The healthcare research process traditionally includes only scientists and other research-related professionals. PCORI believes that engagement of nontraditional stakeholders—from topic selection through design and conduct of research to dissemination of results—can influence research to be more patient centered, useful, and trustworthy, and ultimately lead to greater use of research results by patients and the broader healthcare community.

The Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award Program, named in honor of the first chair of PCORI’s Board of Governors, is intended to bring more patients, caregivers, clinicians, and other healthcare stakeholders into the research process. The goal is to support projects that will build a community better able to participate in patient-centered outcomes research (PCOR)/comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER) and serve as channels to disseminate study results. This is central to our mission to fund useful CER that will help patients and those who care for them make better-informed healthcare decisions.

The Engagement Award Program supports PCORI’s Engagement Imperative—defined in our Strategic Plan—and provides a platform to increase engagement in research , that is, the meaningful involvement of patients, caregivers, clinicians, and other healthcare stakeholders throughout the research process.

Engagement Awards are for research support projects. This funding is not a research opportunity.

Learn about Recently Funded Engagement Projects

Engagement Award April 2023 Cycle


These Engagement Award PCORI Funding Announcements opened on Wednesday, January 18, 2023. Letters of Intent are due April 3, 2023 by 5:00 pm ET. Full proposals, which are by invitation only, are due July 10, 2023 by 5:00 pm ET.

To discuss your project idea with a member of the Engagement Award Program, please download the Program Fit Request Form. Follow the instructions in the form and email the completed document to [email protected] with your availability.

Engagement Award: Capacity Building

This award category funds projects that build communities prepared to participate in PCOR/CER. These projects support organizations with strong ties to patients, caregivers, clinicians, and other stakeholders who have a connection to a research focus area, with the award existing as a bridge to better equip the stakeholders to engage as partners in research.

Within this announcement, we express two special areas of interest: (1) intellectual and developmental disabilities and (2) maternal morbidity and mortality. Please review the information available on the Engagement Award Special Area of Interest: Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities webpage and the Engagement Award Special Area of Interest: Maternal Morbidity and Mortality webpage for more information. PCORI reminds prospective applicants that special areas of interest exist to encourage submissions on a topic, not to limit submissions to that topic only. PCORI accepts and welcomes Engagement Award: Capacity Building LOIs on all topics related to capacity building for PCOR/CER that fall within the guidelines of the program.

Engagement Award: Dissemination Initiative

This award category funds projects —not conferences—to allow organizations and communities to plan for or actively bring pertinent PCORI-funded research findings to their specific audiences, including relevant patients, clinicians, communities, and others, in ways that will command their attention and interest and encourage use of this information in their healthcare decision making.

There are two funding tracks with this award:

  • Building Capacity for Dissemination, for projects to lay the groundwork for disseminating and implementing PCORI-funded research findings through organizations with strong ties to end-user audiences who can use this information to inform healthcare decisions. Projects may focus on partnership development and understanding stakeholder interests, strengthening the infrastructure and relationships necessary for active dissemination of PCORI-funded research findings. This may include developing, demonstrating, and evaluating the processes, pathways, or tools necessary to incorporate PCOR/CER results into decision making.
  • Active Dissemination for projects aimed at spreading awareness and increasing knowledge of PCORI-funded research findings, targeted directly to end-user audiences who can use this information to inform healthcare decisions. Projects will be designed by organizations and communities with established relationships with relevant stakeholders to actively disseminate the findings from PCORI-funded studies—on their own or as part of the body of existing evidence relevant to the PCORI-funded research findings.

For explanation of distinctions between the Engagement Award: Dissemination Initiative and Dissemination Projects awarded through the D&I program, please visit PCORI’s Funding Opportunities for Disseminating Evidence webpage.

Engagement Award: Stakeholder Convening Support

This award category provides support to organizations and communities to hold multi-stakeholder convenings, meetings, and conferences that include a combination of patients, caregivers, researchers, clinicians, purchasers, payers, health system leaders, and/or other stakeholders. Convenings should be designed with the active collaboration and partnership of patients, community groups, and/or other stakeholder organizations. Projects should bring together diverse stakeholders around a central focus or shared priority that unifies stakeholders (e.g., geography, health condition, population) to explore issues related to PCOR/CER or communicate PCORI-funded research findings to targeted end-user audiences.

Within this announcement, we express three special areas of interest: (1) consideration of the full range of outcomes data, (2) intellectual and developmental disabilities, and (3) maternal morbidity and mortality. Please review the information available on the Engagement Award Special Area of Interest: Consideration of the Full Range of Outcomes Data webpage, the Engagement Award Special Area of Interest: Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities webpage, and the Engagement Award Special Area of Interest: Maternal Morbidity and Mortality webpage for more information. PCORI reminds prospective applicants that special areas of interest exist to encourage submissions on a topic, not to limit submissions to that topic only. PCORI welcomes LOIs for convenings on all topics with a clear focus on and commitment to PCOR/CER that falls within the guidelines of the program.

Engagement Award October 2022 Cycle


These Engagement Award PCORI Funding Announcements opened on Tuesday, July 19, 2022. Letters of Intent were due September 29, 2022 by 5:00 pm ET. Full proposals for these PFAs, which are by invitation only, were due January 11, 2023 by 5:00 pm ET.

Full proposals for this PFA, which are by invitation only, are due January 24, 2023 by 5:00 pm ET.

Awardee Share and Tell Video Series


In response to the coronavirus pandemic, many awardees from the Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award Program have been pivoting from in-person engagement events to virtual settings. Some of these awardees have created videos to share valuable lessons and insight with the greater PCORI awardee community about successful ways to shift to or implement a virtual PCOR/CER engagement event.

Watch the Videos

Engagement Award Program Review and Analysis


Insight Policy Research reviewed, extracted, and analyzed data from Engagement awardees’ interim and final progress reports, which indicate accomplishments, challenges, and successes during the award period. The synthesis of findings, which was conducted between 2017-2020, is outlined in the poster.

Questions?


For questions about Engagement Award application processes, the online application system, application deadlines, potential fit of a project idea, or related issues, please contact us at [email protected] or (202) 370-9312.

To discuss a project idea with a member of the Engagement Award Program, please download the Program Fit Request Form. Follow the instructions in the form and email the completed document to [email protected] with your availability.

PCORI will typically respond to all inquiries within two business days. However, PCORI cannot guarantee a timely response within the two business days prior to a LOI or full proposal deadline. Applicants must plan accordingly. It is the applicant’s responsibility to submit the LOI or full proposal by stated submission deadlines.

Subscribe to PCORI Emails


Posted: October 15, 2013; Updated: January 18, 2023

What's Happening at PCORI?

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute sends weekly emails about opportunities to apply for funding, newly funded research studies and engagement projects, results of our funded research, webinars, and other new information posted on our site.

Subscribe to PCORI Emails

Image

Hand pointing to email icon