Special Leave Guidelines for
Recipients of NHLBI Mentored Career Awards (K01, K08, K22, K23, K25)
This document summarizes NIH and NHLBI
policies for situations where a recipient of an NHLBI mentored career
development award wishes to take leave to train at another institution, take a
leave of absence during the award period, or train at a lower level of effort
for a longer period of time.
Leave to Another Institution
Leave to another institution, including a
foreign laboratory, may be permitted if the proposed experience is directly
related to the purpose of the award. Only local, institutional approval is
required if such leave does not exceed 3 months. For longer periods, prior
written approval of the NHLBI is required. To obtain prior approval, the award
recipient must submit a letter to the NHLBI describing the plan, countersigned
by his/her mentor, advisory committee (if applicable), and the appropriate
institutional official. A copy of a letter or other evidence from the
institution where the leave is to be taken must be submitted to assure that
satisfactory arrangements have been made. Support from the career award will
continue during such leave.
Leave of Absence or Reduction of
Effort
The NHLBI recognizes that in certain
circumstances (e.g., medical conditions, disability, personal or family
situations such as child or elder care), an NHLBI mentored career award
recipient may wish to take a period of leave, or request a reduction in
professional effort below the minimum 75 percent. Following are options to
accommodate special needs.
1. Leave of Absence
During Award Period
Grantees are allowed a one-time, up to 12-month
extension of a budget period without prior approval of the NHLBI. The extension
is without additional funds, and may be made either at the end of the current
funding year or at the end of the project period. Such leave may not exceed 12
months in a given budget period. The period of leave would be without grant
support, and it would not reduce the total number of months of program support
for which the individual is eligible. To receive the leave/extension, an
awardee must submit a letter informing the NHLBI of the need for a period of
leave, which would include the start date of the leave, and return to active
status date (at least 75% effort) on the career award. The letter must be
countersigned by the mentor and by an institutional business official. Any
subsequent request(s) for a period of leave needs the prior approval of the
NHLBI.
2. Reduction in Effort
Under circumstances such as those listed above, the
NHLBI will consider requests for reduced levels of effort as long as the
original goals of the career award can still be met. The awardee may submit a
request in writing including a statement of need for the reduced effort, and a
revised plan and timetable by which the original goals will be accomplished.
The request should be countersigned by the recipients mentor and by a
business official. During the period of reduced effort, the salary and other
costs supported by the award will be reduced accordingly. The time lost through
the reduction in effort should be made up by requesting a no-cost extension at
the end of the current funding year or end of the project period. During the
no-cost extension, any funds remaining in the grant can be used as originally
approved (e.g., salary, supplies). Generally, the awardee will not be permitted
to work at a rate of less than 50 percent effort. Under no circumstances will
approval be given for a reduced effort to accommodate other sources of funding,
job opportunities, or clinical practice.
3. Integration of Research
Training with Clinical Training
The mentored career award can be integrated with the
requirements for clinical subspeciality training, and differing approaches for
doing so may be proposed. The career award plan may include an interruption in
grant support to allow for continued clinical training. For example,
individuals may propose a program encompassing up to a 12-month hiatus to allow
for completion of subspeciality training, followed by continuation of the
research career development program. A hiatus of up to 24 months would be
considered only under unusual circumstances with strong and compelling
justification. Award support is not provided during periods of interruption;
periods of leave do not reduce the total number of months of support.
December 2002
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