Pilot and Exploratory Studies core

Apply for a $40,000 NIDUS II Pilot Grant!

To advance innovation in delirium research, the NIDUS II Pilots and Exploratory Core will award pilot grant funding each year, beginning in 2022. The goal of pilot grant funding is to provide funding for investigation into prioritized areas of delirium research. Specifically, we will award two pilot grants in the amount of $40,000 each, each year for three years.

Please note: NIDUS II Pilot grant applications are open to investigators in the U.S. as well as to international applicants.

The 2023 Application Deadline is Friday, May 5, 2023, 5:00PM EST.

Timeline for 2023 Pilot Grant cycle:

NIDUS II Pilot Grant Information Session

In helping investigators to prepare for pilot grant applications, the NIDUS II team hosts information session. At these session, a NIDUS II PI will present information on NIDUS and the goals of and requirements for the pilot grant process. Furthermore, an overview of the rich NIDUS resources will be presented, and the benefits and potential of forming collaborative working groups will be addressed. In addition, there will also be time for Q&A and open discussion.

An important goal of the NIDUS information session is to catalyze the formation of collaborative workings groups of investigators who will work together to design projects and compete for the NIDUS II Pilot Awards. Participating in a information session is not essential for pilot grant applications. However, the session will likely be informative and helpful to investigators.

Collaborative Working Groups

The NIDUS II team hopes that trans-disciplinary collaborative teams will generate innovative and impactful proposals for delirium research. In collaborative working groups, investigators will interact with like-minded scientists who are working in related and complementary areas. In the end, this will advance ideas and facilitate new directions for research.

The due date for NIDUS II Pilot Award Letter of Intent applications is December 7, 2022. These are open to collaborative working group members. We will award 10 awards of $1,000 each by February, 2023. Hopefully, this approach will yield robust and compelling applications for NIDUS II Pilot awards in 2023. We require a one-page letter of intent for applications for Collaborative Awards. See instructions here.

NIDUS II resources available to collaborative working group with a successful letter of intent include:

  • Methods consultations to refine grant applications (Please ensure that your team’s statistician joins you when you consult with the NIDUS methodologists)
  • Research Hub to find investigators to join working groups
  • Measurement Core to help harmonize targeted measures
  • Guidance on using NIDUS resources to advance the work

NIDUS II Pilot Grants

NIDUS designed these Awards to support studies delirium-related. As a result, we expect these studies to provide key preliminary data, exploratory or proof-of-concept pilot work, feasibility studies, or secondary analyses that define a clear pathway to future large-scale studies and grants.

2023 NIDUS II Pilot Grant Priority Areas

NIDUS II Pilots must clearly focus on at least one of the four following research areas chosen to have broad impact on the field:

  1. Inter-Relationship of Delirium and AD/ADRD: studies on risk factors, pathophysiology, and treatment.
  2. Harmonization and refinement of delirium measurement tools.
  3. Biomarker and mechanistic studies to advance our understanding of the pathophysiology of delirium and to identify therapeutic targets.
  4. Clinical Trials--Intervention Development studies for future clinical trials, especially of delirium treatment.

Full details on the pilot grants and applications instructions can be found here:

Tips for grant applications

There are a variety of resources which may be helpful to you in planning your grant application. However, these should only be a general resource. If you are applying for a NIDUS Pilot Grant, please read the application instructions carefully. This ensures that you fulfill all specific NIDUS II Pilots requirements.