# Pilot Project Program

> **NIH NIH U54** · MAINEHEALTH · 2022 · $531,209

## Abstract

The northern New England region constitutes a unique public health landscape with challenging needs for its
residents, particularly prevention, early detection, and intervention of chronic diseases. The Pilot Projects
Program (PPP) successfully provided support to clinical and translational investigators to conduct public health
research addressing health inequities in urban, rural and underserved communities that face sizable barriers to
healthcare access. The PPP worked with all the NNE-CTR Cores over the first four years to develop and
implement 29 projects with clinical, translational, and Covid-19 implications. Those pilots enhanced healthcare
delivery as well as accelerated the career trajectory of several pilot project awardees. Building upon our
considerable accomplishments, the current aims of the PPP will support a three step process to enhance
further pilot success while simultaneously improving our mentoring program in collaboration with the
Professional Development Core. In Aim 1 of this three-stage process, we will expand researcher recruitment
and support concept development to incentivize and build meaningful interdisciplinary collaborations. We will
disseminate PPP opportunities through our NNE-CTR website, newsletter, and social media, and support
young, early-stage and established investigators during concept development in collaboration with the
Professional Development (PDC) and the Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design (BERD) Cores. In
Aim 2, we will help investigators prepare Pilot Project applications by providing mentorship in study design and
data analysis, and by engaging navigators from the Community Engagement and Outreach (CEO), PDC, and
BERD Cores. We will encourage consultation with Core leadership, community representatives, and content
experts to enhance design feasibility. In the final stage, Aim 3, we will mentor pilot project awardees during the
post-award phase by providing scientific and professional development guidance to awardees via quarterly
meetings. We will assist awardees to develop extramural grant proposals, including holding mock “study
sections” in partnership with the PDC, to ensure competitive proposals. For those whose external applications
fell below the payline, we will return to the first stage and support further concept development for subsequent
applications. We will also ensure all research conducted through the PPP is continually aligned with principles
of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will leverage our existing partnerships with CTSAs, State Departments of
Health, the Northern New England Practice-Based Research Network, and the Rural Health Communications
Network. By restructuring our pilot awards, we will support an array of projects, ranging from multistage clinical
and translational studies to community-specific public health initiatives. This should provide pilot awardees
with the opportunity to enhance their academic careers while serving the rapidly shifting p...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10505156
- **Project number:** 2U54GM115516-06
- **Recipient organization:** MAINEHEALTH
- **Principal Investigator:** JOSEPH H. NADEAU
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $531,209
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2017-07-03 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10505156

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10505156, Pilot Project Program (2U54GM115516-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10505156. Licensed CC0.

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