Operating Grant Priority Announcement: Aging (Archived)
CIHR Institute of Aging
Request for Applications
Priority Announcements fund highly rated research applications that are determined to be relevant to specific CIHR research priority areas and do not receive funding through CIHR's regular competitions.
| Important Dates | |
| Opportunity Launched | December 2006 |
| Content Last Updated | January 30, 2007 (How to Apply) |
| February 1, 2007 | Registration Deadline - Registration packages must be courier stamped by this date. |
| March 1, 2007 | Full applications must be courier stamped by this date. |
| June 30, 2007 | Anticipated notification of decision. |
| October 1, 2007 | Anticipated start date. |
| Additional Information | Applications are submitted through the March 2007 - Operating Grant competition |
| Funds Available | |
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CIHR's contribution to the amount available for this initiative is subject to availability of funds voted annually to CIHR by parliamentary appropriations, and the conditions that may be attached to them.
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| Summary | |
| Part of the mandate of the CIHR Institute of Aging (IA) includes the development and support of high quality research programs and initiatives related to aging. The purpose of this Priority Announcement is to further research advances within IA's priority topics by encouraging applications in these areas as well as to increase the success rate of relevant applications. | |
Table of Contents
Objectives
Eligibility
Review Process and Evaluation Criteria
General CIHR Guidelines
Conditions of Funding
How to Apply
Contact Information
Objectives
The objectives of this priority announcement are:
- to further research advances within IA's priority research areas by encouraging applications in these areas;
- to increase the success rate of relevant applications.
The CIHR Institute of Aging will fund applications that are determined to be relevant to the research priority areas described below. Additional funding is available for highly ranked applications relevant to the Strategic Initiative Announcement -Mobility in Aging. More information on the research priorities of the Institute of Aging can be found on the Institute of Aging website.
- Healthy and successful aging
Research is needed on the determinants of healthy and successful aging, including: positive health behaviours and lifestyles, physical activity, nutrition; population health, population aging; aging in rural and remote areas; housing, transportation, living arrangements; social support, isolation, loneliness; life course transitions; participation of seniors in society; family and intergenerational relationships, family structure and processes; economic issues, retirement; leisure / recreation; quality of life; wisdom; resilience; mental health (prevention of depression, anxiety, and suicide); maintenance of cognitive abilities; death and dying with dignity; prevention of substance abuse and addictions (tobacco, alcohol, gambling); secure aging (prevention of elder abuse and violence).
- Biological mechanisms of aging
Research in this area should target: cell and tissue senescence; apoptosis; stress and longevity genes; telomeres and telomerase; reproductive aging; neurobiology of aging; DNA maintenance and repair; free radicals and antioxidants; genetic animal models of aging; age-related changes in tissue; systems and functions.
- Cognitive impairment in aging
The Institute is leading the development of a National Research Strategy on Cognitive Impairment in Aging encompassing cognitive impairment as a continuum, including Alzheimer Disease and other dementias, such as vascular dementia. Areas of research include: biomolecular basis of disease; neuropsychological aspects; genetics and environmental influences; social, psychological and lifestyle influences; normal vs abnormal changes in cognitive function; diagnosis; epidemiology; treatment and prevention (pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention); caregiving; health services and rehabilitation; safety issues (car driving, fire prevention); ethics; and quality of life.
- Aging and maintenance of functional autonomy
The focus of the Institute of Aging is primarily on the functional limitations as the consequences of diseases rather than on the diseases themselves, as these are addressed by other CIHR institutes: frailty and functional decline; motor disabilities, gait and posture, falls; communication (speech, language) and sensory disabilities (hearing, vision); incontinence; aids and adaptation; rehabilitation, geriatric services; home and institutional care and caregiving; major causes of disabilities (stroke, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis, respiratory diseases). Also see the Strategic Initiative Announcement -Mobility in Aging of the CIHR Institute of Aging, which aims to address research and knowledge translation needs within the range of intrinsic and extrinsic challenges (from biological to environmental) associated with mobility of older Canadians.
- Health services and policy relating to older people
The Institute of Aging will support research in the following areas: acute and long-term care; home care, community care; residential care (including assisted living, supportive housing and nursing homes); caregiving; nutritional services, dental services; geriatric services, nursing services, medical services (care gap); medication use; end-of-life and palliative care; integrated delivery systems; health and social services related policy analysis.
Relevance of the applications to the research priorities will be determined in the following manner.
Prior to peer review, the Institute of Aging staff in consultation with the Institute of Aging Advisory board members, as required, and partners (if any) will review applications to determine the relevance, or alignment, of the research proposed to the research priority areas and/or mandates described above.
To conduct relevance review, these representatives will have access to the completed relevance form (see "How to Apply"), anonymized project titles and summaries, provided that applicants have indicated their consent on the "Applicant Consent Form for Use and Disclosure of Personal Information Provided to CIHR for Peer Review," which is included in the application forms.
The following criteria will be used in conducting the relevance review. These must be addressed in separate paragraphs on the relevance form:
Criterion #1: Extent to which the proposal addresses one or more of the five IA relevant research areas;
Criterion #2: Extent to which the research and research design address issues of aging and/or the aged are essential elements of the research objectives, hypotheses and analyses (e.g., dynamics of aging, age-relevant models and/or aged subjects; uniqueness of aging or aged population).
Criterion #3 (optional): Extent to which the proposal addresses eligible areas of inquiry under the Strategic Initiative Announcement -Mobility in Aging.
Applicants should note that, unless otherwise stated in the priority, the focus of the Institute of Aging is primarily on the functional limitations as the consequences of diseases rather than on the diseases themselves, as these are addressed by other CIHR Institutes.
Upon completion of peer review, the Institute of Aging and partners (if any) will receive the ratings, rankings and peer review committee recommendations on funding level and grant or award term for those applications that 1) are found to be relevant to the research priority areas described under "Relevant Research Areas"; and 2) are rated within the CIHR fundable range but are not funded through the regular CIHR competition to which they were submitted. These applications will be funded from the top down in order of ranking as far as budgets will allow. Applications that receive a rating below 3.5 will not be funded.
The relevance review occurs apart from the peer review (scientific review) and has no relationship to the results of peer review. Peer review committees will not be informed of applications submitted for funding through this announcement.
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 Eligibility Requirements for CIHR Grants and Awards regarding the eligibility requirements for individuals and institutions.
Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) will NOT be considered for funding through this Priority Announcement.
Review Process and Evaluation Criteria
A CIHR peer review committee will evaluate the full applications. The peer review committee members are selected based on suggestions from many sources including the Institute(s) / portfolio(s) and partner(s), following CIHR's Policy on Confidentiality, Conflict of Interest and Privacy Issues in Peer and Relevance Review (CCIP). For information on CIHR's peer review process in general, see Peer Review.
General CIHR Guidelines
This Priority Announcement will follow the CIHR General Grants and Awards Policies. Applicants are encouraged to demonstrate the use of Gender and Sex-Based Analysis in applications.
Conditions of Funding
All conditions specified in CIHR General Grants and Awards Policies shall apply to applications funded through this Priority Announcement. Conditions cover areas such as Applicant and Institutional Responsibilities, Ethics, Official language policy, Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Acknowledgement of CIHR Support. Successful applicants will be informed of any special financial conditions 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 Use and Disclosure of Personal Information Provided to CIHR for Peer Review.
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 priority announcement 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 priority announcement will be collected, used and disclosed in compliance with the PIPEDA.
How to Apply
Applicants are advised to review CIHR's grants and awards policies and guidelines outlined in the CIHR Grants and Awards Guide. Applications are submitted through the March 2007 - Operating Grant competition by including a mandatory Relevance Form (see Lists of Forms and Guidelines for Completion) with your regular Operating Grant application. To select the appropriate application forms, follow the links beside Operating Grants from the list of Application Packages).
Please note that if the Operating Grant peer review committee you will be applying to requires registration and full application through ResearchNet then you are not required to submit a separate Relevance Form or a separate Applicant Consent Form for Use and Disclosure of Personal Information Provided to CIHR as this information is incorporated into the process on ResearchNet. (Updated: 2007-01-30)
Additional Instructions for this Priority Announcement:
- Within the Research Funding Program section of the application web form, select "Priority Announcement," then enter the relevant research area(s) that relate(s) to your application and the title of this Priority Announcement in the spaces provided.
- Complete the Applicant Consent Form for Use and Disclosure of Personal Information Provided to CIHR for Peer Review, which is included in the application form.
- Complete one Relevance Form for each research area identified. Detailed instructions are provided on the Relevance Form (see Lists of Forms and Guidelines for Completion).
- It is important to address how your application is relevant to the Criterion #1, #2 and if applicable #3, in separate paragraphs on the relevance form.
Contact Information
(Updated: 2007-01-29)For questions related to specific CIHR competitions and programs, including CIHR funding guidelines, how to apply, the peer review process, and funding decisions contact:
Sophie Desjardins
Program Delivery Coordinator
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-954-6054
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: sdesjardins@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
For questions about the objectives and relevant research areas:
Please note: to ensure transparency of process this contact does not have information about the identity of successful applicants and final funding decisions before they are made public. As such, all queries related to funding decisions that are addressed to this contact will be redirected to the program delivery representative indicated above.
Susan Crawford
Assistant Director-Vancouver
Institute of Aging
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
The University of British Columbia
2080 West Mall, Room 038
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2
Telephone: 604-822-9075
Fax: 604-822-9304
Email: susanmc@interchange.ubc.ca
