Implementing strategies for Building Capacity in Research Administration at CIDEIM, and subsequent dissemination within Colombia and the Latin American region

Centro Internacional (Cideim), Cali

Investigators

Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY The Centro Internacional de Entrenamiento e Investigaciones Medicas, CIDEIM, is recognized by COLCIENCIAS as a research center within the National System of Science, Technology and Innovation of Colombia. CIDEIM originated in Colombia in 1961 as an International Center for Medical Research and Training awarded to Tulane University by the United States National Institutes of Health and hosted by Colombia as a bilateral Technical Assistance Mission. Successive renewals of this program were followed by funding through the US NIAID ICIDR program until 1989. In 1990 at the initiative of COLCIENCIAS, CIDEIM was established as a Colombian non-profit foundation and in 1991, successfully competed for a Tropical Medicine Research Center TMRC award from the US NIAID. Since then, CIDEIM investigators have developed collaborative research and training programs with U.S. universities through subawards within projects supported by NIAID and the Fogarty International Center, as well as receiving direct awards from the US NIAID. Our current NIAID funding includes a TMRC U19 award and sub-award within a U19 award to the University of Connecticut, which have increased our institutional role in, and responsibility for the management of USNIAID grants. The overall goal of this project is to strengthen the capacity of CIDEIM to develop and implement institutional policies and practices for grants management that are compliant with NIH guidelines and requirements for administration of NIH grants, and to share this capacity with other institutions in the region. To achieve this goal, we will first address critical gaps in CIDEIM grants administration for current and future grants funded by the USNIH, by training CIDEIM management leaders at Yale University. Senior administrators trained in the U.S. will then transfer and implement these policies and practices including oversight of updated NIH guidelines, in CIDEIM. Second, we will design, implement and evaluate an internal training plan, curriculum and materials that will provide the bases for institutionalization of sustainable grants management and administration capacity through continuing education and updating of training in accordance with changes in NIH guidelines. This training curriculum and corresponding materials will be adapted for external training and transfer of capacity to other institutions in Colombia and the region. Our management leaders and their teams will review and adjust Institutional policies, procedures and standard operating procedures (SOPs) to meet good management practices in compliance with NIH requirements throughout the pre-award, award and post award phases of the natural history of programs and projects. Adaptation of training to internal and external online access and development of an in-house grant tracking system will promote sustainability of these practices.