Medical Simulation and Information Sciences - INter-professional TEam-based Learning in Early Stages of Learning (Team_INTEL) | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Medical Simulation and Information Sciences grant opportunity called INter-professional TEam-based Learning in Early Stages of Learning (Team_INTEL) is a Department of Defense research funding effort aimed at closing a specific gap in military medicine: teams often train heavily on individual clinical skills first, and only later try to figure out how to function as a coordinated unit during on-the-job experiences. The opportunity argues that this sequencing is risky and inefficient because strong individual performance does not automatically produce strong team performance. In the program's framing, competency is about the underlying building blocks of performance (skills, knowledge, attitudes) and how those change relative to peers, while proficiency is about demonstrated performance against observable behavioral standards and the quality of results produced. Team_INTEL emphasizes that moving from individual competence to team proficiency is its own capability, shaped by team expectations and group dynamics like collaboration, trust, and respect.

A central idea in the announcement is that medical training tends to evaluate patient risk factors against individual provider skill (for example, how well someone performs surgery, places a central line, administers anesthesia, or diagnoses illness and injury), but it should also evaluate patient risk factors against the performance of the assigned team (for example, communication, team process, safety culture, morale, and leadership). The solicitation highlights how misleading self-assessments of communication and teamwork can be, referencing prior civilian findings where surgeons rated teamwork positively while anesthesiologists and operating room staff rated it poorly, and where training improved some communication pathways but not others. Because military culture and hierarchy can differ from civilian hospital culture, the announcement points out that the same patterns may or may not carry over, and this uncertainty itself supports the need for targeted research in military settings.

The opportunity leans heavily on evidence that team cohesion and safer outcomes improve when the patient remains the organizing focus of the entire process, including structured pre-briefs and debriefs. In this view, pre-briefing and debriefing are not optional add-ons but essential mechanisms for patient safety, shared understanding, surfacing lessons learned, and making process corrections that support continuous improvement. High-performing teams are described as operating inside a culture of trust and respect for different professional roles, which helps reduce medical errors, close calls, morbidity, and mortality.

Team_INTEL distinguishes between two broad approaches to team development: Medical Team Training (MTT) and Medical Team-Based Learning (TBL). The solicitation notes that MTT has been used in both military and civilian environments, typically at more advanced stages of training, while TBL has been less widely integrated in medical contexts. The program positions TBL as particularly valuable for military medicine because it promotes adaptability, flexibility, and lifelong learning, which are critical when teams must operate across varied missions and clinical environments. TBL also stresses explicit role clarity and situation awareness before patient encounters, with an emphasis on not assuming shared understanding. The announcement calls out practical elements that should be present, such as identifying leadership, clarifying structure and goals, discussing expectations for the encounter, enabling open question-and-answer exchanges without fear of reprisal, and conducting a thorough debrief afterward.

What the DoD is seeking to fund, specifically, is research that can determine, define, and validate learning strategies that build inter-professional team-based learning early, at the point when teams are first forming and members are still learning each other's roles and responsibilities. The intent is to shift away from a training culture that concentrates on individual technical skills first and postpones team effectiveness until later. Projects are expected to use rigorous statistical methods to identify strong metrics and evaluation criteria for assessing team-based learning practice guidelines. Applicants are expected to clearly define what will be measured (both objective and subjective indicators), explain how it will be measured, and provide the measurement tools, whether those tools already exist commercially or would be developed through the award.

The program also expects proposals to be grounded in realistic, inter-professional participation. Research teams should involve varied clinical disciplines and include learners across the spectrum from novice to expert, potentially spanning different military services. Importantly, the solicitation discourages evaluations based only on students or entry-level trainees, because true team functioning in military medicine often depends on team leaders who are more advanced, higher rank, and influential in shaping team behavior. By including leaders as well as learners, the research is better positioned to measure whether a training approach actually changes team dynamics and performance in a durable way, including the ability to correct unproductive behaviors among those who have already worked in teams.

Another major requirement is generalizability. The model of training produced should be usable across services, across the continuum of care, and across multiple military contexts described as Roles 1 through 4 (spanning far-forward care through more established medical facilities). The anticipated end state is not just a conceptual framework but a validated model that can be implemented into data and knowledge systems and tested in a laboratory-type environment. The solicitation expects awardees to describe and define the interfaces involved, implying a practical, system-oriented outcome rather than purely descriptive research.

Finally, Team_INTEL signals that the resulting metrics, evaluation methods, and training approaches are intended to have broad reach beyond the immediate military context. The DoD anticipates that what is learned could be applied across military medicine, the Veterans Health Administration, academic medical settings, inpatient and outpatient care, rural health environments, private and public hospitals, and even international healthcare situations. Dissemination is an explicit expectation: outcomes, methodologies, analyses, and conclusions should be shared not only with the government and military stakeholders but also with the public, with public benefit encouraged.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity (W81XWH 16 R MSI2) was posted March 28, 2016 by DOD-AMRAA, with a closing date of August 29, 2016. The activity area is science and technology and other research and development under CFDA 12.420. The funding instruments listed include cooperative agreement, grant, and procurement contract, eligibility is described as unrestricted (open to any entity type, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications), and the listed award ceiling is $1,250,000.

Browse more opportunities from the same agency: DOD-AMRAA

Browse more opportunities from the same category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development

Next opportunity: CA Conservation Innovation Grant

Previous opportunity: Fish and Wildlife Coordination and Assistance Programs

USGrants.org Applicant Portal:

Are you interested in learning about about how to apply for this government funding opportunity? You can create a free applicant account and receive instant access to our applicant portal that many business owners like you have benefited from.

Apply for W81XWH 16 R MSI2

 

[Watch] how do funding administrators access proposals?

Applicants also applied for:

Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (W81XWH 16 R MSI2) also looked into and applied for these:

 

Grant application guides and resources

It is always free to apply for government grants. However the process may be very complex depending on the funding opportunity you are applying for. Let us help you!

Apply for Grants

 

 

Premium leads for funding administrators, grant writers, and loan issuers

Thousands of people visit our website for their funding needs every day. When a user creates a grant proposal and files for submission, we pass the information on to funding administrators, grant writers, and government loan issuers.

If you manage government grant programs, provide grant writing services, or issue personal or government loans, we can help you reach your audience.

Subscribe to Leads

 

Request more information:

Would you like to learn more about this funding opportunity, similar opportunities to "W81XWH 16 R MSI2", eligibility, application service, and/or application tips? Submit an inquiry below:

Don't forget to subscribe to our grant alerts mailing list to receive weekly alerts on new and updated grant funding opportunities like this one in your email.