Aim of the call
The aim of the call is to establish a limited number of ambitious, innovative, multi-national and multi-disciplinary collaborative research projects that address health and social care delivery at the macro level (system and infrastructures) as well as (at) the individual level of patients, their carers and families. Evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of formal and informal care approaches and existing infrastructures is a prelude to implementing improved, evidence-based approaches and thereby improving the quality of life for those affected by neuro degenerative diseases and the quality of care. Most health and healthcare research would be impossible without the active involvement of patients. Thus, JPND has determined that Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) should be an integrated part of the implementation of its Research and Innovation Strategy. Proposals to be funded under this call will therefore need adequately to involve patients, carers and the public. Consortia are expected to make every effort to include PPI approaches, where appropriate, at each stage of the research process including the preparation of the application (see the JPND website for further information). In the application it must be described in which step of the research process patient or relatives will be, or already are, involved and which roles they would play. If possible, patient representatives should be consulted from each of the countries that participate in the consortium. If a PPI approach is not fitted, this must be justified.Proposals on health and social care can apply to patients with any or several of the following neurodegenerative diseases:
Proposals submitted under this call will include, but are not limited to, the research are a slisted below. Proposals can focus on one or several of these areas:
Proposals should have novel, ambitious aims and ideas combined with well-structured work plans and clearly defined objectives deliverable within three years. Each consortium should have the critical mass to achieve ambitious scientific goals and outline the added value of working together. Applicants should demonstrate that they have the expertise and range of skills required to conduct the study or that appropriate collaborations are in place. The added value to ongoing activities and the expected impact on future health and social care for people suffering from neurodegenerative diseases should be explicitly stated. Appropriate access to and synergistic usage of resources, e.g. data from patients and health care providers, existing population and disease specific cohorts and registries or connections to health records, is expected. Data, tools and resources being generated within the research projects should be made widely available to the public domain, taking into account legal and ethical requirements, to increase their added value. Access must be provided to other bona fide research groups. Consortia are strongly advised to define arrangements to deal with this issue across countries, while preserving integrity of study subjects. Proposals should address socio-economic factors, gender related research questions and comorbidities, where appropriate.
Consortia should incorporate these factors when formulating their research hypotheses, aims and work plans. Considering cross-cultural issues and diversity, particularly when developing and implementing instruments and intervention strategies, should be ensured across research efforts. Training of young researchers and mobility (e.g., researcher exchanges for students and postdoctoral researchers) within the consortia are encouraged, where this can be specifically justified in terms of the training opportunities provided to the individual and the needs of the field.
Please note that there may be restrictions according to national regulations. To have an impact at European and partner country levels, it is expected that all proposals will link activities across laboratories/clinics/care settings within JPND member countries.
Proposals are encouraged to import expertise from areas outside of neurodegeneration research, e.g. from primary care, memory units or sentinel networks, which can bring innovation to the approach to be pursued. The case must be made for the added value that will be provided by the collaboration on a multidisciplinary level.