Important Dates

Notices

Table of Contents

• Description
• Objectives
• Eligibility
• Guidelines
• Performance Measurement
• Review Process and Evaluation
• How to Apply
• Contact Information
• Partner/Collaborator Description

Description

The goal of this funding opportunity is to support researchers and healthcare professionals with the development and implementation of disease management and/or prevention programs. The ultimate objective of this initiative is to contribute to reducing the burden of chronic disease in Canada. Therefore, we would like to encourage innovative approaches that focus on improving patient care, interlinking of available healthcare providers and resources, and other innovative solutions that aim to improve chronic disease management. (Updated: 2010-03-04)

Please see below a definition of disease management by the Disease Management Association of America (DMAA):

DMAA Definition of Disease Management
Disease management is a system of coordinated health care interventions and communications for populations with conditions in which patient self-care efforts are significant.

Disease management:

• Supports the physician or practitioner/patient relationship and plan of care;
• Emphasizes prevention of exacerbations and complications utilizing evidence-based practice guidelines and patient empowerment strategies; and
• Evaluates clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes on an on-going basis with the goal of improving overall health.

Disease management components include:

• Population identification processes;
• Evidence-based practice guidelines;
• Collaborative practice models to include physician and support-service providers;
• Patient self-management education (may include primary prevention, behavior modification programs, and compliance/surveillance);
• Process and outcomes measurement, evaluation, and management;
• Routine reporting/feedback loop (may include communication with patient, physician, health plan and ancillary providers, and practice profiling).

The CIHR'/Rx&D Collaborative Research Program is designed to help the academic community interact with Canadian companies with an interest in health research and development. The program promotes a wide variety of peer-reviewed research and training projects jointly funded by Canadian companies and CIHR. The research planned should be beneficial to both parties, while improving the quality of health of Canadians.

Funds Available

CIHR's contribution to the amount available for this initiative is subject to availability of funds voted annually to CIHR by parliamentary appropriations. Should CIHR funding levels be decreased by Parliament, CIHR reserves the right to defer or suspend payments to grants received as a result of this funding opportunity.

• The total amount available for this funding opportunity is $ 1,000,000 of which Pfizer is contributing $666,667 and CIHR is contributing $333,333. This amount may increase if additional funding partners decide to participate.
  • For the September 1^st, 2010 start date, $400,000 (2 grants) is available; and,
  • For the April 1^st, 2011 start date, $600,000 (3 grants) is available.
• The maximum amount awarded for a single grant is $200,000 per annum for 1 year

Partner Participation

CIHR is dedicated to identifying and developing collaborations with other funding organizations and stakeholders to enhance the availability of funding for this strategic initiative, and to create, where appropriate, opportunities for knowledge exchange and translation related to the scope of this particular initiative. Applicants are invited to visit the Partner Description section to find a list of partners and their respective mandates and/or strategic interests. This list will continue to evolve as new partners join in this initiative. The specific research foci and requirements for each partner are outlined in the "Objectives" section.

Objectives

(Updated: 2010-03-04)

The specific objectives of this funding opportunity are:

• To explore and evaluate new approaches and solutions related to chronic disease management in the primary care setting
• To contribute to the knowledge pool with regards to chronic disease management and/or prevention in Canada
• Contribute to reducing the burden of care while finding efficient ways to address chronic disease management and/or prevention in the primary care setting

Relevant Research Areas:

The CIHR/Rx&D Collaborative Research Program, in partnership with Pfizer will provide funding for applications that are determined to be relevant to the following research areas:

• Open to all therapeutic areas with focus on chronic disease management and/or prevention, including research on interdisciplinary chronic care models
• Collaborations with regional health authorities, family health networks, employers and insurers
• Studies should not evaluate the effectiveness of medicines but rather evaluate comprehensive approaches (e.g: education, screening) addressing chronic disease management and/or prevention

Eligibility

Eligibility criteria for all CIHR research funding programs apply. The business office of the institution of an eligible Nominated Principal Applicant generally administers CIHR funds. Please refer to the Individual Eligibility Requirements regarding the eligibility requirements for individuals and institutions

Eligibility to Apply:

In order for your application to be accepted:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant must be:
1. An independent researcher;
2. The applicants must not be receiving funding from other pharmaceutical industry for the research proposal that is being submitted
3. Plan to conduct the research for which they are requesting funds in Canada

Randomized Controlled Trials:

Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) could be considered under this funding opportunity. (Updated: 2010-07-21)

Guidelines

General CIHR Guidelines

This funding opportunity will comply fully with the policies and guidelines outlined in the CIHR Grants and Awards Guide. Applicants are encouraged to demonstrate the use of Gender and Sex-Based Analysis in applications.

Allowable Costs

Applicants must review the Use of Grant Funds section of the Tri-Agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC) Financial Administration Guide for a complete listing and description of allowable costs and activities.

Equipment costs are not eligible for support through this Funding Opportunity.

Global Health Research and International Collaborations

As outlined in the CIHR Grants and Awards Guide Global Health Research Section and International Collaborations Section, applicants who are eligible for CIHR funding may apply to CIHR’s funding opportunities for funds to support research to be carried out in, or in direct collaboration with researchers and/or decision-makers based in, other countries. CIHR contributes to, and supports international research projects and international collaborations to address a range of research areas, including but not limited to established priorities in global health research and contributes to the development of health-research capacity both internationally and at home.

Conditions of Funding

Successful applicants funded through this funding opportunity and any other persons working on the project must comply fully with the "policies and guidelines in the conduct of research". Policies and guidelines cover areas such as Applicant Responsibilities, Official languages policy, Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Acknowledgement of CIHR's Support. Successful applicants will be informed of any special financial requirements prior to the release of funds or when they receive CIHR's Authorization for Funding (AFF) document.

Access to Information Act and Privacy Act, and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)

All personal information collected by CIHR about applicants is used to review applications, to recruit reviewers, to administer and monitor grants and awards, to compile statistics, and to promote and support health research in Canada. Consistent with these purposes, applicants should also expect that information collected by CIHR may be shared as described in CIHR's Policy on Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality in the context of Merit, Relevance and Peer Review (CCIP).

CIHR as a federal entity is subject to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, therefore the requirements of these two statutes will apply to all information located in CIHR's premises including, without limitation, cost-sharing agreements related to this funding opportunity and all matters pertaining thereto.

While respecting the application of the Privacy Act to federal entities, all signing parties involved in a collaborative agreement will also be bound by the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). All personal information (as identified by the PIPEDA) collected, used or disclosed in the course of any commercial activity under collaborative agreements related to the Funding opportunity will be collected, used and disclosed in compliance with the PIPEDA.

CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People

The CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People came into effect as policy for CIHR-funded research on July 1, 2008. Applicants whose proposed research will involve Aboriginal People are strongly encouraged to familiarise themselves with these guidelines and in particular with the section "Application of the Guidelines," which outlines the situations in which these guidelines apply.

Policy on Access to Research Outputs

CIHR believes that greater access to research publications and data will promote the ability of researchers and knowledge users in Canada and abroad to use and build on the knowledge needed to address significant health challenges. Open access will promote accessibility to CIHR-funded research and will serve to increase the international visibility of Canadian research. As of January 1, 2008, CIHR grant recipients are reminded to adhere with the responsibilities outlined in the Policy on Access to Research Outputs. Under this policy, grant recipients must make every effort to ensure that research papers and bio-molecular data generated from CIHR funding are freely accessible online.

Communication Requirements

Grant recipients are required to acknowledge CIHR, its institutes and partners in any communication or publication related to the project. See Communication of Competition Results for details on CIHR's communication requirements. The contributing institutes/partners will be identified on the Authorization for Funding and decision letter.

Performance Measurement

CIHR is committed to collecting and disseminating information on the outputs and impacts of the research it funds. This information is an important part of CIHR accountability within the Federal Government and to Canadians.

• The Nominated Principal Applicant, will be required to submit an End of Grant report to CIHR 6 months following the end of the grant. This online report would be made available to the Nominated Principal Applicant on ResearchNet at the beginning of the grant funding period and can be filled in as the research progresses.
• The Nominated Principal Applicant must contribute to the monitoring, review and evaluation of CIHR's programs, policies and processes by participating in evaluation studies, surveys, workshops, audits and providing data or reports as required for the purpose of collecting information to assess progress and results;
• The Nominated Principal Applicant must also encourage their associates, trainees and administration to participate in the monitoring, review and evaluation of CIHR's programs, policies and processes as required.

Review Process and Evaluation

Relevance Review Process

The CIHR/Rx&D Collaborative Research Program & Pfizer will provide funding for applications that are relevant to (in alignment with) the objectives and research priority areas described in the Objectives section.

Prior to peer review, CIHR/Rx&D Collaborative Research Program & Pfizer will have access to anonymized project titles and summaries.

The following criteria will be used in conducting the relevance review. (Updated: 2010-03-04)

• The proposal clearly is research on approaches, programs or solutions addressing chronic disease management and/or prevention
• The research is relevant to the Primary Care Setting
• The research evaluates comprehensive approaches addressing chronic disease management and/or prevention. The research program must be easily implemented in a standard clinical practice context (whether that is a clinic, a family health team or other)

Once the relevancy reviews of the registrations are completed, selected applicants will be invited to submit a full application by the deadline date.

Review Committee

A CIHR peer review committee will evaluate the full applications. The committee may be drawn from one of CIHR's pre-existing committees or may be created specifically for this funding opportunity. Committee members are selected based on suggestions from many sources including the institute(s) / branch(es) and partner(s), following CIHR's Policy on Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality in the context of Merit, Relevance and Peer Review (CCIP). For information on CIHR's peer review process in general, see the Understand Peer Review section of CIHR's website.

Evaluation Criteria:

Peer review will be conducted in accordance with CIHR Peer Review Manual for Grant Applications. Reviewers will use the following set of criteria for the evaluation of all CIHR grant applications:

1. Research Approach
2. Originality of the Proposal
3. Applicant(s)
4. Environment for the Research
5. Impact of the Research
6. Ease of implementation
7. Sustainability

A detailed elaboration of these criteria can be found in the Information for Peer Reviewers section of CIHR website.

Funding Decision:

Upon completion of peer review, CIHR/Rx&D Collaborative Research Program & Pfizer will receive the ranking list, ratings and recommendations on funding level and award term for the applications that fall in the fundable range and have been determined to be relevant to the specific research areas and objectives of the initiative. The list will be used for funding decision-making purposes and will remain anonymous unless applicants have provided written consent to share nominative information.

Applications will be funded from the top down in order of ranking as far as budgets will allow.

Applications that receive a ranking below 3.5 will not be funded.

How to Apply

• The application process for this funding opportunity is comprised of two steps: Registration and Application.
• To complete your Registration and Application, follow the instructions identified in the Grants - ResearchNet "Registration" Phase Instructions and the Grants - ResearchNet "Application" Phase Instructions.
• An overview of CIHR's application processes can be found under Apply for Funding.
• Reminder to applicants: Please ensure that your application is complete (including all required signatures) and submitted on time to CIHR. Effective September 1, 2008, CIHR will assume no responsibility in following-up with applicants who submit an incomplete application. Incomplete or late applications will not be accepted into the competition.

Submission Requirements

• Your Application will be submitted using ResearchNet. Scan and upload the signed signature pages including the routing slip in the Print/Upload Signature Pages task in ResearchNet prior to submitting your application.

Specific Requirements:

The following criterion is mandatory for both your Registration and Application to be accepted:

• The Research Proposal must be no more than 11 pages not including references, charts, tables, figures and photographs.
• The maximum number of publications to be appended is 5.

Contact Information

For questions on CIHR funding guidelines, how to apply, and the peer review process contact:

Lisa Lemieux (Updated: 2010-03-04)
Program Delivery Coordinator,
Targeted Initiatives Branch
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-948-2398
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: lisa.lemieux@cihr-irsc.gc.ca

For questions about this initiative and research objectives contact:

Tanya Poirier (Updated: 2010-07-06)
Associate,
Patient Oriented Research Initiative
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-948-2701
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: tanya.poirier@cihr-irsc.gc.ca

Partner/Collaborator Description

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
CIHR is the Government of Canada's agency for health research. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health-care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support more than 13,000 health researchers and trainees across Canada.

Canada's Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies (Rx&D)
Rx&D is an association of leading research-based biopharmaceutical companies dedicated to improving the health of all Canadians through the discovery and development of new medicines and vaccines. Our community represents 18,000 men and women working for close to 50 member companies and it invests each year more than $1 billion in research and development to fuel Canada's knowledge-based economy. Guided by our Code of Ethical Practices, our membership is committed to working in partnership with governments, healthcare professionals and stakeholders in a highly ethical manner.

The CIHR/Rx&D Collaborative Research Program is inspired by the longstanding successful collaboration between the pharmaceutical research industry and CIHR. Under this program, the eligible company partner is a member of Canada 's Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies (Rx&D). The Program promotes peer-reviewed research and enhances the training and development of health research personnel and opportunities in Canada. The Program is designed to enable scientists, clinicians and members of the full spectrum of health professionals, and Rx&D members to optimize their access to the unique opportunities and advantages offered by CIHR's translational research opportunities, including clinical research. The program can also lead to research synergies through collaboration between scientists from both sectors.

Partners

Pfizer Canada
Pfizer Canada Inc. is the Canadian operation of Pfizer Inc., the world's leading biopharmaceutical company. The company is one of the largest contributors to health research in Canada. Pfizer's diversified health care portfolio includes human and animal biologic and small molecule medicines and vaccines, as well as nutritional products and many of the world's best-known consumer products. Every day, Pfizer Canada employees work to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases of our time. We apply science and our global resources to improve the health and well being of Canadians at every stage of life. Our commitment is reflected in everything Pfizer does, from our disease awareness initiatives to our community partnerships, to our belief that it takes more than medication to be truly healthy. To learn more about Pfizer's More Than Medication philosophy and programs, visit morethanmedication.ca. To learn more about Pfizer Canada, visit pfizer.ca. (Updated: 2010-03-04)