The Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) is pleased to announce two funding opportunities of up to $5,000 each to support research projects highlighting the impact of pharmacist board certification on:
- Patient outcomes (e.g., adherence, quality of life, patient satisfaction, health literacy);
- Healthcare systems (e.g., medication safety, drug-related problems, admissions/readmissions, emergency department visits, institutional credentialing and privileging);
- Interprofessional collaboration (e.g., recognition, perception, increased efficiency in providing care); and/or,
- Pharmacist employment, professional development, and/or wellbeing (e.g., job satisfaction, retention, career advancement).1
1 Zarowitz, B.J. and Haas, C.E. (2023), E“VALU”ating board certification in pharmacy. J Am Coll Clin Pharm, 6: 322-326. https://doi.org/10.1002/jac5.1736
Applications are currently closed.
Stay tuned for announcements on the next call for applications in spring/summer 2024.
ELIGIBILITY
Any pharmacist or investigator is eligible to submit an application to receive funding for research related to the impact of pharmacist board certification.
PROJECT TIMELINE
APPLICATION DEADLINE: FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 2023
The total available funding is $5,000 per grant award to be used over 24 months (November 2023 – November 2025). Award funds may be used for salary support of technical or support personnel but must not be used as salary support for the investigators.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
1. Cover sheet
The principal investigator and all co-investigators must sign a cover sheet to indicate their approval and agreement to participate in the project. If institutional review board (IRB) submission or review is required, evidence of IRB approval must be provided before funding can be disbursed.
2. Abstract
A brief description and specific aims of the proposed project (no more than 1 page).
3. Key personnel form
Please note that the “Role on Project” should be a short title (e.g., co-investigator, consultant). Explain the role and qualifications (if applicable) of all individuals involved with the project.
4. Budget
The total award is for direct costs related to research, with the caveat that funding may not be used for institutional overhead, salary support for investigators, or equipment expenditures. Please justify all budget items. If the award will provide only partial support for the project’s total budget, state specifically how the balance will be funded and provide evidence of its guaranteed availability. Any funds remaining at the end of the 24-month period shall be refunded to BPS.
5. Research plan
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- Introduction: include the introduction, study question, and specific aims. Discuss the rationale for the project.
- Background and significance: discuss the existing knowledge base, identify gaps this project might fill and discuss the significance of the project.
- Research methods:
- Experimental design, including rationale
- Study population, including detailed description of data sources or recruitment strategy
- Data collection procedure, including survey instrument or outcome variables, if applicable
- Data analysis plan
- Plan for dissemination of results
- Timeline: provide a detailed timeline for project completion. Include dates by which key study milestones will be completed.
- References: Include a bibliography of cited references.
- Format: at least 11-point font (figures/tables may use smaller font), at least 0.5 inch margins, and no longer than 12 pages total.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
Significance (20%):
* Does the proposal align with the goal of the funding, which is to evaluate impact and/or value of pharmacist board certification?
* Is there a critical evaluation of existing knowledge and are gaps in knowledge identified which the project is intended to fill?
Approach (20%):
* Does the proposed project appropriately describe the methods and analyses used to accomplish the specific aims?
* Are potential problems, alternative approaches, and/or benchmarks for success described?
Investigators (20%):
* Are the investigators appropriately qualified and experienced to conduct the project?
* Does the research team have access to appropriate consultants (e.g. data analysis, biostatistics)?
Feasibility (20%):
* Does the research team have the necessary institutional support to carry out this project?
* Can the project aims be accomplished during the funding period?
Budget (20%):
* Is the budget matched to the resource requirements to complete the project?
* Does the budget aim to use funds for travel expenses and/or meeting registrations or research resources?
* If the grant will provide only partial support for the project’s total budget or any personnel, has the investigator stated specifically, how the balance will be funded and provided evidence of its guaranteed availability?
(NOTE: salary support is restricted to technical or support personnel, and is not to be used for support of the investigators).
GRANTEE RESPONSIBILITIES
By accepting this award, the grantees agree to undertake all reasonable efforts to complete the project and take responsibility for fulfilling the terms described within the award letter. If, for any reason, the grantee is unable to complete the project, BPS shall be informed in writing as soon as possible, including a justification and report of the activities completed up to that point.
The grant period of activity will begin upon funding distribution by BPS (and IRB approval, if applicable) and will expire 24 months after disbursement of the funds. Grantees are expected to adhere to the timeline above. Use of the funds should match the proposed budget. Any updates to the proposed budget must be requested by email to Ellie LaNou (ELaNou@aphanet.org) prior to change. Remaining unused funds shall be returned to BPS at the end of the grant period, while overexpenditure is the responsibility of the investigators.
BPS shall be notified of any publications and/or presentations resulting from work. Publications and/or presentations shall acknowledge BPS funding support.
DURING THE FUNDING PERIOD, GRANTEES WILL BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT ELECTRONIC COPIES OF THE FOLLOWING:
| One-year progress report | No later than December 2024 |
| Final report | No later than December 2025 |
PAST BPS SEED GRANT RECIPIENTS
2021 BPS SEED GRANT RECIPIENTS
Diving into Board Certification, with the 2021-2022 Seed Grant Awardees: Hunter Fly and Adam Moss
Join our host Ellie LaNou, BPS Director of Professional Affairs, as she talks with Hunter Fly, PharmD, and Adam Moss, PharmD, MPS, about their research projects as the 2021-2022 BPS Seed Grant Awardees. They discuss trends and findings of their projects to date, as well as what they hope to find as they continue their dive into pharmacist board certification.
Dr. Fly’s project, titled ‘A Qualitative and Quantitative Investigation of Board Certification for Pharmacists’ aims to describe pharmacist board certification, assess current literature on perception of certification, and see what contemporary perception is. You can find the 2003 article Fly mentions here. The 2015 article he mentions can be found here.
Dr. Moss’ project, titled ‘Evaluation of the percentage and perceived value of board-certified pharmacists in U.S. hospitals and associated impact on clinical and operational measures’ looks to understand what incentives exist for board certification, how frequently employers use them to encourage certification, and what data exists to back up the value of board certification. For more information on the AJHP article Moss mentions, you can visit this page. The ASHP Recommendations of 2030 he mentions can be found here.
Listen to the Audio Here:
2020 BPS SEED GRANT RECIPIENTS
2019 BPS SEED GRANT RECIPIENTS
“Assessment of Patients’ Perceptions on Antimicrobial Stewardship and Attitudes towards Board-Certified Clinical Pharmacists within the Movement to Reduce Antimicrobial Resistance” by Dr. Sheila Wang, PharmD, BCPS and Dr. Justin Moore, PharmD, from the Midwestern – Chicago College of Pharmacy and Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, IL.
