Funding is available to Faculty in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery to fulfill the following strategies:

Department strategy for use of Pre-clinical fundsis as investment in:

  1. Authentic career development research of assistant professor faculty.
  2. Research that is likely to yield future external peer review funding in great excess of the Department dollars invested

Review criteria include fit with these investment strategies, and are listed at the end of this document. Grants will be scored directly based on these criteria.

  1. Project Title:
  1. Investigators (Include Senior Faculty Sponsor*):
  1. Problem Definition:

Clearly define what question you want to answer. Be specific, summarize in 250 words.

  1. Define Study Objectives (Specific Aims) and Hypotheses: Write a clear and precise statement of the specific objectives of the study, and one or more specific testable hypotheses. Make sure the objectives and hypotheses address the gap in the knowledge stated above (500 words).
  1. Review of Relevant Literature:This section is useful to evaluate best method to proceed with your research question. Make your literature review have a point by using it to address the issues below (500 words):

- summarize what is known about the topic area

- identify unanswered question or unaddressed issue (gap in the knowledge)

- show how the proposed study will address gap in the knowledge

- include a short list of only the most pertinent references

  1. Experimental Design: Present a brief experimental design addressing Specific Aims (1000 words), including:

- test groups (table format is useful)

- numbers of specimens or subjects, with justification

- measurement systems and variables

- statistical tests that will be used

* ask for assistance if help is needed on any of these items

  1. How will this lead to advances in clinical and surgical care and outcomes for patients? How will this inform future clinical studies? Or, how will this be translated into improving patient care? (250 words)
  1. How will this advance the career of applicant? Outline how this fits into overall career path, how this would be intended to lead to larger funding opportunities (250 words)
  1. Timetable for Project: Outline target dates for major project landmarks (add as needed).

Protocol development / Obtain exp’l materials / Data collection / Data analysis + statistics / Summarize & interpret / Prepare abstract / Prepare manuscript
  1. Authorship: List titles of potential abstracts and papers to be submitted, target journals, and authors.
  1. Expenses: Estimate the following budget items required to complete project. If project includes Biomechanics testing, Excelen will provide estimate for experimental testing costs.

Budget:

Supplies / Quantity / Unit price / Total cost
Examples:
Specimens (procurement, transport, cremation) / - / -
Fixtures
Potting materials, disposable testing supplies
Implants/devices / - / -
Supplies subtotal
Equipment / Time / Rate / Total cost
Examples:
Uniaxial load frame
Biaxial load frame
-spinal loading fixtures
Vicon motion measurement
C-arm fluoroscopy
DEXA
Strain gages
Extensometer – displacement gages
Equipment subtotal / $1,400
Personnel / Time (hours) / Rate / Total cost
Examples:
Engineer (Responsibilities include: protocol development, fixture design, testing, data export, data reduction, test report preparation, review and revision)
Technician
Machinist
Anatomist/dissection
Statistician
Salary subtotal
Total / $8,650
*Provided by sponsor
  1. Funding: List the anticipated sources of funding that will meet the above expenses
  1. Subject matter experts for review:

Please list up to three subject matter experts within UM faculty who are qualified to review the protocol.

  1. *Senior Faculty sponsor:

Please include statement from Faculty sponsor stating that they are familiar with the work, that they endorse the research direction, how it can eventually fit with clinical patient care, and that they have discussed with you how it fits with your overall goals (250 words). Please discuss with Dr. Bechtold if you have not identified a Faculty sponsor.

  1. Specific Aims review session:

The Pre-Clinical Research Committee holds regular Specific Aims review sessions. Please consider submitting this protocol (or subsequent protocols submitted for extramural funding) to this group for feedback and critique.

  1. Review Criteria:
  1. Fit with department strategy for use of Pre-clinical funds*
  2. Fit with assistant professor applicant’s overall career goals; ability to advance career in focused direction, ability to position applicant for more competitive funding, and/or
  3. Likelihood of being able to secure substantial future external peer review funding
  4. Significance; ability to inform clinical studies, ability to advance clinical medicine, lead to translational studies.
  5. Fit with Department and AHC research areas: Imaging, Cancer, Diabetes, Brain.
  6. Soundness of scientific plan.
  7. Interdisciplinary team.
  8. Clarity in presentation.

*Department strategy for use of Pre-clinical funds - pre-clinical funds are investments in one of two things:

  1. Authentic career development research of assistant professor faculty.
  2. Research that is likely to yield future external peer review funding in great excess of the Department dollars invested

Questions?

Please contact: Joan E. Bechtold, PhD (); 612 336 6609

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October 2013; current version Sepbember 2014