The heartbeat of the Emergency Medicine Foundation (EMF) is providing the first opportunity for researchers to pursue education and research grants that will optimally have a lasting impact on the practice of emergency medicine. Funds distributed through EMF allows a broad array of vital research to be performed at all levels in the field of emergency medicine from seasoned practitioners to medical students to fellows in emergency medicine to junior and senior faculty. EMF awarded more than $400,000 for the 2010-2011 Grant Cycle Year to 13 grantees in support of important clinical research projects.
Grantees are selected through an extensive selection process. Funding awarded to support grant programs are closely watched. Throughout the research period, grant recipients must file timely and comprehensive status reports detailing research progress and budgetary compliance. Most grants are traditionally for a one-year period.
EMF typically has one annual grant application cycle, with grant categories and deadlines usually announced in late summer. This is the only period when researchers can submit grant applications to seek funding for their research project. Only grant applications that meet the guidelines of a grant being offered will be considered during the application period. Grant applications submitted outside the application period will not be accepted.
It is important that instructions for each grant application are followed implicitly, as applications that do not adhere to grant formats will be summarily rejected. No extension of the deadline will be granted to allow resubmission of applications that do need meet specifications. It is highly recommended that grant applicants get it right the first time to avoid having their proposal rejected.
If a grant application meets the requirements set out in the application guidelines, the next step is a review of the application by a committee consisting of Scientific Review Committee of the American College of Emergency Physicians (this committee performs peer review for EMF) and in many cases representatives from collaborative agencies. Final funding decisions will be made by the Emergency Medicine Foundation Board of Trustees and all decisions are final. Among the criteria used to determine if an application is worthy of EMF support are:
- Significance to the goals of the grants and the practice of emergency medicine
- Demonstration of the ability to achieve the results stated in the grant application
- Scientific merit, methodology and originality of the research project
- Appropriateness of budget
- Documented willingness of the sponsoring institution to provide the necessary facilities and support to complete the projects as described
- Clear statement of measurable aims
- Proof of submission to the Institutional Review Board (IRB)
It is important to note that additional criteria and specific deadlines that must be adhered to may be contained in each grant application.