AHCPR News and Notes

AHCPR issues request for planning ideas

The Agency for Health Care Policy and Research is seeking your input in the form of recommendations for future research initiatives in areas identified as priorities in the Agency's current strategic plan. AHCPR's strategic plan describes the framework that the Agency will use to guide the development of budget proposals for fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002 as well as decisions on resource allocations for research, translation (including tool development), dissemination, and evaluation activities that will facilitate the implementation of research findings at all levels of the health care system.

We encourage written suggestions from our customers and stakeholders for future Agency activities. Submissions should include the following information:

• A description of the focus of the activity and its alignment with Agency priorities.
• The gap addressed by the suggested research.
• The population addressed by the activity.
• An indication of the health care issues that are of most concern for the individual or organization nominating the activity.
• Background information to help us assess the urgency of the need for the results of the proposed project. Given that projects undertaken by the Agency will take a year (minimally) to begin, what is the magnitude of the problem addressed, how soon could the results be implemented, and what change would be anticipated?
• An estimate of the budget required to adequately address the proposed activity.
• Potential partners for the Agency.
• A description of the desired end product(s) (research knowledge; information; tools such as instruments for measurements, databases, informatics, and other applications that can be used to assess and improve care; or systems intervention) and how the product will be used in the health care system.

Responses to this request will be accepted on an ongoing basis. Submissions should be no more than three pages in length and may be in the form of a letter (preferably with an electronic file in a standard word processing format on a 3-½" floppy disk). Send your submission to Lisa Simpson, M.B., B.Ch., M.P.H., Deputy Administrator, Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, 2101 E. Jefferson Street, Suite 600, Rockville, MD 20852.

We will not respond to individual suggestions, but all nominations will be considered in selecting topics. For more information about topic nomination, please contact Jane Osborne, Planning Officer, Immediate Office of the Administrator; phone: (301) 594-0152.

Return to Contents
Proceed to Next Article