University of Chicago Innovation Grant Program

Fall 2024 Innovation Grant Submission Form Is Open! Deadline is 9/9/2024
Apply Now

About The Grant

Where operational innovation and research intersect.

UChicago Medicine Innovation Grant Program supports impactful projects that use research-quality methods to design, implement, and evaluate innovative solutions to health system operational challenges. UChicago Medicine aims to identify and develop clinical investigators, to provide seed support for critical projects that improve quality and safety at our health system and create value for our patients.

Innovation Grant ideas ought to align with UChicago Medicine’s Annual Operating Plan.

Grant Instructions

Past Innovation Grant Winners

2022

Integrating Electronic Health Record (EHR)-Based Rapid Dietary Assessment and Counseling with Embedded Clinical-Decision Support for Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction
Allison Crawford, MD, MS
2022

Awareness, agreement or ability? What’s the barrier: Increasing Accessibility to Skilled Therapies for Persons with Dementia
Kaitlin Seibert, MD
2021

Evaluation of the effectiveness of TailorMed Financial management program to address financial toxicity & access clinical and implementation outcomes
Moira McNulty, MD

Past Grant Winners

2023 Parameters

Eligibility

All UChicago Medicine staff, trainees and faculty are eligible to apply. Research teams must include members of more than one discipline. One or more members of the team should have research experience that is skilled enough to design an intervention and carry out a rigorous evaluation of the targeted innovation. Staff and trainees should work with a faculty mentor. Recipients of the Innovation Grant must be prepared to offer a 1-year commitment to their UChicago Medicine-centered project.

Awards

The Innovation Grant funding is generously supported by a private philanthropist with matching support from the Office of the UCM President. The Center for Healthcare Delivery Science & Innovation will fund up to $50,000 for each one-year project, plus prioritized access to data, biostats support and project management.

Budgets should take into consideration appropriate salary support, supplies, costs associated with fulfilling CRI data requests and/or project management and statistical needs beyond what HDSI will provide.

Innovation Grant Themes

Preference will be given to proposals that align with the health system’s identified topics of interest. Keep in mind, proposals will be reviewed based on their relevancy to current trends, research methods and our operational priorities. Most importantly, proposals should explicitly describe the projects goals, resources required, describe methods and how outcomes will be achieved.

Topic that addresses social determinants of health of UChicago Medicine patients and families
Innovative patient education initiatives
Methods to reduce in-hospital acquired infections
Ideas to reduce readmissions
Employee wellness and retention

Criteria

Your proposal will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

Significance (problem, impact, knowledge)

Does this project help improve an important problem affecting healthcare or operations at UCM? (See UCM 2023 Annual Operating Plan Goals or the Clinical Effectiveness Quality Scorecard)
In what way will the project create value for UCM patients and/or the delivery system?
How will our understanding of healthcare delivery be improved by achieving the aims outlined?
Are the results of this project likely to be generalizable to other areas or institutions? Could they result in additional grant funding in the future to further explore the area?
Has consideration been made to diversity, equity and inclusion in the intervention design?

Innovation (new ground)

Is the proposed project original and innovative? Does it challenge current processes or approaches to care delivery at UCM?
Does this project employ novel concepts, approaches, processes or tools?

Approach (methods, process, analysis)

Are the clinical frameworks, study design, methods, and analyses well-described, well-reasoned, and appropriate to the aims of the project?
Is there a plan for engaging end-users (providers, patients and/or caregivers, support staff) and stakeholders (leaders, implementers, administrators)?
Does the approach address relevant dimensions of health equity affecting UCM’s patient population?
Have limitations been adequately addressed?

Feasibility (team, timing and resources)

Does the team contain the relevant skills and expertise to complete the project?
Does the team contain diverse perspectives? Is the team multidisciplinary? (Teams that consist of only one discipline of provider/investigator are less likely to be funded.)
Do team members have a track record of successful implementation?
Can this project be completed in a one-year period and within the allocated budget?

Application, Support and Guidance

Grant Instructions

Grant proposals should be provided in 11-point Arial font, 0.5 inch margins, and single-spaced (follows the National Institute of Health (NIH) standard formatting)

Grant submission PDFs and filenames

Please submit two PDFs:

One PDF should include be the written application. Name your application file: LastName_FirstName_Grant23.
One PDF should include the detailed budget. This is the only file that should include salary information. Name the budget file: LastName_FirstName_Grant23_Budget.

Application Format and Structure

Specific Aims –1 PAGE max
- Provide a clear overview of the problem your project intends to address, the measurable goals of your proposed innovation, and your plan for implementing and evaluating the impact of your innovation.
- Clearly list the specific aims of the project proposed (e.g., to create a novel design, to solve a specific problem, to challenge an existing clinical practice, to address a critical barrier to healthcare or operations).
Project Narrative –3 PAGES max
- Organize the Project Narrative using the following headings
  - - Significance (problem, impact, knowledge)
    - Innovation (new ground)
    - Approach (methods, process, analysis)
    - Feasibility (team, timing, resources)
    - Results Dissemination
      - Describe your plan for disseminating results from this project, including any ideas for publishing in a peer-reviewed journal, presenting at specific national meetings, etc.
Budget Narrative- 1 PAGE max
- Provide an overview of the total direct costs associated with planning, implementing, and evaluating your project.
- Describe your budget by category (i.e. supplies, personnel, services, data fulfillment, analysis, etc.) and the assumptions used to allocate these funds.
- Provide information about the role for each individual supported in the budget. Do not include any salary information in the budget narrative.
Timeline and Plan for IRB Approval- 1 PAGE max
- Provide a timeline for the project that includes key milestones around planning, implementing, and evaluating your innovation. This timeline should include a proposed deadline for completing the analysis and preparing a manuscript.
- Include your plan for acquiring IRB approval OR formal Quality Improvement Determination.
CV, Resume or Biosketch 5-PAGES max PER PERSON
- Include information for key personnel (Co-Principal Investigator, Co-Investigator and any external collaborators) being supported through the grant.
List of all Project Members- 1 PAGE max
- Provide a list of all team members participating in project.
- Include their Name, Title, Role, and Discipline (e.g. John Doe MPH, Senior Quality Analyst, Project Analyst, Data & Analytics).
References Cited- 1 PAGE max
- Provide references for any articles cited in the grant application or consulted when developing this project.
Letters of Support- 3 LETTERS max; 1 PAGE EACH
- Include letters of support from any department heads, senior managers, or operational leaders that will be impacted or involved in your project.
- Include a letter of support from your supervisor or manager.
- Residents and Fellows should submit a letter of support from the faculty member overseeing their project as well as from their training program director.
Detailed Budget (Confidential)- 1 PAGE
- Provide a short, detailed budget identifying proposed funding allocation to salary support, supplies, data fulfillment, data analysis, and other expenses.

Submission Deadline: September 13, 2023

If you have questions, please reach out directly to the HDSI team.

UCM Resources

If the success of your project depends on use of (or change in) existing UCM staffing, data collection, new technology or other interventions, HDSI encourages and will prioritize the Innovation Grant submission for review:

PRIOR (Pilots, Research & Innovation Operational Review) consultation process introduces investigators to operational leaders to provide guidance and coordination during the project design phase.

In addition, the following individuals are available and should be consulted as you design your research project:

Human-centered systems and service design:
- Kim Erwin, MDes Healthcare Design Strategist, Visitng HDSI Scholar
Research methods and analysis:
- Rachel Baccile, MPP Senior Research Analyst at CHeSS, HDSI partner
Research data requests:
- Julie Johnson, PhD, MPH, RN Executive Director of Clinical Research Informatics
Access to data and changes to health system IT devices:
- John Moses, MS Director, IS Clinical Systems & Research
- Shariq Ata, Executive Director Data Analytics, Architecture, Integration & Innovation