The AASM Foundation is committed to improving the lives of those living with sleep disorders. One of the many ways we show our advocacy is through funding sleep medicine research which will advance sleep science and treatment opportunities. The Strategic Research Grant supports high-impact research projects aimed at addressing gaps in knowledge that impact the ability to provide optimal care for patients with sleep disorders.
This year, the AASM Foundation offers five different Strategic Research Grant requests for applications. Additional details about related topic areas of interest can be found in the full request for applications (RFA). Only applications that fit into one of the research domains and topic areas will be considered.
- AASM Strategic Plan Goals
This is a focused request for applications (RFA) open to topic areas related to the following American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) Strategic Plan Goals: Advocacy to Improve Patient Care, Public Awareness, Technology Innovation, and Workforce Development. Topic areas that address the AASM Strategic Plan Goals must advance the field of sleep medicine and population sleep health. - Hypopnea Scoring Criteria
This is a focused request for applications (RFA) open to projects that will retrospectively analyze existing data sets to evaluate the impact of diagnosis and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) based on the hypopnea scoring criteria utilized in adult patients – specifically, those who qualify for treatment using the Recommended hypopnea scoring criteria but not the Acceptable scoring criteria. - Treatment of Central Disorders of Hypersomnolence
The AASM Foundation is working with the Hypersomnia Foundation and Wake Up Narcolepsy to support projects related to this RFA. By applying to this RFA, your project may be considered for co-funding by the AASM Foundation, Hypersomnia Foundation, and Wake up Narcolepsy.This is a focused request for applications (RFA) open to projects that address research gaps in the treatment of central disorders of hypersomnolence that were identified in the recently published systematic review titled, Treatment of central disorders of hypersomnolence: an American Academy of Sleep Medicine systematic review, meta-analysis, and GRADE assessment and basic, translational, clinical and population research gaps identified by patient advocacy stakeholder groups.
- Dissemination and Implementation Research
This is a focused request for applications (RFA) open to dissemination and implementation sleep research projects. It’s well-known that there is a significant lag time for biomedical research to reach clinical practice, all while there is rapid development of therapies for sleep and circadian disorders that are not reaching the hands of patients. Dissemination and implementation research can help reduce this gap and increase the uptake of evidence-based research findings into real-world practice settings in order to provide optimal, patient-centered, cost-effective diagnosis and care for people with sleep disorders, which is the goal of the Strategic Research Grant.Dissemination is the intentional, active process of identifying target audiences and tailoring communication strategies to increase awareness and understanding of evidence, and to motivate its use in policy, practice, and individual choices.
Implementation is the deliberate, iterative process of integrating evidence into policy and practice through adapting evidence to different contexts and facilitating behavior change and decision making based on evidence across individuals, communities, and healthcare systems.
The AASM Foundation will support dissemination and implementation sleep research through the Strategic Research Grant focused on specific research domains.
- Sleep Health Disparities Research
This is a focused request for applications (RFA) open to sleep health disparities research projects among disadvantaged populations in the United States. It is known that sleep disturbances and deficiencies contribute to poor health and are linked to multiple chronic health problems, mental wellbeing, safety, and work productivity. Additionally, sleep disturbances and deficiencies affect disadvantaged populations, which lead to disproportionate sleep health disparities in the United States (US) among Blacks/African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asians, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, underserved rural populations, and sexual and gender minority populations.In an effort to dismantle, reduce or eliminate sleep health disparities in the US and equitably provide optimal, patient-centered, cost-effective diagnosis and care for disadvantaged populations with sleep disorders, the AASM Foundation will support sleep health disparities sleep research.
Additionally, there are three categories of funding for the Strategic Research Grant:
- Category I: Category I applications are for applicants seeking funding for projects up to $250,000 and covers a project period of up to three years.
- Category II: Category II applications are for applicants seeking funding for projects up to $100,000 and covers a project period of up to two years.
- Category III: Category III applications are for applicants seeking funding for projects up to $50,000 and covers a project period of up to one year.
The Strategic Research Grant is a two-step grant process. The applicant must initially submit a letter of intent which will be reviewed by the AASM Foundation Executive Committee. Applicants will then be notified whether they are invited to submit a full application for further consideration.
Letters of intent are due October 24, 2022. For information on funding, eligibility, research domains, topic areas of interest, and more, visit https://foundation.aasm.org/strategic-research-award/.
