Frequently Asked Grant Application Questions

What is the Center for Technology and Aging mHealth Diffusion Grants Program?

This initiative seeks to maintain the independence of older adults or delay their transition to higher levels of care settings through the use of mobile health (mHealth) technology-enabled services.

Why is it called a Diffusion Grants Program?

The emphasis of the Grant Program is on expanding use (“diffusion”) of technologies that already have a good track record of helping older adults. As mHealth is an emerging field, applicants that have a compelling theory-based model underlying the project are also eligible for funding. Grant applicants need to design and propose projects that have proven evidence-based or strong theory-based benefits for older adults.

What is mHealth?

In the context of the Grant Program, mHealth is broadly defined as the delivery of health-related services to patients, clinicians and caregivers through mobile technology platforms on cellular or wireless networks. Mobile technologies can include, but are not limited to, tablets, cell phones (hardware and software), smartphones, mobile-enabled diagnostic devices, or devices with mobile alert systems.

The areas of mHealth technology-enabled services that can be addressed in this grants program include medication compliance, chronic disease monitoring, safety monitoring, access to health information, and related areas.

Who is eligible to apply?

Primary applicants must be: 


• Non-profit organizations with a 501(c) (3) designation
  


• Local, State and Federal government agencies
  


• Universities and Colleges with 501(c) (3) designation





Consortia consisting of public and private organizations or for-profit and non-profit organizations are also eligible to apply. However, the primary applicant in any consortium must meet the above criteria.

What are the funding levels?

Total funding available for the Grant Program is $500,000. The Center expects to award five to six grants through this grant cycle. Grants will be awarded up to $100,000 per grant for a period of 12 months.

Are there any geographic restrictions on funding?

Yes. The majority of grants must directly benefit older adults in California and will receive a higher preference.

What can grant funds be spent on?

Grant funds may be used for any of the following: staff salary and benefits, project consultants and contracts, supplies, meetings, project-related travel, training and education, evaluation and other implementation-related expenses.

Are there any restrictions on how the grant funds can be spent?

Yes. Funds may not be used for:

• Current operating expenses or costs currently covered by another agreement, grant, or contract
• Costs for technology or other equipment
• Costs that are not consistent or allowable according to local, state, and/or federal guidelines and regulations

How does the application process work?

The first step is to complete the online Letter of Intent application process. The Letter of Intent must be received by the Center for Technology and Aging no later than 4:00pm PDT on April 5, 2011. Letters of Intent must be submitted online.

Letters of Intent will be reviewed and, by April 13th, the Center will invite a selected number of applicants to complete a Full Grant Proposal. Full Grant Proposals will be due on May 13, 2011.

The Center will review grant applications and conduct individual site calls from April 14-April 22. Grant awards will be announced no later than June 15, 2011. Funded projects are expected to commence August 1, 2011.

What information do you want in the Letter of Intent?

Guidance on completing the Letter of Intent can be found on page 5 of the Application Guidelines. As part of the Letter of Intent application process, you will also be asked to provide contact information, as well as information about your organization and its willingness and ability to meet certain Grant Program requirements. The application guidelines and the online Letter of Intent application can be found at http://www.techandaging.org/grants_home.html.

How do I learn more about the mHealth Diffusion Grants Program?

Review the resources that are provided at www.techandaging.org You may also email your questions to info@techandaging.org.

Could matching funds be in the form of using additional sources to fund personnel time that will be dedicated to the proposed project?

Yes. We require that applicants provide matching funds that are greater than or equivalent to 25% of the requested award amount. These must be new dollars not previously allocated to this initiative. The match can consist of direct funding from any of the approved categories (see “What can grant funds be spent on?”). Grantees proposing greater amounts of matching funds will receive higher consideration.

The Application Guidelines mention a number of activities that grantees will be expected to do as part of the Grant Program. Can you give us a general sense of the type and level of participation that will be required?

In addition to implementing their proposed project, grantees will be expected to evaluate, report, and collaboratively reflect on project activities and results. When constructing the proposed budget, applicants should allocate approximately 20% of project resources toward these activities. Travel expenses will be required for the initial mHealth grantee convening in Oakland, CA. Grant funds can be used toward travel expenses for this convening. Brief progress reports and financial reports will be sent via email once a quarter.

All grantees are expected to participate in a “Learning Collaborative.” This effort will consist of sharing lessons learned, methodologies employed in rapidly expanding the use of mHealth technology, and contributing to dissemination activities (e.g., joint professional presentations and publications.) All grantees will be asked to contribute to the development of a toolkit of replication techniques. In addition, applicants will be expected to complete collaborative deliverables including case examples, workflow process diagrams and descriptions, scalability strategy report, and a webinar describing lessons learned at the end of the grant cycle. The Learning Collaborative will meet once per quarter via phone or web conferencing.

Grantees should consider developing video content around their program highlighting positive patient, provider and caregiver experiences. Video costs should not exceed $5,000 within the grant budget.

Please elaborate on the requirement: "Demonstrate alignment with current reimbursement policies and have the potential to influence public policies that can improve long-term and post-acute care.”

Applicants should carefully articulate in their letter of intent how their proposed program and technology: currently is or is not paid for; has the potential for reimbursement through relevant funding sources (i.e., reimbursement from Medicare, Medicaid, managed care program, private insurance, etc.); and can lead to appropriate reimbursement or payment through one or more payers. Proposals with a demonstrated utility and strong likelihood of future reimbursement will receive highest consideration.

Will the Grant Program fund indirect costs?

Yes. Grantees will be able to request up to 12% in indirect costs. However, these funds must be included as part of the total grant. Indirect costs may be included as in-kind support, but are not considered as part of the match.

The primary intent of the grant is diffusion, presumably of some of the technologies in the position paper. What is the leeway for including lower-tech alternatives?

We are open to proposals that encourage further use of technologies that help older adults with chronic health conditions and meet a number of the following goals:

• Reduce the use of emergency department and hospital services by older adults (60+ years old).
• Enable independent living and the ability to live in the setting of one’s choice.
• Lead to improvements in the cost and quality of care.
• Reduce the need for older adults to move to more intensive, higher-cost care settings.
• Reduce the burden on formal and informal caregivers.
• Work in the home, as well as long-term and post-acute care settings.
• Include integrated monitoring devices for chronic conditions, post-acute care, and patient safety monitoring for wandering and falls.

If an applicant provides a compelling case for use of a “low-tech” intervention and describes how the intervention will meet the aforementioned goals, the proposal will be given full consideration.

Our for-profit company will be collaborating with a non-profit organization on a proposed project. Can we, as a for-profit company, complete the application and submit the Letter of Intent?

No. While we do encourage public/private and for-profit/non-profit collaborations, the organization that is eligible to lead the project and submit the application and Letter of Intent must meet one of the following criteria:

• Non-profit organizations with a 501(c)(3) designation
• Local, State and Federal government agencies
• Universities and Colleges with 501(c)(3) designation

Will I receive an email confirmation after I complete the Letter of Intent application process?

Yes. The Center will send a confirmation email on a weekly basis. Please contact to info@techandaging.org if you have not received a confirmation email within one week.

Does the Center have plans to provide follow-on funding to extend awarded projects beyond 12 months?

No. The Center does not currently have plans to fund projects beyond the 12-month grant period.

In our proposed project, can we use a new technology or should we design a project that uses a currently available technology?

The Center is willing to consider new technology use so long as the technology in question can demonstrate clear evidence of efficacy. The Center will not fund projects that involve the testing of technology that does not have clear evidence of efficacy.

Regarding the Center’s preference for technology interventions that benefit older Californians, what if the technology is used in another state, but the project demonstrates that the technology will be applicable to Californians?

A majority of the funded projects must directly benefit older Californians. That said, the Center welcomes applications for projects that benefit older adults who reside in states other than California. The Center plans to fund at least one non-California project in this grant cycle.

The Grant Application states that projects can receive grant funding for 12 months. If our project is done in 12 months, will the Lessons Learned and other evaluations of the project be completed in the following year?

The evaluation process is based on the periodic, contemporaneous submission of data and discussion among grantees. Aside from completion of a final report and interviews around month 13, all evaluation activity should be completed within the twelve months of the grant.

Can we include indirect costs in the budget for our proposed project?

Yes. Indirect costs are limited to 12%, and must be included within the project budget. Grants cannot exceed $100,000 inclusive of both direct and indirect costs.

Can our organization submit more than one proposal per grant program?

Yes.

Our organization may be interested in more than one of the Center’s Grant Programs. If we are awarded grant funds for the Center’s mHealth Diffusion Grants Program, does that mean we will not be eligible to apply for future grant programs?

No. Organizations are not precluded from receiving grants through future program announcements of the Center for Technology and Aging Diffusion Grants Program if they are awarded funds as part of the current Grant Program.

When the Center reviews Letters of Intent and Proposals, will the Center give preference to projects from large organizations (e.g., that have thousands or millions of clients) over projects from small organizations?

Though potential impact of the project is an important selection criterion, the Center will not use size of organization as a primary factor in its decision process. Applicants will be reviewed on the strength of the proposed diffusion strategy and its replicability by other organizations, whether the funded organization is large or small.

Our organization would like to propose use of a technology that is well received by middle-aged adults, but does not yet have a track record of use by older adults. In twenty years, these middle-aged adults will become the older adults that the Center is targeting in this Grant Program. Would such a proposal be considered by the Center?

Yes. We welcome all proposals that will benefit older adults and meet our other criteria. However, proposals that target the current population of older adults will receive greater consideration than those that propose benefits for the future older adult population.

Who do I contact if I have questions?

Please send all inquiries to info@techandaging.org so we can direct your question to the appropriate respondent. All questions will be answered by the next business day.

Are personnel costs for programming or software changes eligible for grant funds? We want to change our programming so it is more efficient. Are a computer programmer’s salary or new software eligible expenses?

Grant funds cannot be used to purchase the technology that is central to the program, i.e., the mHealth technology that is key to enabling the main intervention in the program. If the software is the core mHealth technology that enables the proposed intervention, then it will be ineligible for grant funds.

Grant funds requested for personnel time, including time that is dedicated to updating software that supports the proposed program, will require clear and complete justification in the full grant proposal. (Invitations to submit a full grant proposal will be announced by April 13, 2011.) Further, grants cannot be used for the installation of technologies.

Grant funds may be used for supplies, but not equipment. What is the definition of supplies vs. equipment? We need to be able to distinguish one from the other.

Grant funds may be used for supplies, which are items that are consumed or expended in the course of being used. For example, paper and pens are consumed or expended in the course of being used.

Grant funds may not be used for equipment, which are items that are durable and reusable. In the context of this Grant Program, equipment includes cell phones, computers, or any item that has a useful life that is greater than one year or a purchase price that is greater than $500.

Additionally, grant funds may not be used to purchase the mHealth technologies that are central to the grant applicant’s proposed intervention.

Could a monthly monitoring or subscription fee associated with new clients receiving services be considered as match?

New funding and in-kind support that will be specifically designated for the proposed project can be counted toward the 25% match. Potential or actual fees resulting from new or expanded services (e.g., a monthly monitoring fee) cannot be applied as matching funds.

We assume we can’t include in-kind contributions or money from a pre-existing funding stream as part of this match. Is your requirement that awardees must find new money in addition to whatever award the Center might make?

To qualify for the minimum 25% match, funds or in-kind support have to be specifically dedicated to the proposed project and not previously allocated to the project. The allocation of funds has to be new. The funds (or source of funds) do not have to be new.

Applicants are not required to raise new money in addition to the potential grant award from the Center.

That said, please describe the nature and source of the match in your Letter of Intent application.

To what degree is the Center interested in program evaluation?

The Center believes that program evaluation is a very important component of the Grant Program, but it is just one of many important components. The emphasis of the Grant Program is on diffusion of already proven technologies. The Center will not fund projects that have a primary focus on evaluation, e.g., determining whether or not a technology is beneficial to older adults.

The Center expects that no more than 20% of grantees’ funds will be devoted toward program evaluation and information sharing (e.g., sharing lessons learned and disseminating program findings to other interested organizations).

Regarding program evaluation, what types of program measures will the Center expect grantees to provide?

The Center welcomes Letter of Intent applications for programs that are goal oriented, and where progress toward goals can be measured and evaluated. The primary goal of the evaluation will be to review diffusion strategies. Thus, applicants should propose outcome and process measures that assess the effectiveness of a program’s diffusion efforts.

The Center is interested in funding mHealth technology-enabled projects that improve the health of older adults and, as a consequence, achieve the following: reduce the costs and burdens of caring for older adults; improve older adults’ health and quality of life; improve older adults’ ability to reside in the setting of their choice; and reduce the use of avoidable hospital, emergency room, and sub-acute care. In devising evaluation plans, potential grantees will need to show progress toward such goals during the 12-month Grant Program. In this relatively short time period, it may not be possible to rigorously measure some goals, such as reduced hospitalizations. Hence, grantees should also include short-term measures in their evaluation plan, e.g., leading indicators.

Where appropriate, grantees may be asked to contribute to uniform evaluation measures.

Will the Center provide a list of organizations that are interested in collaborating on a mHealth grant program?

No. The Center is not in a position to connect organizations together. For a sampling of organizations that provide or use mHealth technologies, refer to the Center’s 2011 Position Paper: “mHealth Technologies: Applications to Benefit Older Adults,” which will be posted on CTA's website in early March.

Updated March 1, 2011