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Deadline Extended: November 1, 2020

The Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA) Multi-Institutional Collaborative Clinical/Translational Research (MICoR) Grant

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement is to solicit applications that support a multi-institutional investigation addressing a key clinical and translational research question that aims to advance the care for perioperative patients with cardiovascular and thoracic disease.

Background and Statement of Need

SCA funding of this project will:

  • Offer an opportunity for larger scale investigation directly relevant to care for our specific patient population and to the mission of the SCA.
  • Support a multi-center investigation that could not be otherwise accomplished through the work of investigators at a single institution, and studies that include larger and more diverse patient populations to promote robustness and broad applicability of study findings.
  • Provide a steppingstone to federal funding for academic-clinician SCA members in an increasingly competitive funding environment.
  • Foster inter-institutional collaboration, exchange of ideas, and sharing of resources between SCA members.
  • Raise the profile of the SCA through the support of higher visibility and more impactful large research projects.

Research Objectives

To foster innovative collaborative approaches to research projects. The proposal must focus on the collaborative relationship, such that the scientific objectives could not be achieved without the efforts of the co-principal investigators.

Priorities:

  • Clinical trials, translational studies, and those including associated mechanistic studies are prioritized.
  • Proposals should include a clearly outlined path to and plan for application for federal funding (NIH program project or other equivalent funding) to further support the collaborative work.
  • Studies incorporating innovative applications of data science techniques or machine learning methods are encouraged.
  • Studies leveraging the SCA/STS database as one resource are encouraged.
  • SCA MICoR funding is not meant as bridge funding or as supplementary funding for projects with concurrent external funding but may be used by investigators with existing funding to explore new areas of interest.

Investigators:

  • Co-Primary Investigators (Co-PIs) must be from two (or more) separate institutions.
  • One of the co-PIs must be underrepresented in medicine includes women or the following racial and ethnic groups that have been shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research: Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders. 
  • Co-PIs with unique intellectual contributions/resources from each site are encouraged.
  • Inter-institutional mentor/mentee co-investigator relationships are encouraged, particularly where appropriate mentorship is not present at the mentee’s own institution.
  • Co-PIs must convey that they will have an equal level of contribution to the project; otherwise, the applicants should classify additional personnel as collaborating investigators.
  • Co-PIs must each hold faculty/staff appointments at their institutions at the time of application.
  • A minimum 20% non-clinical commitment is required.
  • Institutional commitment to support 20% non-clinical time for each co-PI investigator, in addition to that for which award funding is allocated, is required.
  • Investigators at secondary sites proposed, mainly to strengthen patient recruitment or surgical case mix for clinical studies, are not to be considered co-PIs for the purpose of this application.
  • The co-PI at the primary sponsoring department site must have been a member of the SCA for 3 years or longer prior to the time of application; all co-PIs must be members of the SCA throughout the award period.

The letter of intent should include: 

  • The letter of intent should not be more than two pages.
  • Detail the proposed study, including background, specific aims, the study design, and target patient population or disease process, along with a description of any translational/mechanistic components.  
  • The LOI should describe the roles of the co-PIs, their backgrounds/connection to the topic area, the key personnel, and the unique skills or resources they and their institutions bring to the project. 
  • Include a biosketch in NIH format for each co-PI. 

Award details:

  • Total award amount: $200,000 x 3 for a total of $600,000, including up to 10% allowed institutional indirect costs.
  • Award duration: Three years.
  • Letter of intent (required) deadline: November 1, 2020
  • Notification of invitation for full application: November 15, 2020.
  • Application Portal Opens: Mid-January 2021.
  • Application deadline for invited applicants: February 1, 2021.
  • Award recipients announced: SCA 2021 Annual Meeting. 
  • Earliest award dates: July 1, 2021.

The SCA MICoR funding opportunity will NOT support research involving:

  • Industry-sponsored studies, or studies of investigational medical devices supplied by or paid for by manufacturers.
  • Studies in which any investigator, collaborator, study personnel, or other sponsor have a conflict of interest.

The MICoR Grant is essential for us as a society, and to ensure SCA’s first year of success, please circulate within your network. 

Please submit your letter of intent to grants@scahq.org by November 1, 2020.