DoD Reconstructive Transplant Research Program Grant for Qualitative Research Studies

The intent of the FY19 RTRP Qualitative Research Award is to support multi-institutional partnerships for qualitative research studies that will help researchers and clinicians better understand the experiences of individuals involved in the reconstructive transplant process. This includes those who are considering, or who have already received, reconstructive transplant surgery and/or the reality of lifelong immunosuppression, as well as caregivers, potential donors and their families, and clinicians. This understanding will, in turn, support the ultimate goal of improving transplant outcomes and the quality of life for individuals who receive these life-changing procedures.

Qualitative research is a form of social inquiry that focuses on understanding how people interpret and make sense of their experiences and the world in which they live. Observations that drive a research idea may be derived from basic discovery, population-based studies, a clinician’s first-hand knowledge of patients, or anecdotal data. Qualitative research is intended to be exploratory, open-ended, and unbiased. The information gathered should be meaningful and culturally appropriate to the participant, unanticipated (not hypothesis-based) by the research team, and rich and explanatory in nature.

There are several challenges that impede VCA-related quality of life and psychosocial research. One of these challenges is the relatively small number of VCA procedures that have been performed, with fewer than 200 face, hand, or arm transplants total worldwide to date. To confound this challenge, there is significant heterogeneity among this population with respect to the type, location, and severity of the injury being treated with the transplant. For example, quality of life may vary in hand/arm transplant recipients depending on whether the transplant was unilateral or bilateral, or above or below the elbow. Further, different quality of life domains may exist for upper extremity versus craniofacial transplant recipients. Recipient experiences may also vary, depending on locality and cultural community, as well as the VCA center where they were treated. For all of these reasons, collaboration across multiple VCA centers is considered most ideal for capturing the elements of variability.

New for FY19: The FY19 RTRP Qualitative Research Award is intended to support multi-institutional partnerships among two to four investigators, referred to as the Initiating Principal Investigator (PI) and the Partnering PI(s), each of whom will receive a separate award. Therefore, all applications must include at least two PIs representing at least two separate institutions. Single PI and single institution applications are not permitted.

The Initiating PI will be responsible for the majority of the administrative tasks associated with application submission. Initiating and Partnering PIs each have different submission requirements, as described in Section II.D.2, Content and Form of the Application Submission; however, all PIs should contribute significantly to the development of the proposed research project, including the Project Narrative, Statement of Work (SOW), and other required components. If recommended for funding, each PI will be named to an individual award within the recipient organization. Multi-institutional collaborations are required.