Quality in Endoscopic Research Award

Not currently offering the award at this time.  

Submission

The ASGE Research Committee requires electronic submission in a dingle PDF file. If you are having problems submitting your grant application, please email the application and/or questions to grants@asge.org or by calling Liz O'Keefe at 630.570.5623.

**Grants not meeting the stated requirements, such as exceeding the page limits, will be administratively returned without review.**

Special Note

If the application is not selected for the Quality in Endoscopy Research Award, it will still be considered for an Endoscopic Research Award.

Description

This award will measure or improve quality of care (clinical or patient-oriented or physician behavior outcomes) and/or efficiency in gastrointestinal endoscopy, such as studies to improve the quality of screening colonoscopy. The research committee will consider feasibility/pilot/validation studies if there is an explicit justification for needing preliminary data in anticipation of a subsequent, more definitive, fundable study.

Objective

To foster research relating to measuring quality in gastrointestinal endoscopy both in the academic and private practice setting.

Eligibility

Candidate must be an ASGE member, (ASGE membership is requirement of eligibility for grants and awards, must be a current member at the time of application) be an MD (or have equivalent degree), and be current in a gastroenterology-related and endoscopic practice in an academic institution or private practice in North America. Canididates who are delinquent on prior ASGE research grant progress reports are not eligble for future ASGE funding. If the candidate is a trainee, there must be a letter from the Division Chief confirming the trainee’s ongoing appointment at the institution for the duration for the grant, and their position title, and/or a contingency plan.

Awards and Requirements

1. Funding may be requested for up to $75,000 in total funding, and spread over two years of study. Note: If the application is not selected for the Quality in Endoscopy Research Award, it will still be considered for an Endoscopic Research Award.
   
2. Requests for funding "seed" projects that will lead to further research as well as larger requests for definitive clinical trials will be considered. In order to maximize the funds available for research, money for travel to meeting(s) will not be provided, nor will funding be provided for indirect costs.
   
3. The budget request should be detailed and all items should be clearly related to the research proposal. Budgets will be carefully scrutinized by the ASGE Research Committee and will be considered in the scoring of the grant. Inappropriate or poorly justified budgets will jeopardize the likelihood of the application receiving an award. Additionally, the research committee retains the right to adjust the award to an amount it feels appropriate for the project.
   
4. Funding requests may include:
   1. Personnel (research assistant and/or faculty salary support—percentage of time for study should be specified and appropriately justified).
   2. Study supplies
   3. Equipment essential for study
      
5. Funding will not be provided for:
   1. Salary support for trainees
   2. Computer purchases (unless a unique application is proposed)
   3. Standard equipment and supplies needed for appropriate patient care (for example, sclerotherapy needles)
   4. Travel to meetings
   5. Indirect costs
      
6. Duration of funding: up to two years. The second year of continued funding is contingent on satisfactory study progress determined by the Chair of the Research Committee based on mandatory annual progress reports.
   
7. Studies which include more than one center should provide institutional review board approval from each center. The participating institutions and investigators should be specified in the application.
   
8. Progress reports must be submitted to the Chair of the Research Committee via the ASGE Administrative Offices every 12 months for the duration of the project. Progress reports must include a financial statement from the institutional grants or accounting office. Failure to submit a progress report by the stated deadline may affect future funding.
   
9. Requests for extensions must be submitted in writing to the Chair of the Research Committee via the ASGE administrative office. This request should include a) a detailed summary regarding how grant money has been spent (or forecasted to be spent) up to the original award end date, and b) a proposed budget describing in reasonable detail how the remaining funds will be spent in the upcoming year. Although the mentor can be, and should be, involved in this NCE and Progress Report, it should not be written by the mentor – it should be drafted by and signed by the mentee PI. Change in PI for the upcoming award period should be proposed by and justified by the original PI, including changes of the PI-ship to the mentor.

Upon completion of the award, ASGE requires that a final scientific and financial report from the grants or account office be submitted. All publications and abstracts must acknowledge support from the ASGE.

Selection Criteria

Grants are awarded based on the scientific merit of the proposal and assessment of the investigator's ability to complete the project (supportive environment, experience, training, availability of patients and other resources needed). The proposed research project must be approved by the ASGE Research Committee and should also be of such quality as to lead to presentation at Digestive Disease Week® and subsequent full publication. The objective of these ASGE awards is the eventual submission of larger research funding requests, including federal funding, and proposals with such potential will be given priority.

Review Process

The ASGE Research Committee will review the Quality in Endoscopy Research Award proposals and recommend a single award. The final selection of awards is made by the ASGE Governing Board.

Deadline

Not currently offering the award at this time. 

*The number of awards granted is contingent on funds available.

Grant Proposal Outline

Each application must have page numbers, be in Arial 11point font, with >0.75” margins, and contain:

1. Abstract - Include name, institution, project title, mentor name if applicable, and a one-page summary of the proposal including hypothesis and goals. Suggested headings include: Background; Aims/Hypothesis; Methods; Analysis and Sample size Calculation; Timeline and Feasibility; Future Study. Limit one page.

2. Biosketch- Provide NIH-style biosketch for candidate, mentor and co-investigators that includes all relevant publications and current funding. http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html to see Sketch Sample. Limit to four pages.

3. Grant Proposal - Prepare according to NIH-form SF 424 (R&R) guidelines. (excluding references) Limit to five pages.

      a. Title and Introduction

      b. Hypothesis & Specific Aims - This should be a clear statement of the problem, the related hypothesis/question and a brief description of the proposed scientific plan. Provide a concise explanation in a few sentences.

      c. Background and Significance– Justification regarding scope of the problem, and relevance to ASGE membership and endoscopy community.

      d. Innovation

      e. Preliminary Results- Outline prior studies or your pilot work already completed in this area. If prior studies have not been done by your group, give brief details of pilot work done by others.

      f. Approach - Describe the methods of collection and analysis of the data. A statistical data analysis plan, including sample size calculations, is required, even for retrospective studies. Be as specific as possible. Links to sample size calculators and basic on-line statistical calculators are included below: Graphpad, R, Statistics Online Computational Resource (SOCR), Rollin Brant's sample size calculator,University of Iowa sample size calculator

     g. Pitfalls, alternatives and future directions

     h. Conflict of Interest - A statement regarding conflict of interest and/or financial ownership, patent rights, etc. of technique/devices being studied in the grant proposal must be included in each grant application, along with a plan for resolution of these conflicts. If conflicts are significant and do not appear to be able to be resolved, the application may be denied.

4. References - Limit to two pages.

5. Budget - Please justify all items (including %effort) with a separate budget justification page. Budgets will be carefully scrutinized by the Research Committee and will be considered in the scoring of the grant. Inappropriate or poorly justified budgets will jeopardize the likelihood of the application receiving an award. Additionally, the committee retains the right to adjust the award to an amount it feels appropriate for the project. Limit to one page for budget, one page for justification.

     a. The maximum request should be $75,000 total. Grant support for this amount may be spread over two years. The second year of continued funding is contingent on satisfactory progress demonstrated in mandatory yearly progress reports.

     b. The budget request should be detailed and all items should be clearly related to the research proposal.

     c. Funding requests (see "Awards and Requirements" section numbers 3 & 4).

     d. Submitted projects for additional funding should include a copy of the previous year's budget and Progress Report Form.

a) Funding requests may include:

     1. Personnel (research assistant and/or faculty salary support--percentage of time for study should be specified and appropriately justified).

     2. Study supplies

     3. Special endoscopic equipment/accessories essential for study

b) Funding will not be provided for:

      1. Salary support for trainees

      2. Computer purchases for investigators or coordinators

      3. Standard endoscopic equipment and supplies

      4. Travel to meetings or publication costs

      5. Indirect costs

6. Resources and Environment - List facilities, equipment, and available personnel required to complete this project. Be aware that reviewers of the grant may not be aware of the resources and/or patient volumes of your center, so do not assume that they will. Letters of collaborations should be included, if applicable, especially if from other institutions. Limit statement and collaborator letters to one page each.

7. Institutional Review Board - Attach IRB approval or proof of exempt status, if available (this may help if ability to obtain IRB approval is called into question by the committee). If not available at time of application, and the application is funded, no funds will be released until IRB approval is received by the ASGE Research office.

8. Previous ASGE-funded studies should submit a copy of the previous budget and financial report in order to be considered for additional funding.