Improving Delivery of HIV Prevention and Treatment through Implementation Science and Translational Research (R01) | Apply Online

FAQs: NIH PA-14-131 (R01) - Improving Delivery of HIV Prevention and Treatment through Implementation Science and Translational Research

1) What is NIH PA-14-131?

PA-14-131 is an NIH funding opportunity announcement (FOA) titled "Improving Delivery of HIV Prevention and Treatment through Implementation Science and Translational Research (R01)." It is a discretionary research grant focused on improving how proven HIV prevention and treatment interventions are delivered in real-world settings.

2) What is the main purpose of this FOA?

The purpose is to close the gap between what is known to work in HIV prevention and treatment and what actually happens in routine practice. The emphasis is on increasing the public health impact of existing, evidence-based interventions by improving delivery, efficiency, consistency, and reach.

3) Is this FOA focused on discovering new HIV biomedical interventions?

No. The central focus is not on discovering entirely new biomedical interventions. The FOA prioritizes research on how to deliver interventions that are already proven to work, so they achieve stronger outcomes in everyday clinics, community programs, and health systems.

4) What kinds of research approaches does the FOA emphasize?

This FOA emphasizes implementation science and translational research. Applicants are expected to study strategies that improve uptake, fidelity, reach, sustainability, and quality of HIV-related interventions under real-world conditions.

5) What does "implementation science" mean in the context of this FOA?

In this FOA, implementation science refers to the study of methods and strategies that help evidence-based HIV interventions reach the people who need them and work well in routine practice, especially when real-world barriers (like staffing constraints, stigma, costs, logistics, and uneven access) reduce impact.

6) What does the FOA mean by "translational research" here?

In this context, translational research focuses on moving proven HIV interventions into practical, routine use in community and clinical environments, rather than evaluating them only in highly controlled research settings.

7) What settings are most relevant for projects under this opportunity?

The FOA highlights routine community and clinical environments such as everyday clinics, community programs, and diverse health systems where people receive HIV care and prevention services.

8) What barriers to effective HIV service delivery does the FOA explicitly recognize?

The FOA notes barriers including limited staffing, stigma, costs, logistics, and uneven access, all of which can reduce the impact of proven interventions when delivered in real-world settings.

9) What outcomes or improvements is the FOA trying to generate evidence for?

The FOA seeks evidence on how to deliver HIV interventions more effectively, more efficiently, and more consistently, including improvements in uptake, fidelity, reach, sustainability, and quality in routine practice.

10) Does the FOA support research on scaling or adapting interventions to new settings?

Yes. A key priority is transferability, meaning research that generates evidence on how interventions can be adapted, scaled, and moved from one population or setting to another without losing effectiveness.

11) What does the FOA say about combination intervention packages?

The FOA highlights the importance of better decision-making about combination intervention packages, reflecting that HIV prevention and treatment outcomes often improve when multiple complementary approaches are delivered together.

12) Does the FOA provide examples of combination approaches?

Yes. Examples include linking testing with immediate treatment initiation, adherence support, and retention strategies, as well as combining behavioral, structural, and biomedical prevention tools.

13) What grant mechanism is used for this opportunity?

The mechanism is an NIH R01 research project grant, which typically supports substantial, hypothesis-driven or well-justified research programs.

14) What is the funding instrument type and activity category?

The funding instrument type is a grant, and the activity category is health.

15) Which CFDA numbers are associated with this FOA?

The FOA is associated with multiple CFDA numbers, including 93.242 (Mental Health Research Grants), 93.855 (Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research), and 93.856 (Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Research).

16) What do the listed CFDA numbers suggest about the scope of eligible projects?

The CFDA listings signal that projects can intersect with behavioral health, infectious disease implementation, and related scientific areas connected to HIV prevention and treatment delivery.

17) Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. There is no cost sharing or matching requirement, meaning applicants are not required to provide non-federal matching funds as a condition of award.

18) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes many U.S. and non-U.S. organization types, including small businesses; for-profits (other than small businesses); nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status; public and private institutions of higher education; and numerous government entities.

19) Are small businesses eligible?

Yes. Small businesses are explicitly listed as eligible applicants.

20) Are for-profit organizations eligible?

Yes. For-profit organizations (other than small businesses) are included as eligible applicants.

21) Are nonprofit organizations eligible even if they do not have 501(c)(3) status?

Yes. Nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status are listed as eligible.

22) Are colleges and universities eligible?

Yes. Public and private institutions of higher education, including public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, are eligible.

23) What government entities are eligible?

The FOA includes a wide range of government entities such as city or township governments, county governments, state governments, special district governments, independent school districts, and public housing authorities or Indian housing authorities.

24) Are tribal governments and tribal organizations eligible?

Yes. Tribal governments (federally recognized) are eligible, and the FOA also includes Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments).

25) Are tribally controlled colleges and universities eligible?

Yes. Tribally controlled colleges and universities are explicitly listed as eligible.

26) Are organizations that serve specific populations explicitly encouraged or included?

Yes. The FOA calls out eligibility for institutions and organizations serving specific populations, including HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions, and AANAPISISs.

27) Are faith-based and community-based organizations eligible?

Yes. Faith-based and community-based organizations are included among eligible applicants.

28) Are federal agencies eligible to apply?

Yes. Eligible federal agencies are listed among eligible applicants.

29) Are non-U.S. (foreign) organizations eligible to apply?

Yes. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, including foreign organizations and foreign institutions, are eligible to apply.

30) Can a U.S. organization include a non-U.S. component in its project?

Yes. Non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are eligible.

31) Are foreign components allowed under this FOA?

Yes. Foreign components (as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement) are allowed.

32) Why does the FOA highlight international participation?

The FOA notes that many high-burden HIV settings are outside the United States and that implementation questions often depend on local health system constraints, community context, and regional epidemiology.

33) When was this FOA posted and created?

The opportunity was posted and created on February 28, 2014.

34) What was the closing date for this FOA?

The original closing date listed is January 7, 2017, and the same date is also listed as the current closing date in the provided summary.

35) Is this FOA still open for applications?

No. The FOA was archived on February 7, 2017, and is described as no longer open.

36) Where can applicants or researchers find the full archived announcement?

The archived FOA is available at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-14-131.html

37) Who should be contacted for technical issues accessing the announcement?

For technical access problems (such as issues accessing the announcement electronically or linking to the funding notice), the contact listed is the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) Webmaster at FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV.

38) What broader NIH priorities does this archived FOA illustrate?

It illustrates NIH priorities during that period around moving beyond efficacy studies and focusing on delivery science, scalability, adaptation across settings, and practical strategies that improve real-world outcomes across the HIV prevention and care continuum.