conditions is short and there is intensified emphasis on self-informed patients and healthy lifestyles as keys to improving health and reducing costs, the Library must continue to strengthen its efforts to promote awareness of and ability to use electronic information sources among all segments of the population.

To this end, NLM must strive to provide information in forms that can help increase understanding, reduce health disparities, and promote health literacy. http://www. nlm.

nih. gov/pubs/plan/lrp06/report/LRP_Goal2. html The NLM Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities (G08) program is focused on putting research knowledge into practice by providing online information resources tailored to meet the needs of health disparity populations and health care providers who care for them.

Many factors influence use of information in health decisions, including physical access factors (such as availability of libraries or Internet connectivity in the context of a health visit or personal health decision), to intellectual access factors (such as readability, understandability and presentation format of health information).

Topics of interest for this grant program include: Developing information resources/services specifically directed towards health disparity populations. Providing information resources/services to community organizations involved with health disparity populations. Providing information resources/services to support academic health disparity researchers.

Needs assessment studies that identify the types and forms of information needed by health disparity populations to assist them in making health-related decisions. Evaluation studies of existing information resources or services targeted at health disparity populations. Upgrading existing information resources or services to meet the needs of health disparity populations.

A project can develop and deploy a new information resource or service, or expand and improve an existing resource or service in order to meet the needs of a health disparity population. For a proposed project to be competitive there must be evidence that the intended audience is a health disparity population.

A population is a health disparity population if there is a significant disparity in the overall rate of disease incidence, prevalence, morbidity, mortality or survival rates in the population as compared to the health status of the general population.

Fundamental features of a project proposal for this program include discussion of the following points: The information problem and its context, supported by published Rationale for the resource or service. Evidence of a user-centered approach to development, deployment, Content features such as selection, source credibility, currency, accuracy and completeness. A timeline and milestones for the proposed work.

Mechanisms for promoting use of the proposed resource, details of training and evaluation plans. Usage tracking and characteristics of the users. Outcome-oriented evaluation of the proposed information resource Plan for disseminating the results of the project.

Plan for sustaining the resource or service after grant funding The following types of projects are considered outside the scope of NLM’s Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities Installation of Online library catalogs. Electronic health record systems, single-purpose or closed clinical systems such as a stand-alone laboratory system or picture archiving Digitization of print materials.

Projects that duplicate NLM products and databases such as Go Local consumer health initiatives or biomedical literature indexing projects.

See Section VIII, Other Information - Required Federal Citations , for policies related to this Application Types Allowed Glossary and the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide provide details on Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards The number of awards is contingent upon NIH appropriations, and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious NLM intends to fund up to 5 awards, for approximately $500,000.

Budgets up to $100,000 for one year, $200,000 over two years or $300,000 over 3 years, in direct costs, may be requested. The total amount requested need not be the same in each year for a multiple year project, but need to reflect actual needs of the proposed project. This FOA does not cover facilities and administrative (F&A) costs, also called overhead or indirect costs.

Consortium/subcontractual costs will be considered direct costs to the parent grant and, therefore, must fall within the total direct cost cap established for this program. Like the parent grant, consortium costs cannot include funds for facilities and administrative Applicants may request up to 3 years for the project Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made in response to this FOA. Section III.

Eligibility Information Higher Education Institutions Public/State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education Private Institutions of Higher Education The following types of Higher Education Institutions are always encouraged to apply for NIH support as Public or Private Institutions of Higher Education: Hispanic-serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Nonprofits Other Than Institutions of Higher Education Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions City or Township Governments Special District Governments Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government U.S. Territory or Possession Independent School Districts Public Housing Authorities/Indian Housing Authorities Native American Tribal Organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Faith-based or Community-based Organizations Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are not eligible Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement , are not allowed.

Applicant organizations must complete the following registrations as described in the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide to be eligible to apply for or receive an award.

Applicants must have a valid Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number in order to begin each of the following Contractor Registration (CCR) must maintain an active registration, to be renewed at least annually All Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) (PD(s)/PI(s)) must also work with their institutional officials to register with the eRA Commons or ensure their existing eRA Commons account is affiliated with the eRA Commons account of the applicant organization.

All registrations must be completed by the application due date. Applicant organizations are strongly encouraged to start the registration process at least 4-6 weeks prior to the application due date.

Eligible Individuals (Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s)) 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 underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH support.

For institutions/organizations proposing multiple PD(s)/PI(s), visit the Multiple Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) Policy and submission details in the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Component of the SF 424 (R&R) This FOA does not require cost sharing as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement .

Additional Information on Eligibility Applicant organizations may submit more than one application, provided that each application is scientifically distinct. NIH will not accept any application in response to this FOA that is essentially the same as one currently pending initial peer review unless the applicant withdraws the pending application. NIH will not accept any application that is essentially the same as one already reviewed.

Resubmission applications may be submitted, according to the NIH Policy on Resubmission Applications from the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide. IV. Application and Submission Information 1.

Requesting an Application Package Applicants must download the SF424 (R&R) application package associated with this funding opportunity using the Apply for Grant Electronically button in this FOA or following the directions provided at Grants. gov .

Form of Application Submission It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in (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 For information on Application Submission and Receipt, visit Frequently Asked Questions Application Guide, Electronic Submission of Grant 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 By the date listed in Part 1.

Overview Information , prospective applicants are asked to submit a letter of intent that includes the following information: Descriptive title of proposed research Name, address, and telephone number of the PD(s)/PI(s) Names of other key personnel Participating institutions Number and title of this funding opportunity The letter of intent should be sent to: Scientific Review Officer National Library of Medicine Telephone: (301) 594-4937 Required and Optional Components The forms package associated with this FOA includes all applicable components, mandatory and optional.

Please note that some components marked optional in the application package are required for submission of applications for this FOA. Follow all instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide to ensure you complete all appropriate optional All page limitations described in the SF424 Application Page Limits must be followed.

PHS 398 Research Plan Component All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions: Individuals are required to comply with the instructions for the Resource Sharing Plans (Data Sharing Plan, Sharing Model Organisms, and Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS)) as provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, with the following modifications: All applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, should address a Data Sharing Plan.

If the final data/resources are not amenable to sharing, this must be explained in the Resource Sharing section of the application. Do not use the Appendix to circumvent page limits. Follow all instructions for the Appendix as described in the SF424 (R&R) 3.

Submission Dates and Times Part I. Overview Information contains information about Key Dates. Applicants are encouraged to submit in advance of the deadline to ensure they have time to make any application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission.

Organizations must submit applications via 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 are responsible for viewing their application 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. 4. Intergovernmental Review (E.

O. 12372) This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental 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 .

6. Other Submission Requirements and Applications must be submitted electronically following the instructions described in the SF 424 (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 All PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile Component of the SF 424(R&R) Application Package . 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.

The applicant organization must ensure that the DUNS number it provides on the application is the same number used in the organization’s profile in the eRA Commons and for the Central Contractor Registration (CCR). Additional information may be found in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide. tips for avoiding common errors.

Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness by the Center for Scientific Review and responsiveness by National Library of Medicines , NIH. Applications that are incomplete and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed. Post Submission Materials Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in NOT-OD-10-115 .

V. Application Review Information Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process.

As part of the NIH mission , all applications submitted to the NIH in support of biomedical and behavioral research are evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the NIH peer Reviewers will provide an overall impact/priority 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 project address an important problem or a critical barrier to progress in the field? If the aims of the project are achieved, how will scientific knowledge, technical capability, and/or clinical practice be improved? How will successful completion of the aims change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions that drive this field?

Is there a focus on health disparity populations? Have the information problem and its context been clearly stated, with support from published evidence? Is a rationale provided for the resource or service?

Is there evidence that the intended audience can benefit from the proposed Are the PD(s)/PI(s), collaborators, and other researchers well suited to the project? If Early Stage Investigators or New Investigators, or in the early stages of independent careers, do they have appropriate experience and training? If established, have they demonstrated an ongoing record of accomplishments that have advanced their field(s)?

If the project is collaborative or multi-PD(s)/PI(s), do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise; are their leadership approach, governance and organizational structure appropriate for the project? Does the application challenge and seek to shift current research or clinical practice paradigms by utilizing novel theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions?

Are the concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions novel to one field of research or novel in a broad sense? Is a refinement, improvement, or new application of theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions proposed? Is the approach useful as a model for other organizations that wish to undertake similar work?

Are the overall strategy, methodology, and analyses well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the specific aims of the project? Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the project is in the early stages of development, will the strategy establish feasibility and will particularly risky aspects be managed?

If the project involves clinical research, are the plans for 1) protection of human subjects from research risks, and 2) inclusion of minorities and members of both sexes/genders, as well as the inclusion of children, justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed? Is there evidence of a user-centered approach to development, deployment, and evaluation?

Are representatives of the target audience involved in the design and evaluation of the project? Are the content features of the information such as selection, source credibility, currency, accuracy and completeness carefully considered? Is there an appropriate timeline and are appropriate milestones for the proposed work included?

Is there a plan for tracking usage and the characteristics of users? Is there an appropriate and well-reasoned outcome-oriented evaluation plan? Is there a satisfactory plan for promoting use of the resource?

Is there a well thought-out plan for training users (if relevant to the project)? Is there a plan for disseminating project results? Will the scientific environment in which the work will be done contribute to the probability of success?

Are the institutional support, equipment and other physical resources available to the investigators adequate for the project proposed? Will the project benefit from unique features of the scientific environment, subject populations, or collaborative arrangements? Is there strong involvement of a health sciences library?

Are minority-serving institution(s) actively participating in this application? Is there a sustainability plan for the resource or service after grant funding ends? 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/priority 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 six 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 six 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 Subjects Protection and Inclusion Guidelines .

Inclusion of Women, Minorities, and Children When the proposed project involves clinical research, the committee will evaluate the proposed plans for inclusion of minorities and members of both genders, as well as the inclusion of children. For additional information on review of the Inclusion section, please refer to the Human Subjects Protection and Inclusion Guidelines .

The committee will evaluate the involvement of live vertebrate animals as part of the scientific assessment according to the following five points: 1) proposed use of the animals, and species, strains, ages, sex, and numbers to be used; 2) justifications for the use of animals and for the appropriateness of the species and numbers proposed; 3) adequacy of veterinary care; 4) procedures for limiting discomfort, distress, pain and injury to that which is unavoidable in the conduct of scientifically sound research including the use of analgesic, anesthetic, and tranquilizing drugs and/or comfortable restraining devices; and 5) methods of euthanasia and reason for selection if not consistent with the AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia.

For additional information on review of the Vertebrate Animals section, please 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.

For Resubmissions, the committee will evaluate the application as now presented, taking into consideration the responses to comments from the previous scientific review group and changes made to the Additional Review Considerations 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/priority score.

Applications from Foreign Organizations 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 Resource Sharing Plans, or the rationale for not sharing the resources, are reasonable: Sharing Plan ; 2) Sharing Model Organisms ; and 3) Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS) 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 2.

Review and Selection Process Applications will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by (an) appropriate Scientific Review Group(s) convened by the NLM, in accordance with NIH peer review policy and procedures , using the stated review criteria . Review assignments will be shown in the eRA Commons.

As part of the scientific peer review, all applications: All applications will be assigned an overall impact/priority Will receive a written critique. Appeals of initial peer review will not be accepted for applications submitted in response to this FOA. Applications will be assigned to the appropriate NIH Institute or Center.

Applications will compete for available funds with all other recommended applications submitted to NLM. Following initial peer review, recommended applications will receive a second level of review by the NLM Board of Regents. The following will be considered in making funding Scientific and technical merit of the proposed project as determined by scientific peer review.

Relevance of the proposed project to program priorities. 3. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates After the peer review of the application is completed, the PD(s)/PI(s) will be able to access his or her Summary Statement (written critique) via the eRA Commons .

Information regarding the disposition of applications is Grants Policy Statement . Section VI. Award Administration Information If the application is under consideration for funding, NIH will request "just-in-time" information from the applicant as 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 grantee’s business official. Awardees 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 the DUNS, CCR Registration, and Transparency Act requirements as noted on the Award Conditions and Information for NIH Grants website.

2. Administrative and National Policy 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: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart B: Terms and Conditions for Specific Types of Grants, Grantees, and Activities .

More information is Conditions and Information for NIH Grants . Cooperative Agreement Terms and Conditions of Award When multiple years are involved, awardees will be required to submit the Non-Competing Continuation Grant Progress Report (PHS 2590) annually and financial statements as required in the NIH Grants Policy Statement .

A final progress report, 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 .

The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act), includes a requirement for awardees of Federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under Federal assistance awards issued in FY2011 or later. All awardees 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 Section VII. Agency Contacts We encourage inquiries concerning this funding opportunity and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants.

Application Submission Contacts Customer Support (Questions regarding Grants.

gov registration and submission, downloading or navigating forms) GrantsInfo (Questions regarding application instructions and process, finding NIH grant resources) eRA Commons Help Desk(Questions regarding eRA Commons registration, tracking application status, post submission issues) Phone: 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 (Toll Free) Scientific/Research Contact(s) Telephone: (301) 594-4937 Financial/Grants Management Contact(s) Telephone: (301) 496-4221 Section VIII.

Other Information 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 .

Authority and Regulations Awards are made under the authorization of Sections 301 and 405 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 286b-5) and under Federal Regulations 42 CFR Part 59a and 45 CFR Parts 74 and 92. Weekly TOC for this Announcement NIH... Turning Discovery Into Health ®