Grant writing for medical and healthcare professionals

✍ Scribed by Subhash Chandra Parija, Vikram Kate

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 2023
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 250
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Conducting research requires resources to meet the research need. The resources in the research institutes/ centers are often inadequate, limiting the research outcome. Research grants help overcome those limitations and help the researchers carry out quality research without any restriction. Grant proposal writing is an essential skill to be mastered by every researcher. However, the majority of the medical schools, except the few research institutes, do not have a structured learning module for obtaining grants. On most occasions, the skill of writing grant proposals goes by self-learning. For students, it is burdening due to the tremendous time consumed to learn the craft of writing the grant proposal and the exhausting clinical and academic work. 
This book is carefully prepared to keep in mind the difficulties faced by the young researchers and the students concerning choosing a funding agency, grant makers' expectations, budgeting, surveillance and site visits, rights of the researcher and the funding agency, and ethical and legal aspects of obtaining the grant. The book also covers the alternate plan for partial funding or interruption of the financing, reporting the source of funding and acknowledgment, good clinical practice guidelines, and dealing with the rejected grant proposal. The research projects are often dropped or modified extensively due to the limited resources in the existing facility. The researchers are forced to compromise the research objective due to expensive requirements. There is a shortage of awareness regarding the availability of funding and grant for the conduct of research. Even if the researchers are aware of obtaining the financing, there is a lack of training in grant proposal writing, which is essential in getting the research funding. 
This book on grant proposal writing for medical and healthcare professionals covers such difficulties and deficiencies. It will provide complete companionship from knowing the funding agency to obtaining the grant.  

✦ Table of Contents

Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgments
Contents
Editors and Contributors
Part I: Understanding Grant Writing
1: What Is Your Aim (Ambition-Interest-Mission), and What You Want to Do?
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Roles of a Medical Teacher
1.2.1 Medical Teacher: Academics
1.2.2 Medical Teacher: Patient Care
1.2.3 Medical Teacher: Research
1.3 Role of Research in Improving Academics
1.4 Role of Research in Improving Patient Care
1.5 Research and Professional Growth
1.6 Research Grants
1.7 Conclusion
References
2: What Is a Grant? How to Prepare a Grant Proposal Application
2.1 What is a Grant?
2.2 Types of Grants in Academic Medical Institutions
2.3 Importance of Obtaining a Grant
2.4 How to Prepare for Writing a Grant Proposal Application
2.5 Conclusion
References
3: Funders´ Perspective: What the Funding Body Expects from Researchers?
3.1 Funding Agencies are Looking for Good Proposals-They Want to Fund Research
3.2 Funding Agencies Have Different Grant Cycles-Keep a Track of Them
3.3 Write the Application in the Format That the Funder Wants to Read-Keep the Writing Simple and Organized
3.4 Provide Clear Objectives of the Study
3.5 Present the Latest Scenario in the Proposed Field of Research-and Why Your Research Should be Funded Over Others
3.6 Provide Preliminary Data if Possible
3.7 Provide Clear Methodology-Show That You Know What to Do and How to Do
3.8 Show the Plan for Data Collection, Analysis, and Sharing
3.9 Provide Realistic Timelines and Goals
3.10 State the Impact of the Study
3.11 Ask the Funders for What you Need-Know How Much they can Give
3.12 Public Outreach Activities
3.13 Cite Appropriate References
3.14 Check for Plagiarism Score
3.15 Choose the Right Co-investigators and Collaborators
3.16 Choose the Right Host Institution
3.17 Provide Genuine Letters of Support
3.18 Learn from the Rejections-Try Again
3.19 Acknowledging the Funding Body in the Publications
3.20 Conclusion
References
4: Funding Organizations for Science and Health Care
4.1 Introduction
4.2 How Do Funding Agencies Facilitate or Hinder Research Progress?
4.3 How Do You Get Funding for Research?
4.4 What are the Types of Research Funding?
4.5 Information Regarding Various Funding Agencies (National and International Agencies)
4.5.1 Status of Research Funding in India
4.5.1.1 Department of Science and Technology (DST)
4.5.1.2 SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board)
4.5.1.3 Department of Biotechnology (DBT)
4.5.1.4 Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
4.5.1.5 Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
4.5.1.6 Ayush
4.6 How to Write a Budget Proposal?
4.7 Evaluation Process and Measurement of Efficiency for Research Funding
4.7.1 Evaluation Process
4.7.2 Monitoring and Efficiency of Funding
4.8 Conclusion
References
5: Obtaining Letters of Support
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Letters of Support-What are They?
5.3 Who can Provide a Letter of Support?
5.4 Applying for a Letter of Support
5.4.1 Identify the Providers of the Letters
5.4.2 Meeting with the Providers of the Letters
5.4.3 Requisition for the Letter of Support
5.5 Components of a Letter of Support
5.6 Letter of Support vs Memorandum of Understanding
5.7 Significance of a Letter of Support
5.8 Conclusion
References
Part II: The Process for Grant Writing
6: Writing a Grant Proposal for a Single Centre Study: Step-by-Step Approach
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Responding to a Call for Funding
6.2.1 Steps in Responding to a Funding Call
6.2.2 Types of Projects that can be Supported by the Funding Agencies (Fig. 6.2)
6.3 Steps in Preparing the Grant Proposal
6.4 Standard Elements of a Grant Proposal
6.4.1 General Information
6.4.2 Details of the Research Project
6.4.3 Timeline of the Project
6.4.4 Budgeting for a Grant
6.4.4.1 Steps in Preparing a Budget for a Grant
6.4.4.2 Typical Categories for Preparing a Budget are as Follows
6.5 Documents to be Submitted with Grant Application
6.6 After Submission
6.7 If At First You Don´t Succeed...
6.8 Carry Out the Project
6.9 Submit a Report to the Funding Agency
6.10 Things to Keep in Mind While Writing a Grant
6.11 Conclusion
References
7: Budgeting the Project: Detailing the Required Funding and Expenditure
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Main Types of Project Costs
7.3 Components of Project Budget
7.4 Detailing the Required Funding and Expenditure with Justification
7.4.1 Sample Budget-1: Budget Justifications and Sample Calculation (Table 7.1)
7.4.2 Sample Budget-2: Budget Justifications and Sample Calculation (Table 7.2)
7.5 Conclusion
References
8: Proving the Competency of the Researcher and the Adequacy of the Infrastructure to Carry Out the Research
8.1 Good Researcher
8.2 Competencies of a Researcher
8.3 Providing the Competencies for the Researcher
8.3.1 The Role of an Organization
8.3.2 The Role of a Researcher
8.4 The Need for Research Infrastructure
8.5 Research Infrastructure
8.5.1 Common Challenges [11]
8.6 Models to Assess the Impact of Implemented Research Infrastructure
8.6.1 Exhortations for Achieving High Yield Research
8.7 Conclusion
References
9: Agreement and MOU: Ethical and Legal Aspects of Funding for Healthcare Research
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Health Services Research (HSR) Funding: Ethical and Legal Aspects
9.3 MoUs, Agreements
9.4 Types of Agreements in Biomedical Research (Alternate Modalities to Agreements and MoUs)
9.5 The Distinction Between Agreements and MoUs
9.6 Points to be Remembered While Drafting an Agreement or MoU: from the Viewpoint of Funding Research
9.7 Reflection on the Ethical and Legal Aspects of Funding Healthcare Research in the Drafting of MoUs and Agreements
9.8 The Ethical and Legal Aspects of Funding Research in Health Care
9.9 The Basic Structure of Ethical Consideration of Funding for Research in Health Care
9.10 Case Studies with Reference to Ethical and Legal Aspects of Funded Research [15-17]
9.11 Ethical and Legal Considerations in Funded Research, with Reference to the Above-Cited Case Studies
9.12 Conclusion
References
10: Writing an Impressive Cover Page (Covering Letter) and Abstract for Grant Proposal Application
10.1 Introduction: The Need for Cover Letter and Abstract
10.2 How to Compose a Cover Letter for a Grant Proposal?
10.2.1 Salient Features of Cover Letter
10.2.2 Make Grant Proposal the Soul of Cover Letter
10.2.3 Cover Letter Needs Due Attention: Not A Simple Exercise
10.2.3.1 Here is How to Compose A Cover Letter
10.2.3.2 Framing the Cover Letter to Seek Attention of Reader
10.2.4 Key Information and Features of Cover Letter
10.2.5 Main Highlights of Cover Letter
10.2.6 Concluding Formatting the Cover Letter
10.2.6.1 Tips and Mistakes to Avoid Once Writing a Cover Letter
10.2.6.2 The Format of the Letter
10.2.7 The Significant Aspect of Cover Letter can be Summarised in a Few Significant Facts
10.3 Abstract for Grant Proposal
10.3.1 Significance of Abstract
10.3.2 Salient Features of How to Write an Abstract
10.3.3 Consider the Essential Project Elements and Norms of Application
10.4 Conclusion
References
11: Surveillance Plan and Site Visit: Roles and Rights of the Researcher and the Funding Agency
11.1 Introduction
11.2 What Would Be Evaluated in a Site Visit?
11.2.1 Initial Visit (Before Funding)
11.2.2 Surveillance Visit (During the Conduct of the Project)
11.3 Role of the Researcher. How to Prepare for a Site/Surveillance Visit?
11.3.1 Before the Visit
11.3.2 During the Visit
11.3.2.1 Documents
11.3.2.2 Presentation
11.3.2.3 Site Tour
11.3.2.4 Surveillance Visit
11.4 Rights of the Researcher
11.5 Role of the Funding Agency
11.6 Other Forms of Monitoring
11.6.1 Remote Monitoring
11.6.2 Centralized Monitoring
11.6.3 Reverse Site Visit
11.7 Conclusion
References
12: Sources of Funding and Acknowledgement: Good Clinical Practice Guidelines
12.1 Reporting Sources of Funding
12.1.1 Overview
12.1.2 Expressing Gratitude
12.1.3 Reporting Sources of Funding: Why It Is Important?
12.1.4 Good Clinical Practice Guidelines: What Does It Say About Sources of Funding?
12.1.5 Funder Registry
12.1.6 Reporting Sources of Funding: Structure and Content
Example 1 (Author´s statement version and single source):
Example 2 (Neutral statement version and more than one source)
Example 3 (First-person version)
12.1.7 Reporting Sources of Funding: Special Mention
Example
Example (First-person version, single source, more than one grant)
12.1.8 Reporting Sources of Funding: Some Cautions
12.2 Writing Acknowledgements
12.2.1 Overview
12.2.2 Acknowledgements: Whom to Choose?
Box 12.1: Criteria for acknowledgements
12.2.3 Acknowledgements: Structure and Content
12.2.4 Acknowledgements: Examples
12.3 Conclusion
References
13: Writing a Grant Proposal for a Collaborative Study
13.1 Introduction
13.2 What Areas in Planning a Collaborative Grant Proposal Warrant Attention?
13.2.1 Communication
13.2.2 Decisions on Principal, Co-, and Other Investigators
13.2.3 Decisions on the Governance of the Project
13.2.4 Authorship in Publications Ensuing from the Research
13.2.5 Intellectual Property
13.2.6 Funding Arrangements
13.3 Writing the Actual Proposal
13.4 Conclusion
References
14: Checklist for Grant Proposal: Mandatory Elements
14.1 Essential Elements for Grant Writing Application
14.2 Tips for Key Elements of a Successful Grant Proposal Application
14.3 Conclusion
References
15: Tips for Improvising the Chance of Getting the Grant
15.1 Introduction
15.2 Focus Your Area of Research Work
15.3 Continuity of Research Questions
15.4 Clarity of Research Hypothesis and Innovative Thought
15.5 Title of the Proposal
15.6 Focus on Research Methodology and Multi-disciplinary Work
15.7 Clarity of Language
15.8 Read the Guidelines for Grant Application
15.9 Being Aware of the Larger Picture from the Angle of an Investigator
15.10 Reviewer´s Angle
15.11 Fundamentals on Framing the Research Proposal
15.12 Critical Steps in Preparation of Funding Proposal
15.13 Research Proposal is Written for the Audience
15.14 Concept Proposal Development
15.15 Identification of Relevant Funding Agencies
15.16 Research the Funding Programs of the Agencies
15.17 Propose a Realistic Research Budget
15.18 Excel in All Categories
15.19 Proposal Document
15.20 Most Important Tips on Successfully Getting Funding
15.21 Conclusion
References
16: Dealing with the Rejected Grant Proposal: Learning from the Mistakes
16.1 Introduction
16.2 Sources of Feedback
16.2.1 Identifying and Rectifying Common Mistakes in Writing a Grant Proposal
16.2.1.1 Study and Research Methodology
Methodology
16.2.1.2 Preparing for Contingencies
16.2.1.3 Value of the Project
16.2.1.4 Existing Knowledge
16.2.1.5 Pilot Studies
16.2.2 The Application
16.2.2.1 Alignment with Guidelines
16.2.2.2 Formatting Issues
16.2.2.3 Budget Mistakes
16.2.2.4 The Proposal was not Written Clearly and Persuasively
16.2.2.5 Timing
16.2.2.6 Unrealistic Workload
16.2.3 Issues with the Applicant or Team
16.2.3.1 An Inexperienced Applicant with a Poor Track Record
16.2.3.2 Mistrust Between Funder and Applicants
16.3 Seeking Alternative Sources of Funding
16.4 Conclusion
References
Part III: Grant Writing for Specific Regional Funding Organizations
17: Preparing a Grant Proposal for Medical Research in the UK
17.1 Sources of Medical Research Grants in the UK
17.1.1 Government Organizations and Research Councils
17.1.1.1 Medical Research Council
17.1.1.2 National Institute of Health Research (NIHR)
17.1.1.3 Innovate UK (Technology Strategy Board)
17.1.2 Charities
17.1.2.1 Wellcome Trust
17.1.2.2 Cancer Research, UK
17.1.3 Pharmaceuticals and Industries
17.1.4 Royal Colleges
17.1.5 Medical and Surgical Societies
17.2 Applying for Grants: Writing a Successful Application
17.2.1 Preparation
17.2.2 Proposal Content and Pitching
17.3 Assessment of Grant Applications
17.4 Conclusion
References
18: Preparing a Grant Proposal for the USA
18.1 Prewriting Phase
18.2 Writing Phase
18.2.1 Specific Aim/Aims
18.2.2 Research Strategy
18.2.2.1 Part A. Addressing the Scored Criteria
18.2.2.2 Part B: Addressing Each Aim in Detail
18.2.2.3 Part C: Potential Pitfalls and Limitations
18.3 Budgeting
18.4 General Instructions
18.5 Conclusion
Reference
19: Preparing a Grant Proposal for Australia
19.1 Grant Proposals
19.2 Sources of Funding in Australia
19.3 Grant Applications
19.4 Research the Grant
19.5 Commonly Requested Documents
19.6 Abstract
19.7 Introduction
19.8 Discussing the Issue
19.9 Body
19.10 Concluding Part
19.11 Conclusion
References
20: Proposal Writing for Grant Application in Malaysia
20.1 Introduction to Malaysia
20.1.1 Geography
20.1.2 Population and Cultures
20.1.3 Economy
20.2 Research Ecosystem in Malaysia
20.2.1 Research Expenditure
20.2.1.1 International Comparison of Research and Development (R and D) Expenditure
20.2.1.2 Overview of R and D Activities in Malaysia
20.2.1.3 Gross Expenditure on Research and Development (GERD)
20.2.2 Twelfth Malaysia Plan (12MP)
20.2.2.1 MOSTI´s Malaysia Grand Challenge (MGC)
10-10 Malaysian Science, Technology, Innovation, and Economy (MySTIE) Framework
20.2.2.2 MOHE´s Malaysia Greater Research Network System (MyGRANTS)
20.2.2.3 MOH´s Research Grant (MRG)
20.3 Establishing the Type of Research (and Technology Readiness Level, If Applicable) of Your Proposed Research Idea
20.3.1 Basic Research vs Applied Research vs Experimental Development
20.3.2 Technology Readiness Level (TRL)
20.3.2.1 Utilization of TRL in Malaysia
Discovery Stage
Determination Stage
Development Stage
20.3.3 Summary of Suitable Grants Based on TRLs and Research Stage
20.4 Drafting the Proposal
20.4.1 General Requirements of a Research Proposal for Grant Application
20.4.2 Key Elements of Research Proposal According to Research Type
20.4.2.1 Research Focused on Knowledge Generation and Policy-Driven
20.4.2.2 Research with a Commercial Outcome
20.5 Case Scenarios
20.6 Responsibilities of Grant Recipient
20.7 Conclusion
References
21: Grant Writing for Other Asian Countries
21.1 Introduction
21.2 Where and How to being With?
21.3 Grant Categories
21.4 Major International Funding Sources
21.5 Regional Grants Sources
21.6 Description of a Few Regional Grants Funding Sources
21.7 Conclusion
References