Healthy and Meaningful Longevity (HML) -Cognition Grant

Objective
The Healthy and Meaningful Longevity (HML) funding initiative (also known as the National Innovation Challenge on Active and Confident Ageing Phase 2) seeks to catalyse innovative ideas and research in Singapore that can transform the experience of ageing in Singapore.

To further enhance and support the Ageing R&D ecosystem, the HML funding initiative will:

• Drive translation and implementation

• Focus on the theme of Cognition

• Future-proof our policies by enhancing our understanding of future seniors and the ageing trajectory

Cognition Grant Call
The Cognition Grant Call aims to leverage research to address the:

1. increasing prevalence of cognitive decline and dementia;

2. high rate of undiagnosed dementia; as well as

3. high care needs and caregiver burden for people living with Dementia (PLWDs).

Funding Details
Funding is capped at $4M (inclusive of 30% indirect costs) for a period of up to 4 years. 

Eligbility Criteria

• A Principal Investigator (PI) can submit only one application in response to the challenge statement. However, he/she may be part of the Project Team of other applications.

• Applicants applying as Lead PI are required to fulfil the following criteria at the point of application:

• The Lead PI should have PhD or MD/MBBS/BDS qualifications and/or other appropriate postgraduate qualifications (at least a Master's Degree) in areas relevant to the proposed research);
• Hold a primary appointment in a local publicly funded institution and salaried by the institution;
• Be an independent PI with demonstrated track record of research, as evidenced by the award of nationally competitive funding (international funding to be considered on a case-by-case basis), substantial publication record in the past 3 years, or PI status in research institutes;
• Have a laboratory or research program in Singapore;
• Hold a minimum of 9 months employment (per calendar year) with local Singapore Institution(s). Upon award, the PI must agree to fulfil at least 6 months of residency in Singapore for each calendar year over the duration of the grant award;
• Must not have outstanding reports from previous BMRC, NMRC grants and other national grants; and
• For proposals involving patients, the PI should be Singapore Medical Council (SMC) registered; or should be able to demonstrate ability to access patients through SMC registered Co-Is or Collaborators.

Additional requirements:

• Project teams are required to:

• Collaborate with at least one healthcare cluster and at least one community partner in the development and implementation of their project, with the objective of demonstrating PoC and PoV and collecting data to show evidence of possible further scale-up beyond pilot phase. The partners will need to be identified and included in your proposals.
• Include at least one technical partner if your cluster and community partner do not have the relevant expertise (e.g. expertise in the technology solution that the team is planning to provide).

• Applicants are expected to form their own partnerships.

• Project teams to obtain letters of support from Host Institution's senior management for the Full Proposal stage (if applicant is invited to submit a Full Proposal). The letters of support should include the following:

• HI's commitment to provide necessary support, including eventual deployment if proven to be effective, sustainable and viable
• HI's verification that project does not duplicate other existing efforts.

• No restriction on the number of Institutions, Investigators and Collaborators in each Project Team. However, each healthcare cluster, community partner and technical partner must be represented by at least a team member i.e. Co-Investigator(s) or Collaborator(s).

Submission

1. Interested applicants need to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) via the Integrated Grant Management System.

2. Please follow the application guide ‘‘IGMS User Guide_Cognition Grant Call.pdf’ in the zipped file when applying for the grant.

3. The Research Director of Lead PI’s Host Institution is to endorse via IGMS by 15 Aug 2024 (Thursday), 5pm. 

Note: SingHealth PIs are to please refer to your respective Institutional Research Administrators for guidance on internal deadlines and submission procedures set by your institutions.

Contact Person
Email: tricia.teosk@mohh.com.sg

Contact Person on IGMS
Email: Helpdesk@researchgrant.gov.sg

Contact Person on CorpPass
Host Institution admins (institution research offices)

Additional Information
Please refer to the NMRC's website here.

Healthy and Meaningful Longevity (HML) -Cognition Grant Call.pdf

HML Cognition Grant Call 2024_LOI_Application Guides.zip