The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute has approved 30 projects under the pilot phase of its new “Pipeline to Proposal” awards program.

The Tier I awards, totaling $432,100 in requested funding, are the first to be made through this initiative, which provides seed money to encourage development of partnerships and health research project ideas among individuals and groups who want to take an active role in research but may not have opportunities to do so.

The Pipeline to Proposal awards are an early effort under PCORI’s new Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Awards program, which will encourage community engagement in patient-centered outcomes research by supporting projects to enhance knowledge of PCOR, training in partnership development and devising research proposals; and efforts to get research results adopted in clinical practice.

Those selected for the first 30 Tier I Pipeline to Proposal awards include patients, patient advocates, and healthcare providers as well as clinical researchers. They also include teams at community health clinics, budding online gathering spots, hospitals, and advocacy groups. The awards will seed funds of up to $15,000 each.

[See also: PCORI awards $191M for research.]

The 30 projects were selected by review panels made up of patients, stakeholders, and researchers. The proposed projects are approved subject to a programmatic and budget review by PCORI staff and the negotiation of a formal award contract.

Funds will help recipients build relationships with other individuals and groups interested in their health issue or topic of concern, create a strategy and tools to connect partner, and develop governance and guidance structures, such as advisory councils and strategic plans, for their budding communities. PCORI intnet is that these foundational steps will lead to communities identifying and refining a research topic suitable for investigation through a comparative effectiveness research study.

“This first round of Tier I Pipeline to Proposal awards will lay strong foundations to build communities interested in advancing the field of patient- and stakeholder-driven health research,” Anne Beal, MD, PCORI’s deputy executive director, said in a news release. “Patients and other stakeholders have good ideas for healthcare questions that warrant study, and we want to help them develop partnerships and get involved in the research process."

“We’re pleased with the range and quality of our initial Pipeline to Proposal awards, which will provide support to build patient and community coalitions that will address issues ranging from preventing Sudden Infant Death Syndrome to caring for patients with Alzheimer’s in rural communities,” Beal added. “We look forward to following their progress over the next nine months.”

[See also: PCORI awards $191M for research.]

The award recipients are located in 10 western U.S. states. PCORI launched the awards as a pilot program in the western region to gain experience and feedback that will help it refine the program as it readies to expand it throughout the rest of the nation in early 2014.

PCORI has contracted with the nonprofit, Denver-based Colorado Foundation for Public Health and the Environment to serve as the Intermediate Funder for the pilot program. CFPHE will provide fiscal, programmatic, and operational services to the first group of Tier I awardees. PCORI plans to contract with additional Intermediate Funders as the program expands next year.