---

Award Goals

The goals of the Outreach to Consumers Awards are to fund projects to:

• Connect consumers to health information resources they need to make informed healthcare decisions
• Increase awareness about the resources and services of the National Library of Medicine (NLM)
• Promote health information literacy in health education and healthcare
• Improve access to electronic health information
• Promote and improve access to library and information services
• Promote and improve the use of technology for information access
• Encourage partnerships between public, hospital and school libraries, community, faith-based, and volunteer organizations, health clinics, public health departments and other public venues
• Promote outreach by network members to share their expertise and resources with a target audience not normally reached

In year 2 of the 2011-2016 contract (May 1, 2012 - April 30, 2013), MAR will give preference to projects that reach the following populations:

• Soldiers, Veterans and Military Families through partnerships and programs developed in partnership with United Service Organizations, VALNET libraries, Veteran Affairs facilities and/or community-based outpatient clinics serving the military (1 Target award, up to $20,000)
• Senior citizens through partnerships with senior centers, community centers, YMCA, retirement communities, etc. (1 Express award, up to $10,000)
• Caregivers through partnerships with community-based organizations providing support to caregivers (1 Express award, up to $10,000)
• K-12 through partnerships with public librarians, school librarians, school nurses and school health educators (1 Express award, up to $10,000
• Underserved consumer population identified by the Network member institution (1 Express award, up to $10,000)

Potential Projects

Proposals should be directed at improving health information literacy and/or ensuring that healthcare consumers are aware of, and have access to, high quality electronic information resources to make informed health care decisions.

Projects should include the following (other creative ideas are encouraged):

• Evaluating mental health and/or general health information and training needs of a target population
• Training in effective use of information resources to the target population
• Training on locating and evaluating health information found on the Internet
• Train-the-Trainer projects that enhance the skills of librarians and other health information intermediaries to train a target population
• Conducting promotional activities, including health fairs, exhibits and demonstrations to increase awareness of information resources to the target population
• Providing access to health information documents or other needed health information for the target population

Eligibility Requirements

Full and Affiliate Network members in the NN/LM MAR (Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania) are eligible to apply.

Availability of Funds

All awards issued under the NLM Contract with the University of Pittsburgh, Health Sciences Library System are subject to the Government’s availability of funds in compliance of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.232-18, Availability of Funds.

The Government’s obligation under this contract is contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds from which payment for contract purposes can be made.  No legal liability on the part of the Government for any payment may arise until funds are made available to the Contracting Officer for this contract and until the Contractor receives notice of such availability, to be confirmed in writing by the Contracting Officer.

Application Process

• Applications will be accepted until April 1, 2012.
• Applicants may submit a proposal (http://nnlm.gov/mar/funding/outreach_app_instr2012.pdf) and supporting documentation to NN/LM MAR at nnlmmar@pitt.edu. 
• Put Outreach to Consumers in the subject line.

Budget Guidelines

Funding will be processed on a cost reimbursement basis.

A detailed budget and justification is required.

Allowable expenses include:

• Personnel (may include professional or support personnel for the project)
• Travel (may include air travel, ground transportation, parking, hotel, per diem for meals)
• Equipment (may include rental or purchase of equipment)
• Supplies (may include paper, pens, software, display items)
• Communications (may include postage, parcel and other delivery services, and telephone/data line charges)
• Reproduction (may include costs for printing/photocopying of project related materials)
• Other costs (may include honoraria, exhibit fees, or any other items that do not fit into one of the other lines.  Provide a breakdown of what has been included in this category.)
• Indirect costs (IDC) up to 10% are allowed for this award.  It is recommended that due to low funding level, IDC be kept to a minimum.

If mobile technology or computer hardware is proposed, please include the following as part of your cost proposal:

• For technology or computer hardware purchases under $3,000 – submit catalog pricing.
• For technology or computer hardware purchases $3,000 or more per item – submit three (3) vendor quotes (valid preferably for 60 days, minimum of 30 days).  Quotes may include General Service Administration (GSA) price lists.  Reference:  http://www.gsa.gov.
• For personal appeal items such as cameras, MP3 Players, smartphones, and laptop computers the proposal must address the following:
  • Purpose:  There is a legitimate purpose for the items, and use of the items by the awardee will be managed in accordance with institutional policy.
  • Appropriate Use:  Items will not be used in a way that would discredit the NN/LM, the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health or the applicable Institution.
  • Cost Effective:  Must demonstrate requested items are cost effective and appropriate. For example, will generic brands satisfy the minimum requirements?  If not, the proposal/request must describe 1) why it is necessary to purchase branded products,   2) benefits in brand name products.  How will items further the mission of the NN/LM and achieve the objectives of the contract?

Vendor quotes are necessary to determine price reasonable for purchase of $3,000 or more.  The absence of competitive quotes must be documented and justified.

Expenses are not allowed for:

• Food
• Furniture purchases

Period of Performance

• Funding period is May 1, 2012 - April 30, 2013.  Projects must be completed by April 30, 2013.

Selection Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated by RML staff and MAR advisory committees according to the following criteria. Requests for clarification and/or revision may be asked of proposal writers as determined by reviewers.

1. Evidence of qualified personnel and organizational resources, including partnerships, to assure completion of the project and potential sustainability (20 points)
• Evidence of institutional facilities and resources adequate to support the proposed program.
• Letter of committment from bidder's institutional administration, and letters of commitment from administrations of all agencies involved or targeted in the project.
• Statement or plan to continue support of services to the target population beyond the contract period.


2. Well defined description of the target population (10 points)
   • Estimates of the potential population and the portion expected to be reached should be included.


3. Evidence of need for the project and involvement of the target audience in determining need(s) (10 points)


4. Goals and outcomes that can reasonably be accomplished and even sustained beyond the project period (10 points)


5. Project plan that clearly indicates specific steps to be accomplished to fulfill objectives (20 points)
• Inclusion of a timeline or implementation schedule for major events and activities.
• Planned outputs for the project: number of training session, participants, transactions, etc.


6. Clear evaluation strategies to measure and assess outcomes and determine the project's success (20 points)
• In developing an evaluation mechanism, attention should be given to how successful the project will be in meeting the information needs of the target group.
• Evaluation should measure project objectives and their outcomes. Proposed evaluation tools should reflect these measurements.
• NN/LM members are strongly encouraged to consult the Outreach Evaluation Resource Center (OERC) publications and resources, or OERC staff for assistance in developing an effective evaluation plan:  http://nnlm.gov/evaluation/.
7. Budget plan that is complete, clear, and well justified to complete the project (10 points)

Reporting Requirements

• Progress reports must be submitted quarterly.  These will include a report of project activities, including progress made toward award goals, problems encountered and a report of the ongoing evaluation or assessment of the project’s effectiveness.

• One final report will be submitted no later than April 30, 2013.

• All reports are submitted online to the Outreach Application and Online Contract Reports System at: https://outreach.nlm.nih.gov/.

• Users of the System must first create an account before reports can be submitted. The NN/LM MAR will provide additional information on accessing the system and submitting reports.

• If training is conducted as part of the project, the awardee will complete a record of the event in the Outreach Application and Online Contract Reports System within 2 weeks of the activity. The NN/LM MAR will provide an instruction manual for inputting this information into the system.

• The project leader agrees to share portions of the report with other network members by submitting it for posting to the NN/LM MAR blog, newsletter, or a Lunch with the RML session.

• The project leader shall provide copies of all communications, materials produced, press releases, advertisements, photographs and articles for newsletters related to the project.  In accepting the award, the project leader gives permission for use of such materials by the NLM and NN/LM.

Additional Requirements

Publication and Publicity

The awardee shall acknowledge the support of the National Library of Medicine whenever publicizing the work under this award in any media by including an acknowledgment substantially as follows:

This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, under Contract No. HHS-N-276-2011-00003-C with the University of Pittsburgh, Health Sciences Library System.

NIH Policy on Enhancing Public Access to Archived Publications Resulting from NIH-Funded Research:

As of April 7, 2008, final peer-reviewed manuscripts arising from NIH funds must be submitted to PubMed Central upon acceptance for publication.  The NIH Public Access Policy at http://publicaccess.nih.gov/policy.htm ensures that the public has access to the published results of NIH funded research.  It requires scientists to submit final peer-reviewed journal manuscripts that arise from NIH funds to the digital archive PubMed Central (http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/ ) upon acceptance for publication.  To help advance science and improve human health, the Policy requires that these papers (http://publicaccess.nih.gov/FAQ.htm#b1) are accessible to the public on PubMed Central no later than 12 months after publication.

The NIH Public Access site should be consulted for additional information: http://publicaccess.nih.gov/policy.htm.

Website Compliance:

The Department of Health and Human Services synopsis of Section 508 accessibility requirements, requires that all Federal agencies are obligated to make all electronic and information technology (EIT) that they develop, maintain or use compliant with Section 508.  EIT purchases made on or after June 25, 2001, are subject to Section 508.

Federal regulations and guidelines (e.g., Section 501 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act) require equal access for individuals with disabilities.  Therefore, Federal agencies are required, upon request, to provide information and data to individuals with disabilities through an alternative means of access that can be used by the individuals.

The National Library of Medicine is a part of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  Recipients of National Library of Medicine funding through the NN/LM must also meet these requirements.

[Information on 508 Compliance is located at http://www.section508.gov.]

Development of Training Materials

Successful applicants are expected to use or adapt existing training materials before developing new materials.  Consult the Medical Library Association (MLA) Educational Clearinghouse prior to developing materials.  Training materials developed as part of the award should be submitted to the MLA Educational Clearinghouse.

Resources for Planning, Implementing and Evaluating Outreach Projects

NN/LM members are strongly encouraged to consult the Outreach Evaluation Resource Center (OERC) publications and resources, or OERC staff for assistance in developing an effective evaluation plan:  http://nnlm.gov/evaluation/.

• Measuring the Difference: Guide to Planning and Evaluating Health Information Outreach
• Planning and Evaluating Health Information Outreach Projects Series
• Tools and Resources for Evaluation and Data Collection
• Shaping Outcomes Course

Need Assistance?

To request assistance, contact us at nnlmmar@pitt.edu or (800) 338-7657.