Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA HS 14 005
Apply for RFA HS 14 005
- The Agency for Health Care Research and Quality in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Patient Safety Learning Laboratories Innovative Design and Development to Improve Healthcare Delivery Systems (P30)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.226 Research on Healthcare Costs, Quality and Outcomes.
- This funding opportunity was created on Nov 22, 2013 and posted on Nov 22, 2013.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 7, 2014. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $5,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: County governments Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) Private institutions of higher education Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) City or township governments State governments.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized) Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are not eligible to apply as the lead organization.
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Opportunity Summary:
The Patient Safety Learning Laboratories: Innovative Design and Development to Improve Healthcare Delivery Systems (P30) funding opportunity (RFA HS 14 005) was a discretionary grant program from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) aimed at generating practical, research-driven improvements in patient safety across the full range of healthcare settings and delivery systems. AHRQ positioned this initiative around the idea that patient safety problems are often deeply rooted in how care is designed and delivered, not just in isolated mistakes or individual performance. Although many in the field promote a "systems" view of safety, AHRQ noted that there had been relatively little sustained, program-level work that actually applies new design methods and systems engineering approaches to redesign care processes in a way that addresses multiple safety issues together rather than focusing narrowly on a single error type or event.
At its core, the opportunity was intended to support the creation or advancement of "learning laboratories" for patient safety, meaning structured environments where teams can systematically study real-world care delivery, identify system vulnerabilities, prototype improvements, test changes in context, and refine solutions using iterative learning cycles. The emphasis on innovative design and development signals that applicants were expected not only to evaluate existing interventions, but to actively engage in building and redesigning healthcare delivery systems using rigorous methods. This reflects an interest in approaches associated with systems engineering and human factors, such as workflow redesign, usability-informed technology implementation, safer process architecture, and organizational changes that reduce risk across multiple points in the care pathway.
The funding mechanism was a P30 center-style grant, which typically supports shared infrastructure and coordinated activity rather than a single narrow research project. In practice, that kind of structure encourages multi-disciplinary collaboration, the development of tools and methods that can be reused across projects, and the establishment of an ongoing capacity to test and spread safety innovations. The announcement aligns with AHRQ's broader mission to improve healthcare quality, outcomes, and safety, with this specific call highlighting the gap between endorsing systems thinking and actually operationalizing it through programmatic design and engineering work inside healthcare delivery environments.
In terms of logistics and scale, AHRQ estimated a total of $5,000,000 available under the announcement, with an award ceiling of $1,000,000. There was no cost sharing or matching requirement, lowering the barrier for public-sector and academic applicants to participate. The opportunity was posted on November 22, 2013, and had an original and final closing date of February 7, 2014, with the archive date listed as March 10, 2014. The funding activity category was Health, and the CFDA number tied to it was 93.226 (Research on Healthcare Costs, Quality and Outcomes), which situates the program within federal support for applied health services research that can translate into measurable improvements in care delivery.
Eligibility was broad across government and higher education, reflecting the expectation that meaningful system redesign often requires partnership between researchers and real operational settings. Eligible applicants included state governments, county governments, city or township governments, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, and private institutions of higher education. Federally recognized Native American tribal governments were eligible, as were Native American tribal organizations other than federally recognized tribal governments. The notice also referenced "Others" with clarification in the full eligibility text. Importantly, non-U.S. (foreign) institutions were not eligible to apply as the lead organization, which indicates AHRQ's intent to keep primary accountability and implementation anchored within U.S. healthcare systems, where the operational testing and dissemination would occur.
The overall takeaway is that this AHRQ program was designed to move patient safety research beyond describing problems or testing one-off fixes, and toward building durable, system-level learning and redesign capability. By funding learning laboratories that integrate research with hands-on design and systems engineering, the opportunity aimed to produce scalable improvements in how healthcare is delivered, with patient safety gains emerging from better-designed processes, environments, and technologies rather than relying primarily on individual vigilance. For complete details, the full announcement was hosted through the NIH grants system under the link provided in the notice (RFA HS 14 005), with support contacts listed for technical access issues through the NIH Office of Extramural Research web team.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the Patient Safety Learning Laboratories (P30) funding opportunity?
It was a discretionary grant program from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) titled "Patient Safety Learning Laboratories: Innovative Design and Development to Improve Healthcare Delivery Systems (P30)" under RFA HS 14 005. The program focused on generating practical, research-driven improvements in patient safety across the full range of healthcare settings and delivery systems.
What was the main goal of this AHRQ program?
The goal was to support system-level redesign efforts that improve patient safety by changing how care is designed and delivered. AHRQ emphasized that many safety problems are rooted in care delivery system design rather than isolated mistakes or individual performance.
What is meant by a "learning laboratory" for patient safety?
A learning laboratory was described as a structured environment where teams can study real-world care delivery, identify system vulnerabilities, prototype improvements, test changes in context, and refine solutions using iterative learning cycles.
What kinds of work was AHRQ trying to encourage through this opportunity?
AHRQ sought program-level work that applies innovative design methods and systems engineering approaches to redesign care processes. The intent was to address multiple safety issues together, rather than focusing narrowly on one error type or single event.
How did AHRQ frame the underlying patient safety problem this program addressed?
AHRQ framed patient safety problems as often being deeply rooted in system design and care delivery processes. The announcement highlighted a gap between promoting "systems thinking" in patient safety and actually operationalizing that thinking through sustained design and engineering work inside healthcare delivery environments.
What does "innovative design and development" imply for applicants?
Based on the description, it implies applicants were expected to actively engage in building and redesigning healthcare delivery systems using rigorous methods, not just evaluating existing interventions. The focus was on design and development work within real operational contexts.
What approaches or methods were specifically emphasized?
The opportunity highlighted approaches associated with systems engineering and human factors. Examples mentioned included workflow redesign, usability-informed technology implementation, safer process architecture, and organizational changes intended to reduce risk across multiple points in the care pathway.
What is the P30 funding mechanism and how does it shape the program?
The P30 mechanism is a center-style grant. As described, it typically supports shared infrastructure and coordinated activity rather than a single narrow research project. This structure can encourage multidisciplinary collaboration, reusable tools and methods, and an ongoing capacity to test and spread safety innovations.
Which agency offered this grant?
The grant opportunity was offered by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
What was the funding activity category?
The funding activity category was Health.
How much total funding did AHRQ estimate for this opportunity?
AHRQ estimated a total of $5,000,000 available under the announcement.
What was the maximum award amount (award ceiling)?
The award ceiling listed for this opportunity was $1,000,000.
Was cost sharing or matching required?
No. The opportunity stated there was no cost sharing or matching requirement.
When was the opportunity posted?
The opportunity was posted on November 22, 2013.
What were the application closing dates?
The original and final closing date listed was February 7, 2014.
When was the opportunity archived?
The archive date listed was March 10, 2014.
What CFDA number was associated with this funding opportunity?
The CFDA number tied to the program was 93.226, labeled "Research on Healthcare Costs, Quality and Outcomes."
Who was eligible to apply?
Eligibility was broad across government and higher education. Eligible applicants included state governments, county governments, city or township governments, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, and private institutions of higher education. Federally recognized Native American tribal governments were eligible, as were Native American tribal organizations other than federally recognized tribal governments. The notice also referenced "Others" with further clarification in the full eligibility text.
Were non-U.S. (foreign) institutions eligible to apply as the lead?
No. Non-U.S. (foreign) institutions were not eligible to apply as the lead organization.
Why did AHRQ emphasize keeping the lead organization U.S.-based?
The description indicates AHRQ intended primary accountability and implementation to be anchored within U.S. healthcare systems, where operational testing and dissemination of redesigned care processes would occur.
What types of settings were in scope for the patient safety improvements?
The opportunity aimed to improve patient safety across the full range of healthcare settings and delivery systems, rather than limiting work to one setting type.
How is this program different from research that only describes patient safety problems?
This program was designed to move beyond describing problems by supporting hands-on system redesign and the creation of durable learning and redesign capability. The emphasis was on developing, testing, and refining solutions in real-world care delivery contexts.
How is this program different from one-off fixes targeting a single error?
AHRQ highlighted interest in redesigning care processes to address multiple safety issues together. The intention was to avoid narrowly focusing on one error type or isolated event and instead reduce risk across multiple points in the care pathway.
Where could applicants find the full official announcement?
The full announcement was hosted through the NIH grants system under the identifier RFA HS 14 005, as referenced in the notice.
Where were support contacts listed for technical access issues?
The notice stated that support contacts for technical access issues were available through the NIH Office of Extramural Research web team.
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