2023 Zoll Foundation Research Grant - Cycle 1

Eligibility

Grant applicants must meet minimum criteria:

• Be a newer researcher, ideally recommended by a more established investigator
• Have a formal association with an institution or agency involved in resuscitation or acute critical care in a medical, scientific, educational, or administrative capacity.
• Individual applicants must not be under any professional restrictions and must have all required certifications or licenses necessary to practice their occupation.
• Applications, whether from an individual or an organization, must include a reference from a health care professional recommending the project and the individual or organization applying for the grant.
• Applicants must also disclose any conflicts of interest in accordance with their institution's or agency's policies

Summary

Sudden cardiac arrest is a major public health problem often unrecognized due to the generally low survival rates associated with resuscitation efforts. The potential for survival is high—up to 50% of all victims—but overall survival is very low. In the United States, survival is estimated to be about 5%, and only 1-2% globally. Low survival rates hold true for both out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and in-hospital cardiac arrest. Yet, in some communities and hospitals, substantial improvements in survival have been demonstrated with the use of newer technologies, better training, and improved post-resuscitation care. Survival of up to half of all victims is very possible. Rates of survival have doubled and tripled in some hospitals and communities where more attention has been paid to resuscitation capabilities and practices.

Prevention of cardiac arrest and patient deterioration in both hospital and out-of-hospital settings has also been demonstrated with reductions in numbers of unexpected cardiac arrests or deterioration of patient conditions due to acute life-threating syndromes. In patients in whom the risk of sudden death has been identified, immediate survival rates as high as 92% have been reported when patients were outfitted with a wearable defibrillator. The gap between survival today—estimated at about 5% in the United States—and the 92% survival in at least one population provides a vision of potential survival. Further research can help identify ways to close the gap between where we are today and where we could be in the future.

While large scale studies and trials are the gold standard for changes in resuscitation and acute critical care, “seed money” as an initial investment, or to look at the effects of new technologies or training practices, is often the nascent stimulus of later changes in practices and the development of improved technologies. The Zoll Foundation will support these areas by awarding grants typically in the $10,000 – $50,000 range, rather than consider larger scale studies.

Zoll Foundation Research Grants have bi-annual application deadlines of March 31 (Cycle 1) and September 30 (Cycle 2). Awards are typically announced around May 31 and November 31. Zoll Foundation focuses on working with new investigators conducting research in the fields of resuscitation or acute critical care. This program provides those starting out a platform upon which to build their success. Studies that aim to improve practices, prevent patient deterioration, reduce mortality and morbidity, or address some other aspect of enhancing care are encouraged.

Key areas of interest include:

• early research in new therapies or techniques;
• reviews of data and information to better understand practices in the field of resuscitation and acute critical care;
• educational activities combined with measurement to enhance care; and
• promising start-up projects whose initial results may allow researchers to seek additional funding from other sources, allowing for continued research that will require more extensive trials or scale.

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

Please note that these costs are not covered by a grant: Indirect costs/overhead, publication costs, equipment, and most travel.