Submitting a project for feasibility review

Group Health Research Institute (GHRI) determines a potential project’s feasibility based on the following criteria:

The specific steps are:

  1. If you have not identified a GHRI faculty member to partner with, contact the Chair of the GHRI Feasibility Review Committee for an initial screening interview. Please make sure to contact the Chair at least 6–8 weeks before your proposal is due to the funding agency.
  2. If your project appears to be a good fit for Group Health, the Chair will ask you to complete and submit an application form.
  3. Applications are due 10 days before the Committee’s monthly meeting, which occurs the fourth Thursday of each month.
  4. The Committee reviews your application and notifies you of their decision by e-mail within a week after the meeting.

Additional details for each step of the process:

  1. Your initial screening interview with the Chair of the Feasibility Review Committee will include the following questions:
    • What is the research question?
    • Did you develop this research question? Why do you want to do this research?
    • Do you have adequate research experience or training?
    • Describe funding. Explain lack of funding if there is none.
    • How will Group Health patients/providers be involved?
    • What might be the anticipated impact on the delivery system?
    • Who will collect the data?  Who will analyze the data?
    • Are there Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) issues? Group Health must make reasonable efforts to limit the Protected Health Information (PHI) used or disclosed to that which is reasonably necessary to accomplish the purpose for which the information is sought. Will a Data Use Agreement (DUA) be necessary? Will this result in “disclosures” of PHI?  Have you taken HIPAA privacy training?
    • Do you have IRB training/certification?
    • What is your expected timeline? 
  2. If your project seems appropriate at this point, the Chair will send you a 2-page application form that asks for: 
    • Funding information
    • Study purpose and specific aims
    • A statement of why you are requesting Group Health involvement
    • A statement of the potential benefit to Group Health (if any)
    • A description of Group Health facilities and resources that will be involved
    • A description of Group Health patients, providers, or medical records that will be involved
    • A description of the proposed recruitment methods, procedures, and timeline
    • A current CV, biosketch, or other statement of qualifications
    • If appropriate, a study protocol, IRB application and approval from another institution, or other documents that seem relevant to the individual study
  3. The GHRI Associate Director of External Research and the Committee Chair will review your application. If questions arise, the Chair will ask you for clarification. 
  4. If the application seems clear and complete, GHRI faculty and Committee members will review it.  This helps us identify interested GHRI collaborators for the project, as well as any potential conflicts with GHRI research programs. Comments from the faculty related to the project’s feasibility are collected and formally reviewed with your application at the next Feasibility Review Committee meeting (held monthly, on the fourth Thursday).
  5. Funded projects seeking to add Group Health as a collaborating site will typically need to develop a budget for the Committee to review, as well. (Please note: Adding Group Health as a collaborating partner after a project has been funded is often not financially feasible). 
  6. We will send you a “decision letter” within a week after the Committee review. If a faculty member is interested in collaborating with you on your project, the letter will tell you how to contact them.

Next steps

After your project is funded and found to be feasible at Group Health, the next step is review by Group Health’s formal research regulatory committees. The Feasibility Review Committee Chair will connect you with the GHRI Research Review Office after your project is approved.

All research at Group Health, or research by Group Health employees, requires approval by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) or documentation from the Human Subjects Review Office that none is required. The Human Subjects Review Committee at Group Health usually conducts the IRB review. Most new projects are also reviewed separately for scientific merit, appropriate fit with the Group Health system, and potential risk and liabilities for Group Health. This process generally takes 6–8 weeks to complete. You may contact the Research Review Office directly at 206-287-2919 for more information.