DoD Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychological Health, Investigator-Initiated Research Award | HT9425 23 TBIPHRP IIRA

Opportunity Information: Apply for HT9425 23 TBIPHRP IIRA

The DoD Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychological Health, Investigator-Initiated Research Award (FY23 TBIPHRP IIRA; Funding Opportunity Number HT9425-23-TBIPHRP-IIRA) is a Department of Defense research funding opportunity aimed at advancing the science and practice around traumatic brain injury (TBI) and psychological health conditions. The program is looking for investigator-driven projects that can make a meaningful contribution to understanding, preventing, assessing, or treating these conditions, especially where there is a clear and important gap in knowledge or patient care. The overall emphasis is on research that can move the field forward in practical ways, with applicants expected to spell out both near-term and long-term outcomes or products, whether those outputs are new knowledge, tools, methods, protocols, or other tangible deliverables that could ultimately improve care.

The scope of work supports applied and translational research, which can include preclinical work in animal models, studies in human subjects, and correlative studies that link to an existing clinical trial. A key boundary is that this award cannot be used to conduct a clinical trial. In this announcement, a clinical trial is defined in the standard way: a study where human subjects are prospectively assigned to one or more interventions (including placebo or controls) to evaluate the effects on biomedical or behavioral outcomes. That means applicants can still do human research, and they can work with human anatomical substances, but they need to design the project so it does not cross into testing an intervention for safety, efficacy, or effectiveness. Observational studies, mechanistic studies, biomarker work, validation of assessments, and other non-interventional human studies can fit, as can analyses that are correlative to an already-running clinical trial (as long as the proposed work is not itself the trial).

A major theme of the FY23 TBIPHRP is improving real-world impact by collaborating with the communities most affected by TBI and psychological health conditions, including people with lived experience, families, and care providers. The program encourages, but does not require, Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) approaches, particularly when human subjects are involved. CBPR is framed as a way to build equitable partnerships where community members and researchers share responsibility across the research lifecycle, from identifying needs and shaping study design to interpreting results and disseminating findings back to the community. The announcement also highlights that CBPR can be especially important for community-level interventions and for conditions that disproportionately affect health disparity populations. Practical examples of acceptable collaboration models include lived experience consultation (having at least one team member with lived experience who advises throughout the project), partnerships with community-based organizations that can provide ongoing input, and community advisory boards that bring multiple stakeholders together. One notable rule is that CBPR team members cannot be employees of any organization participating in the application, reinforcing the idea that community partners should be independent voices rather than internal staff. When used, CBPR participation can be documented through letters of commitment and a CBPR statement in specified application attachments.

The opportunity also includes an Early-Career Investigator Partnering Option designed to promote meaningful collaborations and support career development while strengthening the science. Under this option, an application can name two principal investigators: an Initiating PI (who handles most administrative submission responsibilities) and a Partnering PI. One of the two must qualify as an Early-Career Investigator, and the application should make a clear case that the partnership is essential, explaining what distinct expertise each PI contributes and why the work is stronger together than as separate projects. If selected for funding, each PI is expected to receive an individual award within their respective recipient organization, reflecting a true partnered structure rather than a single-PI award with a minor collaborator.

From an administrative and funding perspective, the agency is the Department of Defense (Department of the Army, USAMRAA), the assistance listing is CFDA 12.420, and eligibility is described as unrestricted (open broadly to entity types, subject to any specific clarifications in the full notice). The mechanism listed includes grants and cooperative agreements. The anticipated direct costs for the full period of performance are capped at $500,000. The announcement projected about 14 awards, with awards to be made no later than September 30, 2024. The original posting and deadline information provided indicates the opportunity was created April 27, 2023, with an original closing date of July 6, 2023.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DoD Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychological Health, Investigator-Initiated Research Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 27, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 06, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 14 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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