Digital Health awards focus on the use of digital technologies to advance clinical research and population health. This includes use of new digital devices (e.g. activity monitors like Apple Watch or FitBit in research, video monitoring analysis, etc.) and other technologies.
Eligibility
The principal investigator (PI) on all proposals must be faculty members with a primary appointment at the University of Rochester. If there are MPIs, one of the members of the applying team must have a primary faculty appointment at the University of Rochester. This team member will be the contact PI for the project.
Faculty may participate as PI, MPI, Faculty Sponsor/Primary Mentor on only one submission per award category. Faculty may participate in multiple submissions per category as co-investigator or co-mentor. Any faculty member who has a current grant with overlapping aims is not eligible to apply.
Proposals must demonstrate how they will advance the use of digital technologies to overcome a translational barrier to improving clinical research or healthcare.
Important Dates
The following dates apply to the current solicitation:
- Initial Letter of Intent (LOI) and Specific Aims due - October 21, 2024 at 5:00 PM
- Notification of full proposal solicitation - December 9, 2024
- Full proposals due - January 27, 2025 at 5:00 PM
- Notifications of Award - March 24, 2025
- Anticipated start date - July 1, 2025
- Award period ends - June 30, 2026
Apply
Solicitation and Review Process
Phase 1: Applicants submit a two-page Letter of Intent (LOI) stating their specific aims and summarizing their proposals. The UR CTSI review committee specific to each submission category will evaluate, score, and discuss the LOIs.
Phase 2: A subset of applicants will be invited to submit full proposals. The UR CTSI Review Committee specific to each submission category will engage in a formal study section-style discussion and scoring meeting for proposals. Funding recommendations go to the UR CTSI Executive Team for a final review and decision on funding.
The Pilot Studies Funding Attestation must be submitted with the initial Letter of Intent and full proposal.
Note: All animal and human subject protocols must be approved by NCATS, the NIH institute funding the UR CTSI, prior to the start date. No funds for research project costs may be released until all required human subjects and animal welfare approvals have been received.
Please note that UR CTSI awards and funding are dependent upon the renewal of grants from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Application Selection
Proposals with the best potential for output (e.g. peer-reviewed publication, extramural grant submission) by the end of the funding period and innovative, high-risk/high-reward proposals that advance digital health and inform regulatory science needs will be prioritized.
Projects supported by this program must address a translational challenge or barrier and meet the definition of translational science research. Translational science is the field of investigation focused on understanding the scientific and operational principles underlying each step of the translational research process.
Need Teleresearch Training?
We offer a teleresearch training course in Blackboard that covers the basics of remote research and highlights available resources and support for conducting teleresearch at the University, including information and resources on digital health technologies. To access the course, log into Blackboard, search for "CTSI Teleresearch training," and self-enroll.
Scholars and Projects
2023
Comprehensive Real-Time Assisted Deep Learning in Extremely Low Gestational Age Newborns (CRADLE)
Andrew Dylag, MD, Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Rochester Medical Center
2022
Prototype of novel care-path-based indicator of health equity for older adults with heart and lung disease
Julie Ryan Wolf – Associate Professor in the Department of Dermatology at the University of Rochester Medical Center
Elaine Hill – Associate Professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Rochester Medical Center
2021
Measurement and relationship of physiological arousal and stress in children with autism spectrum disorder and caregivers
Suzannah Iadarola, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center
Kenneth Shamlian, Psy.D., Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center
Samantha Daley, Ed.D., Assistant Professor of Counseling & Human Development at the University of Rochester Warner School of Education
Zhi Zheng, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology
2020
Remote Longitudinal outcome assessments in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Laying the foundation to overcome diagnostic delays through remote digital technologies and machine learning
Peter Creigh, M.D., Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Center