NIHR Themed Call
Prevention and treatment of obesity
Writing a good application and the role
of the RDS
19th January 2016
Read the commissioning brief
Prevention and treatment of obesity
Issues of particular importance for this call include the prevention of
type 2 diabetes and increasing levels of physical activity.
Preventing obesity and type 2 diabetes
Government. With over 60% of the
overweight or obese and more than 2.7
with type 2 diabetes, the health burden
obesity in the UK are increasing.
is a priority for the UK
adult population either
million people diagnosed
and economic impact of
This call is an initiative by the NIHR in recognition of the need for
further research-based evidence to underpin the prevention and
management of overweight and obesity in adults and children.
http://www.themedcalls.nihr.ac.uk/
NIHR Research Design Service
Choose the right funding stream
Choose the right research question
• Has it already been answered?
• Has the funding stream funded similar research?
• Does it matter to patients?
• Will it make a difference to health?
• Will doctors and allied health professionals care
enough to want to participate?
• Can it be implemented?
NIHR Research Design Service
Choose the right research method
• Is an RCT appropriate?
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Primary outcome
Control group
Sample size
Recruitment and retention
Avoiding bias
• If using a non-RCT design is it robust?
• Is it worth investigating cost-effectiveness?
• Would a mixed methods or qualitative study be appropriate?
NIHR Research Design Service
Pick your team carefully
• Seniority of PI
• Consider involving a CTU
• Comment on track record and experience of team
• Make sure enough statistical support is in place
• Include team members with expertise in specific
methodologies (e.g., health economics, qualitative research)
• PPI
• Be careful of having too many ‘chiefs’!
NIHR Research Design Service
Make sure the proposal is feasible
• Provide evidence!
• If feasibility is unclear, then consider a feasibility
study (with pre-defined feasibility criteria)
• Demonstrate it will be possible to recruit study sites
and patients within a reasonable time frame and
there will be adequate retention of participants
• Leave enough time for study set up, including
ethics and research governance approvals
NIHR Research Design Service
Who are you writing for?
• Content experts
– Mainly the referees
– May include some member of the funding panel
• Experienced researchers who are not content experts, who
will be particularly interested in your research methodology
– Members of the funding panel
• Write clearly for both groups
NIHR Research Design Service
Produce a carefully costed proposal
• Sorting out the budget takes time!
• Be realistic – too little just as bad as too much
• Cost at plausible % FTE rates
• Full applications are scrutinised by NIHR accountants who
will check and challenge
• For many funding streams total costs should be identified at
the outline stage with limited variation at the full stage
• Account appropriately for research costs, NHS treatment
costs and NHS support costs
NIHR Research Design Service
Public involvement
Were patients and the public actively involved in
– identifying the research topic or prioritising the research
questions?
– in preparing this application?
• Please indicate the ways in which patients and the public
– will be actively involved in the proposed research
– will benefit the research, the reasons for taking this
approach and arrangements for training and support
• If there are no plans for active involvement, please explain
why it is not thought necessary.
NIHR Research Design Service
Plan for dissemination
• Think about who the main stakeholders are for your
research and how learning can be shared rapidly and
effectively with them
– Commissioners
– Providers
– Health care professionals
– Patients
• Consider working with stakeholders to develop your
dissemination plan
NIHR Research Design Service
Appropriate support
• RDS
• NIHR and other networks
• Public involvement
• Appropriate methodologists
NIHR Research Design Service
Role NIHR RDS
“To increase the number and
proportion of high quality
applications for funding …”
“of clear relevance to
NHS services,
clinicians and users”
http://www.rds.nihr.ac.uk/
NIHR Research Design Service
RDS Advice and Guidance
“all aspects of research design and conduct”
• Formulating research questions
• Research design for quantitative studies
• Research design for qualitative studies
NIHR Research Design Service
We do more than
research design…
• Identifying appropriate funding sources
• Contacting appropriate collaborators in research
• Building an appropriate team
• Involving patients and carers
• Writing plain English summaries
• Identifying the resources required
• “Grantsmanship” – getting the narrative right
• Signpost researchers to specialised support
• Regulatory issues
NIHR Research Design Service
RDS Expertise
“Each RDS must at its core have access to methodological expertise”
• Research methodology
• Health economics
• Statistics
• Systematic reviews
• Health psychology and behavioural science
“Must also be able to draw on other expertise as necessary or provide
advice and guidance on all aspects of research design and conduct”
NIHR Research Design Service
Working with the RDS
• Booking an ‘early’ appointment with the RDS
http://www.rds.nihr.ac.uk/
• Provide a summary of research idea/s
• Face to face meeting
– First point of contact with a generalist
NIHR Research Design Service
Initial meeting with the RDS
• Assessment
– Importance of the question
– Existing research
– Potential funding streams
– Study design – is it a trial
– Clinical area
– Feasibility of recruitment strategy
– Track record of team
– PPI
– Costs; research, treatment, excess treatment
NIHR Research Design Service