Overview:
Through the Pilot Project Program, CIRA provides scientific support to facilitate the development of rigorous and impactful domestic and international research with a vision towards long-term implementation, scale-up, and sustainability.
The program is a funding venue for conducting small-scale research projects to generate data which potentially could lead to further research and funding opportunities. Implementation Science (IS) is a central focus at CIRA and we expect to fund at least one IS project in each cycle. IS includes the study of whether activities or tools that have been shown to be effective in scientific studies work in the real world, and/or the factors that inhibit or facilitate the implementation of such programs.
Scope
The goal of the program is to provide pilot funding to junior investigators, and/or support community-university research partnerships that will result in additional externally funded research projects. We will consider letters of intent for feasibility studies that address CIRA's mission to support innovative, interdisciplinary research that focuses on the implementation of HIV prevention and treatment and the elimination of HIV disparities.
We are most interested in funding projects that study populations at the highest risk of HIV infection and focus on reducing disparities in HIV incidence, prevalence and outcomes among marginalized populations, including those with common co-morbidities such as substance use and mental health disorders. Research that focuses exclusively on the basic biology of HIV or research to develop new HIV treatments will not be considered.
Eligibility requirements
This award is intended to support emerging and new investigators, including Post-Doctoral Students, Research Associates, and Assistant Professors. Faculty at Yale University, The Institute for Community Research (ICR), and the Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP) at UConn are eligible to apply as PIs. Awardees will hold an appointment at one of these institutions for at least one year past the award date. Senior researchers may participate as mentors on the project.
Investigators from other universities or colleges and community-based organizations are eligible to apply in collaboration with a Principal Investigator based at Yale, ICR, or InCHIP.
Award amount
Applicants may request up to $25,000 in research support. This can include research staff, incentives, supplies, fees for services, and necessary travel. Expenses such as conference travel, computers, furniture, or admin support are not allowable.
The number of awards to be made will depend upon the number of proposals received and the caliber of projects submitted.
Application Deadlines
The Request for Applications will be released in April 2020.
PILOT AWARDEES
2019
- Optimizing PrEP's Potential in Non-Clinical Settings: Development and Evaluation of a PrEP Shared Decision Making Tool for Women Seeking Domestic Violence Services (P.I.: Jaimie Meyer & Tiara Willie)
2018
- Developing social capital interventions to improve viral suppression and quality of life among HIV- positive aging populations in New Haven, CT. (P.I.: Yusuf Ransome)
- Interrupting HIV stigma in the household using home HIV testing offers in South Africa. (PIs: Luke Davis, Mari Armstrong-Hough)
2017
- Adapting an evidence-based intervention for stigma-related stress, mental health, and HIV risk for MSM of color in small urban areas (P.I.: John Pachankis, Krystn Wagner)
- Barriers to HIV Care for Adults 50yo+, a Neglected but at-Risk Population in Ukraine (P.I.: Julia Rozanova, Sheela Shenoi)
2016
- Assessing Local HIV Care Continuum Experiences in Small Cities (P.I.: Lauretta Grau, Thomas Stopka)
- Pre-exposure prophylaxis implementation for HIV prevention among substance-using men who have sex with men (P.I.: Philip Chan, Jacob van den Berg, Trace Kershaw, Eva Jennifer Edelman)
- A Theory-informed Education and Counseling Intervention for HIV-TB Treatment Adherence (TEACH) in South Africa and Uganda (P.I.: Luke Davis, Sheela Shenoi)
- Rapid Assessment and Response to Substance Use and Risk of HIV and Other Blood-Borne Infections Among Displaced Populations in Beirut, Lebanon (P.I.: Kaveh Khoshnood)
- Who's On Board: Parent, Child, and Provider Attitudes towards the Feasibility of PrEP Uptake among Adolescents (P.I.: Tamara Taggart, Tashuna Albritton)
2015
- Implementing PrEP in a Family Planning Setting (P.I.: Sarah Calabrese)
- Feasibility of a Multi-Sector Collaboration to Initiate PrEP Uptake among IPV-Exposed Women (P.I.: Trace Kershaw)
- Developing a Comprehensive Model of the HIV Care Continuum in Nine Small Cities in CT, MA and RI (P.I.: Lauretta Grau, Thomas Stopka)
2014
- HIV Prevention Needs among Unstably Housed Youth in Small Urban Areas (P.I.: Heather Mosher)
- Estimating the Size of Hidden and Hard-to-Reach Populations Using Respondent- Driven Sampling (P.I.: Forrest Crawford)
- Implementation of HIV PrEP for MSM with and without Substance Use in Providence, RI and New Haven, CT (P.I.: E. Jennifer Edelman, Phillip Chan, Brandon D.L. Marshall, Onyema Ogbuagu)
2013
- HIV Prevention Needs among MSM in Small Urban Areas (P.I.: John Pachankis, Danya Keene)
- Barriers to Implementation of Isoniazid Preventive Therapy in Rural South Africa (P.I.: Sheela Shonoi)
- Overweight/Obesity & Weight Gain among HIV-positive Prisoners in Rhode Island: Prevalence and Intervention Feasibility (P.I.: Amy Smoyer)
