What ID Researchers Should Know About PCORI Funding

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is an independent NGO authorized by Congress to fund research designed to help patients, clinicians, purchasers and policymakers make more informed health decisions.

PCORI's help center has unparalleled resources and directions on the application and review process, and practical tools for helping investigators.

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If you know of other relevant funding opportunities of career resources that are not included on this page, please contact IDSA at info@idsociety.org

PCORI Priority Funding Announcement: Community-Acquired Pneumonia

PCORI is seeking proposals for studies that address critical healthcare choices faced by patients, their caregivers, clinicians, or delivery systems in the area of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP).

Application/review process

PCORI’s Cycle 3 2017 Priority Topics and additional details are available here. First consideration will be given to applications that directly address one or more of the following questions related to CAP:

What is the comparative effectiveness and safety of alternative FDA-approved antibiotic regimens in the empiric outpatient treatment of adults with community-acquired pneumonia?
Alternative treatment regimens
Across-class comparisons of FDA-approved antibiotic regimens that are recommended for use or are commonly used in community-acquired pneumonia.
Varying duration of treatment, such as three or five days, or discontinuation at resolution of symptoms of infection.
The proposed studies should be of sufficient sample size to ensure the resulting evidentiary information is readily generalizable to the broader population. In addition, applications should address effectiveness in distinct subpopulations (e.g., patients with chronic conditions, immunosuppression, and the elderly).

Proposed studies must address critical healthcare choices faced by patients, their caregivers, clinicians, or delivery systems. They must involve broadly representative patient populations and be large enough to provide precise estimates of hypothesized effectiveness differences and to support evaluation of potential differences in treatment effectiveness in patient subgroups.

Timeline and additional details

October 3: online system opens
October 17: Applicant Town Hall (register here) - This town hall will provide an overview of PCORI and the information applicants may need to submit a responsive application.
October 31: Letter of Intent (LOI) deadline
February 6: application deadline
August 2018: awards announced
Maximum project period: 5 years

2016 PCORI Annual Meeting

Smarter, More Appropriate Use of Antibiotics - A Facebook Live Event (November 18, 2016)

https://www.facebook.com/PCORInstitute/videos/1781154535484666/

Panel discussion on comparative effectiveness of management options for antibiotic treatment choices in various medical settings, featuring IDSA member Jeffrey Gerber, MD, PhD.

PCORI Resources

Most PCORI Broad Funding is awarded to investigator initiated proposals.

While PCORI does put out discrete funding announcements, expect ID-focused announcements to be few and far between. Be sure to review PCORI regularly and sign up for alerts to get announcements. IDSA encourages you not to wait for an ID-related announcement to pursue PCORI funding.

Be sure to review PCORI's list of priority topics to see if your topic fits into identified priorities.

You can find the full list of PCORI supported ID projects on PCORI's website.

A recent article on PCORI's website features IDSA member Jeffery Gerber, MD, PhD, and his PCORI-funded research.

General Advice for ID Applications

PCORI values research questions that come from patients and other stakeholders.

The outcomes all stakeholders care about most may not be what an ID physician considers most important. Be cognizant that patient and other stakeholder outcome priorities may differ significantly from physicians.

Example: Comparing effective antimicrobial stewardship is an extremely important ID question, but what outcomes of this comparison would be of interest to a patient?

Early in the application process, consider surveys and focus groups to gather preliminary data on patient priorities. Statements from patients can identify patient priorities and be used to guide an application.

PCORI proposals must have patient engagement throughout the project.

PCORI wants applicants to engage patients and other stakeholders or their organizations throughout the application process, study planning and conduct, analysis and dissemination. Include standing patient representation in your application's organizational structure when possible, so they play a key role in all aspects of the project.

Engaging ID stakeholders.

When possible, seek supportive patient advocacy organizations and hospital related groups to obtain initial perspectives.

IDSA Resources

IDSA has provided a list of five recommended priority research questions to PCORI.

Priority ID comparative effectiveness research topics include:

Comparing watchful waiting versus empiric antimicrobial therapy for patients with asymptomatic bacteriuria
Comparing strategies that address barriers to access for screening and treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus infection
Effective use of Telemedicine-enabled ID-led Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) to affect positive patient outcomes
Comparative effectiveness of antimicrobial stewardship strategies for outpatient prescribing for Uncomplicated Acute Respiratory Tract Infections
Comparing beta-lactam beta-lactamase inhibitor combinations vs. alternative therapy in the treatment of Multidrug Resistant (MDR) infections

PCORI takes these recommendations into account, so consider projects focusing on these research questions.

IDSA and PCORI held a webinar on pursuing ID PCORI research. PCORI staff explained the PCORI funding process. IDSA member Dr. Jeffery Gerber, a principal investigator for a PCORI grant, provided an ID perspective in pursuing PCORI funding.