Research News- Nov. 1, 2013

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. The Polls are Open! 2013 Elections for Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) Representatives

Polls will close: November 22, 2013 at 12:00 - Noon

PLEASE NOTE: In order to vote you must be an Assistant, Associate or Full Professor

Assistant Professor (Vote for 1)
Javier Irazoqui, PhD, Pediatrics
David Langenau, PhD, Pathology
Anne Thorndike, MD, General Medicine Division

Associate Professor (Vote for 1)
Allan Goldstein, MD, Pediatric Surgery
Sekar Kathiresan, MD, Medicine/CHGR
Herminia Diana Rosas, MD, Neurology

For more information and to cast your vote: http://ecor.mgh.harvard.edu/elections/votingform.aspx

Questions? Email: ecor@partners.org

2. MGH is seeking a new Director for the Clinical Research Program!

DIRECTOR, CLINICAL RESEARCH PROGRAM
Massachusetts General Hospital
Harvard Medical School

Massachusetts General Hospital is recruiting a new Director for the Clinical Research Program. The successful candidate will have: a compelling strategic vision for the MGH’s translational research future and an operational plan; a track record of a national presence and experience with NIH and industry sponsored research; experience running a robust clinical research program; and a track record of mentorship. Long term clinical research experience preferred. Leadership and team management expertise required. It is anticipated that the successful candidate will have qualifications consistent with the rank of Associate Professor or Professor at Harvard Medical School.

Interested candidates should submit a C.V. and cover letter to:

Merit Cudkowicz, MD, MSc
Chief, Neurology Service,
WAC 720, 55 Fruit St., Boston, MA 02114 or
email to: MGHCRPDirectorSearch@partners.org
and copy to Maire Leyne, Director, Executive Committee On Research

Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School are Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employers actively committed to increasing the diversity of the faculty; people with disabilities, veterans, women and members of underrepresented minority groups are therefore strongly encouraged to apply. 

3. Core of the Week: Partners Biorepository for Medical Discovery

Partners Biorepository for Medical Discovery
Contact: Patrick Sluss, PhD

The Partners Biorepository for Medical Discovery (PBMD) offers a wide variety of sample collection and storage alternatives for both prospective sample collection and retrospective sample selection from the existing PBMD specimen bank.

To learn more about the Partners Biorepository for Medical Discovery please click here.

4. Subscribe to the new Employee Alert System

Recent emergency events including Hurricane Sandy, February's blizzard and the Boston Marathon bombings highlighted the need for a way to rapidly communicate with hospital employees. In an effort to enhance our communication capabilities we are excited to announce a new Employee Alert System.

The Employee Alert System uses text message, email and/or phone calls to deliver important messages from the hospital to you. The system is subscriber-based, meaning that you manage your alert preferences and can make changes to how you receive messages at any time. This system is separate from the existing Emergency Notification System that is used predominately by Hospital Incident Command System personnel.

Participation in this program is strictly voluntary. Hospital leadership will continue to use traditional communication methods, such as Broadcast email and the Severe Weather line, to disseminate information when appropriate.

Examples of alerts that you may receive from the Employee Alert System:

• Weather emergencies
• MBTA closures
• Disaster situational awareness

To subscribe to receive the emergency alerts:

• Visit www.notifind.net/NF_SUBSCRIBE and click on the "sign up" link.
• Fill in the initial registration form and create a login username and password. Please note: You will be asked to enter your own unique user name and password. This is NOT your Partners user name and password.
• Click "register"
• An email will be sent to the address you provided with further instructions
• Click the activation link in that email.
• Enter your username and password and click "activate account"
• Fill in your contact information and click "continue"
• Check the locations you would like to be notified about in the event of an emergency. This includes notifications for MGH as well as all Partners HealthCare affiliations.
• Select how you would like to receive the emergency alerts - including one or all of the following - a telephone call, email or text message.
• Click "finish"

Complete instructions, with screen shots can be found online.

We are pleased to be able to offer this new communication method to our employees and we encourage you to sign up as soon as possible using the directions above.

If you experience difficulty with the registration process, please contact the Help Desk at 617-726-5085. Questions about the service itself can be directed to David Reisman.

Lastly, to encourage you to sign up for this new service as soon as possible, we are offering a special raffle for those who sign up by 5 pm on Friday, November 15. One lucky Employee Alert System subscriber will win two tickets to see the New England Patriots take on the Cleveland Browns at Gillette Stadium on December 8. The raffle winner will be notified the week of November 18.

5. PHS Government Affairs Update- October 28, 2013

Click here to read the Partners Government Affairs Update.

EVENTS

1. MGH Research Council

Monday, November 4, 2013, 12:00 -1:00 PM, Simches 3.110
with Broadcast to Isselbacher Auditorium (CNY-149, 7th floor)

-Meet the Candidates for the 2013 ECOR Election

-Update on the Continuous Research Operations Improvement (CROI)
Clinical Research Suggestion Box
Maurizio Fava, MD; Psychiatry
Tatiana Koretskaia; Director for Administration & Finance, CRP

-Partners Enterprise Apple Support (PEAS)
Carla J. Spagnuolo, PMP, ITIL, CSM; Apple Product Manager for ERIS

-Research IS and Computing Directions with Epic and Big Data
Shawn Murphy, MD, PhD; Medical Director, Partners Research Computing

Bring your questions for discussion!

Do you have any questions about Research Council or a great agenda idea? Contact ecor@partners.org!

2. SAC 2014 Scientific Poster Session

Wednesday, April 2, 2014, 11:00 AM - 1:45 PM, Wyndham Beacon Hill, 5 Blossom Street, Boston, MA 02114

ECOR is now accepting submission of abstracts for the 2014 SAC Poster Session!

Deadline for Submission: Tuesday, December 10, 2013 - 9:00 PM

The SAC Poster Session gives researchers the opportunity to create a compelling visual display of their work, and present it to some of the best scientific minds in the nation. It is an essential part of the two-day meeting, which highlights excellence in research at MGH. Presenters must be a MGH employee.

Twelve $1,000 Awards of Excellence
for Scientific Meeting Travel
-6 for Clinical Research
-6 for Basic Research

For Submission Form and Instructions Go to: https://ecor.mgh.harvard.edu/SAC/SubmitPoster.aspx
 
Please contact sac@partners.org with any questions.

3. Partners Innovation Forum

Wednesday, November 13, 2013, 5:00 - 7:00 PM, Wyndham Beacon Hill, 5 Blossom Street, Boston, MA 02114

The Partners HealthCare community is invited to attend the newly launched Partners Innovators Forum, a monthly 5-part education series focused on key issues in academic innovation.

The first session "Protecting Your Invention in the New IP Environment" will feature David Kappos, the highly regarded former Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (2009 to 2013) and former head of IP for IBM (the industry leader in patents). Mr. Kappos will provide an overview of recent IP changes and their significance on healthcare innovation. In addition, CEOs of IP driven healthcare start ups will describe their response to the changes.

The Forum is free for the PHS community and is also open to the public. Future sessions will rotate between MGH and BWH

REGISTRATION - To register go to: https://partnersinnovatorsforum.eventbrite.com/

Walk-in registrations will be available on the day of the event. Reception will follow event.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

1. The MGH Research Scholars Program

Applications are now being accepted by the Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) for the MGH Research Scholars Program!

What is it?
The Massachusetts General Hospital Research Scholars Program was established with the aim of supporting MGH research faculty who are pursuing either basic or clinical research at the level of Assistant, Associate or Full Professor.

How much is each award?
These awards are for $500,000 over 5 years, and will be funded at $100,000 per year.

When is the deadline?
Tuesday, December 3, 2013 - 9:00 PM

How do I learn more and apply?
Click here to read more and apply online!

2. Limited Submission Awards: Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust - Melanoma Research Grants

We ask that all MGH Investigators interested in applying for the awards listed below submit a Letter of Intent (see detailed instructions below) to Harry W. Orf, PhD, Sr. Vice President for Research, and ECOR, by the deadline indicated for the award, to be considered to receive an institutional nomination.

Process
Submit a one- to two-page Letter of Intent (LOI) to Dr. Orf (horf@partners.org), Sr. Vice President for Research, with a copy to ECOR@partners.org. In addition to your LOI, please include an NIH Biosketch. The deadline to submit your LOI is Friday, November 15, 2013.

The letter of intent should include:
1. Name of the Principal Investigator (s)with appropriate contact information
2. A descriptive title of the potential application
3. Brief description of the project
4. Brief description of why you specifically should be selected to receive institutional nomination for this award

In the event that there is more than one MGH investigators interested in applying any of these awards, the LOIs will be used to assess candidates and a review and selection process will take place.

Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust - Melanoma Research Grants

• Career Development - May include salary support for promising young melanoma investigators
• Basic Science - To gain new biological insights in to melanoma development or progression
• Translational Research - To fund clinically important melanoma research

 
Click here for more information or to view the application guidelines.

3. Private Funding Opportunities

Please contact Corporate & Foundation Relations in the Office of Development at devcfr@partners.org if you wish to submit a proposal in response to any of these funding opportunities. Note that proposals are still routed through the standard InfoEd/Research Management process.

• Liver Scholar Award, American Liver Foundation (ALF)
• CART Grants, CART Fund (Coins for Alzheimer's Research Trust)
• UNCF/Merck Postdoctoral Science Research Fellowships, United Negro College Fund (UNCF) & UNCF/Merck Science Initiative (UMSI)
• Heart to Heart Grant, Alpha Phi Foundation

Please click here for further details on these funding opportunities.

4. Upcoming Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) Deadlines

Grant applications from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation are being accepted in the following categories:

Innovation Award Letter of Intent, Deadline: Nov. 11, 2013 - Apply Now!
This award funds the most innovative and exciting projects to advance ideas, approaches or methodologies of childhood cancer research. Maximum of $125,000 in total costs may be requested annually for two years. Notification will be sent early January 2014. Upon invitation, the full application will be due March 3, 2014.

Phase I/II Infrastructure Grant, Deadline: November 18, 2013 - Apply Now!
The Infrastructure Grant is a five year award designed to support Phase I and II clinical trials by funding infrastructure necessary to conduct these important studies. The aim of the grant is to help institutions build the capacity of their Phase I and II programs. Maximum of $125,000 in total costs will be awarded to applicants annually; up to five years of funding may be requested. New! Extended funding option after the initial five years: ALSF will match funds, to continue the program aims, raised by the institution from $25,000 to $62,500 annually for up to an additional five years.

Young Investigator Award, Deadline: December 16, 2013 - Apply Now!
ALSF is committed to the next generation of pediatric cancer investigators! The Young Investigator Award provides start-up funds for new scientists at the end of their fellowship training or early in their research career. Maximum of $50,000 annually may be awarded and a maximum of two years of funding may be requested.

Epidemiology Grants, Deadline: December 16, 2013 - Apply Now!
This funding opportunity will support investigators who want to pursue novel and promising epidemiological approaches to understanding childhood cancers. New in 2014, we have expanded our eligible areas of investigation to include comparative effectiveness and outcomes research. Maximum $100,000 of direct costs will be awarded to applicants annually and a maximum of two years of funding may be requested.

NEED RESOURCES?
Check out "Top Tips for Grant Applicants" on our website. Two successfully funded researchers share their advice on submitting a successful grant application.

Questions? Contact Kay Schaul or Jenny Filer at Grants@AlexsLemonade.org or (610) 649-3034. Visit ALSFgrants.org for information about all of our research funding opportunities.

5. NIH Update for Week Ending November 1, 2013

For the latest National Institutes of Health notices, requests for applications, and program announcements, follow this link: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/WeeklyIndex.cfm/11-1-13/

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Reminders of recently posted funding opportunities, deadlines and events

MGH ECOR Deliberative Interim Support Funding
Application deadline: December 2, 2013 - 9:00 PM

Sequestration Relief Funding
Application deadline: December 2, 2013 - 9:00 PM

Charles A. King Trust Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program
Application deadline: December 16, 2013

HMS Faculty Seminar- Improving Case Presentations through Effective Feedback - November 7

HMS Faculty Seminar- Making the Most of Your MGH/MGPO Benefits - November 14

2nd Annual Brigham and Women's Hospital Research Day - November 21

Save the Date: Research Core Day - December 2

Save the Date: Research Staff Appreciation Day - January 21, 2014