Grant money - Cardiology

[supp-2]

I'm a PGY1 involved in some cardiology research. New to the research world and so I have some questions.

What are the best sources for getting funding (AHA, NIH, anything else)?

Also, if you secure funding, can you get a percentage of the money? Is that just determined by how your PI wants to divide the funds?

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[astropilot]

I'm a PGY1 involved in some cardiology research. New to the research world and so I have some questions.

What are the best sources for getting funding (AHA, NIH, anything else)?

Also, if you secure funding, can you get a percentage of the money? Is that just determined by how your PI wants to divide the funds?

Okay, so this is something I have put some time on recently. But here is the short answer....if you can't dedicate 75% of you time to pure research for a couple to 3 years, most of the NIH and AHA funds are out the door.

What you really want to do is to find something to get you going. Even the smallest grant will set you up for the next application.

Start with the AMA seed grant fund...only $2500, but it is a start. You can also check science.org and look for funding there...has a searchable database. Also you could check with VA if you are from the US.

Regionallly, the AHA does offer some support at the resident level, but its
not transferable if you go to another institution for fellowship.

As for how its diveded up, your project should get 100% of it, but don't expect to supplement you salary, becuase usually this is not allowed.

Really, your not going to have much time to do research anyway besides maybe 4 months all together during your residency. Everybody understands that...you need to focus on the small stuff, poster presentations, talks etc... and show you can make it there....then they will be more likely to put you in the show.

If I did miss something, sorry. Hopefully someone will catch it a let us both know.

 

[dragonfly99]

agree with astropilot.
You aren't going to get a real NIH grant or AHA grant unless you can devote most of your time to research.
Look for regional grants. The AMA seed grant research thing is a good idea also.
The research you do as a resident shouldn't need a lot of money...the PI should be able to provide supplies, etc. if you are doing bench research. However, it's always good to have a feather in your cap, and getting any kind of grant as a resident would be one...

 

[grendelsdragon]

As a resident or early fellow, I would not devote time and effort to getting tiny grants. These tokens are for trivial amounts of money and do not bolster your academic credentials to any appreciable degree. Let the PI worry about the money. You should concentrate on doing first rate research and PUBLISHING!

There are only so many hours in the day, and we are all very busy. Every minute that you spend trying to navigate the grants landscape, you pull away from doing research or writing a manuscript. Believe me... a quality first author paper will have a much greater impact on your credentials (and will even make acquiring the big grants later more accessible).

The time to really start thinking about grants is at the tail end of your clinical fellowship, when you start thinking about your academic career. At this point, we are talking about career development awards (NIH K08, NIH K99/R00, AHA, BWF CAMS, etc.). That's a completely different ball of wax.

 

[dragonfly99]

Um, I don't think we disagree. Nobody on here is saying this person should go try and write grants. But the OP asked about what grants to go for...so presumably he has been told he needs funding, or has a project he wants to do and needs funding for. I think everyone here would totally agree that what is needed are publication(s) and presentation(s), resume-wise. Also, sometimes faculty/PI are not supportive of house staff - in some programs they are more interested in getting them involved than they are at some other programs. The OP may need to make his own luck if there aren't that many premade research opportunities available at his institution.

 

[grendelsdragon]

Um, I don't think we disagree. Nobody on here is saying this person should go try and write grants. But the OP asked about what grants to go for...so presumably he has been told he needs funding, or has a project he wants to do and needs funding for. I think everyone here would totally agree that what is needed are publication(s) and presentation(s), resume-wise. Also, sometimes faculty/PI are not supportive of house staff - in some programs they are more interested in getting them involved than they are at some other programs. The OP may need to make his own luck if there aren't that many premade research opportunities available at his institution.

I would not assume he/she needs funding. Most of these small awards are for trivial amounts of money. If the PI needs these paltry sums of money, you best avoids these labs.

From my point of view (as faculty and PI), an enthusiastic resident or fellow is FREE SKILLED LABOR (albeit part-time). Their salaries are already covered by their training programs, and they want to spend their spare time doing research. What's not to like?

Where PI's need to discriminate, is when the applicant wants to be a full time researcher (as a tech or postdoc). Then I would have to cover the salary (from $25K to >$75K/year direct funds). Grants that cover this sum of money are usually applied for by the PI or are major career development awards.

 

[astropilot]

Although small grants may seem trivial, they do build your CV and increase your chances at getting bigger grants. As a resident, what you do need to do is publish, but if you can sneak in a grant application or two during this time, that would not hurt, but only help. Of the few that I have applied for (and there is not that many as I have said before), the application writeup may took only a weekend. They are relatively easy to do. But let me make this post very clear, people who are will to give out money for research are more likely to give it to someone who has already received some even if its small.