NIHR Policy Research Programme Call on Epidemiology for Vaccinology, Nov 2017

Closing date: 14 November 2017; 1pm UK time

 

The NIHR Policy Research Programme (PRP) invites proposals on the use and development of epidemiological models, tools and technologies to assist with the deployment and clinical trialling of vaccines in outbreak situations in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs) on the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) list.

 

This call is split into two parts:

a. Optimal Deployment of Vaccines in Outbreak Situations

A single £1.5m research contract will be awarded in this area, likely to cover a programme of epidemiological impact assessments, encompassing infectious disease dynamic modelling and trial methodologies, for the 12 diseases prioritised for investment by the UK Vaccine Network: Ebola, Marburg, Lassa Fever, Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever, Hantavirus, Rift Valley Fever, MERS, Plague, Q Fever, Zika, Chikungunya and Nipah.

 

b. Development of other tools, technologies and methodologies

The remaining £3.5m of funding will be allocated flexibly across projects on a broader range of themes, with £250,000-£750,000 available per project. It is expected such projects will not significantly overlap with section a. , as outlined above, and instead focus on areas such as:

  • The development and/or refinement of novel methodologies and tools that would assist with epidemiological work in outbreak settings, including reference diagnostics.
  • Work on Biostatistics relevant to the response to disease outbreaks.
  • The development of technologies that would assist with the epidemiological assessment and/or vaccine response to infectious disease outbreaks.
  • Anthropological and sociological work on the deployment and administration of vaccines in disease outbreaks, and how to ensure the acceptance and uptake of vaccines in such situations.
  • The development of a manual for establishing a field based GxP compliant blood sampling facility.
  • Other innovative work in the fields of Epidemiology - including molecular epidemiology or Biostatistics - that is relevant to the overarching focus of this call for proposals, i.e. the response to infectious disease outbreaks, including the deployment of vaccines (whether they are licensed or as part of a clinical trial).

 

Out of Scope

The following areas are out of scope for the purpose of this call as they are covered by other routes:

  • Vaccine Development and Clinical Trialling – applications focussed on actually developing or trialling vaccines will not be accepted.
  • Development of diagnostic devices – Diagnostics are not included within the remit of the ‘technologies’ referenced in section b. above.

 

The closing date for submissions of Stage 1 applications is Tuesday 14 November, 1pm.

 

 

For the full call text please visit the grant call webpage.

 

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