Each month, the Center for Research and Scholarship at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing sends an internal research newsletter to faculty, staff, students and researchers. A recap is posted here.
Message from the Associate Dean for Research
In recent months, there has been growing concern within our School and the broader research community regarding the implications of the stalled federal budget on agencies such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Human Services Research Administration (HRSA), and others that sponsor research initiatives.
To avert a governmental shutdown, Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) in October 2023, ensuring that federal agencies operate based on their fiscal 2023 budgets. However, the absence of an executed federal budget means that agencies like the NIH cannot maintain normal operating activities. Dr. Monica Bertagnolli, the recently appointed NIH director, aptly summarized the gravity of the situation, emphasizing that “A flat budget is a contracting budget.”
The impact of the CR and the proposed budget cut to the NIH will likely have far-reaching implications for our School and the broader research community in the years ahead. Anticipated effects include:
- Decreased New Awards: Limited resources will make it increasingly challenging to initiate new research projects, resulting in a reduction in new grant awards.
- Risk of Budget Cuts: Ongoing NIH-sponsored projects may face the risk of additional budget cuts during the CR.
- Heightened Competition: During the CR, we have seen a reduction in new grant awards and tighter paylines. If funding uncertainties persist, we will likely experience heightened competition for a shrinking pool of fiscal resources.
The current federal budgetary uncertainties and proposed funding cuts to the NIH pose significant challenges to the national research community. It is imperative that we remain vigilant and proactive in advocating for stable and sufficient funding to support vital research and training initiatives.
Ronald Hickman, PhD, RN, ACNP-BC, FNAP, FAAN
Associate Dean for Research
Research Grant Awards
AASM Young Investigators Scholarship
Megan L. Wenzell, PhD, RN, assistant professor, was awarded a Young Investigators Research Forum Scholarship from the Sleep Research Society Foundation, American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM).
Sigma Grant
Jorden Rieke, BSN, RN, CCRN, predoctoral fellow, was awarded a Sigma Small Grant from the Sigma Foundation for Nursing for her study, “Combined EMA Tools to Assess Stress and Glycemia in Young Adults with Type 1 Diabetes.”
Goldbag Research Seminar Series
Our Spring 2024 Goldbag Research Seminar Series has returned on select Mondays in March and April. All presentations will be held virtually via Zoom. The entire spring schedule of speakers can be found in this document or online at on the FPB Events page under the "Goldbag Seminars" tab.
Our next 3 Goldbag presentations will be held on March 25, April 15, and April 22, from noon to 1 p.m., with the following speakers:
March 25: Abraham A. Brody, PhD, RN, FAAN
Brody is the Mathy Mezey Professor of Geriatric Nursing at Rory Meyers College of Nursing at NYU, and Associate Director of the Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing.
Topic: “Thinking big as a nurse scientist, opportunities to engage communities, change real world practice and improve health equity.”
April 15: Angela Starkweather, PhD, ACNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN
Starkweather is the Chamings Professor & Assistant Dean for Research Development at the School of Nursing at the University of Florida
Topic: “Developing Multi-Leveled Interventions for Pain Management.”
April 22: Sara L. Douglas, PhD, RN
Douglas is the Gertrude Perkins Oliva Professor in Oncology Nursing at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing.
Topic: “Improving Understanding of Quality End of Life Care Using a Dyadic Approach.”
Other Research News and Information
KSL Research Publishing Symposium on April 5
The Kelvin Smith Library (KSL) will host an Early Career Research Publishing Symposium on April 5, with in-person presentations on campus at the KSL, and Zoom sessions as well. This is an opportunity to meet publishers, editors, and industry experts to explore the academic publishing process.
ORTM Has New Canvas Site for RADAR Training Sessions
The Office of Research & Technology Management (ORTM) has created a Canvas site to house all Research Administrator’s Digest and Resources (RADAR) current and past training sessions. They will be adding additional guidance to this site in the coming months.
NIH News and Updates
A special Research in Context feature explores approaches to the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and other dementias, and the development of strategies to try to prevent their progression.
Extramural Grant Investments in Research. NIH shared their annual update on NIH application, award, and success rate data. They presented their most recent information for fiscal year (FY) 2023 enacted appropriations. As a note, the NIH Data Book also has other historical grants data and is being updated with more FY 2023 grants and application data.
Changes in Resubmission Applications
When resubmitting your NIH grant application, any changes made should only be outlined in the Introduction attachment. The Introduction must include a summary of substantial additions, deletions, and changes to the application. It must also include a response to weaknesses raised in the Summary Statement. NIH recently released a guide notice to clarify that any type of markups should not be used to identify changes.
Change is in the air, according to Jessica McKlveen, Ph.D., the director of the Office of Scientific Review at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, in a blog update to the research community on recent efforts at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to revise and enhance some processes related to RPG and NRSA grant applications.
Recent School of Nursing Publications
Wenzell, M. L., Pulver, S. L., McMahon, M. X. H., Rubio, E. K., Gillespie, S., Berry, R. C., Betancourt, I., Minter, B., Schneider, O., Yarasani, C., Rogers, D., Scahill, L., Volkert, V., & Sharp, W. G. (in press). Clinical Correlates and Prevalence of Food Selectivity in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The Journal of Pediatrics.