Improving Patient Adherence to Treatment and Prevention Regimens to Promote Health (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PA 18 722

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 18 722

Improving Patient Adherence to Treatment and Prevention Regimens to Promote Health (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) is an NIH research grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number PA-18-722) focused on building stronger evidence about how to help people start, follow, and stick with recommended healthcare regimens over time. The announcement is led by the NIH Adherence Network through the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), with participation from multiple NIH Institutes and Centers. The central goal is to support research that improves patient adherence to treatment and prevention plans in ways that measurably promote better health outcomes.

The FOA welcomes a broad range of adherence-focused studies, including both descriptive research (to understand what drives or hinders adherence) and intervention research (to test strategies designed to improve adherence). It explicitly frames adherence as a multi-stage behavior that can include regimen initiation (starting the medication, screening, therapy, or prevention behavior), implementation (how closely someone follows the regimen as intended), and persistence (continuing the regimen for the recommended duration). Applicants can focus on any one of these stages or examine them together, depending on the scientific question and the health context.

A key feature of the opportunity is its ecological approach to adherence, encouraging researchers to study determinants and solutions at one or more levels of influence. That can include patient-level factors (knowledge, motivation, habits, symptoms, side effects, health literacy), caregiver or family influences (support, stress, household routines), provider and healthcare system factors (communication, access, care coordination, workflow, costs), and community-level influences (transportation, social norms, structural barriers, local resources). Projects can be designed to isolate the role of one level or to test multilevel interventions that reflect real-world complexity.

Scientific rigor is emphasized throughout the FOA. Proposals are expected to use sound study designs, appropriate sample sizes, and valid, well-defined outcome measures of adherence and health impact. For intervention studies in particular, the announcement highlights the importance of testing mechanisms of action, meaning applicants should clearly explain how and why the intervention is expected to work, and include measures that can evaluate those pathways (for example, whether changes in self-efficacy, care access, reminders, or provider behavior actually mediate improvements in adherence). This focus signals NIH interest in approaches that not only show an effect, but also clarify what is driving that effect so it can be replicated, refined, and scaled.

The mechanism is an R01, meaning it is intended for substantial, hypothesis-driven research projects. The FOA is labeled "Clinical Trial Optional," which means applications may include clinical trials but do not have to. This flexibility allows investigators to propose everything from observational studies and measurement development to randomized or pragmatic trials, as long as the research directly addresses adherence to treatment or prevention regimens and is aligned with the scientific priorities described by the participating NIH Institutes and Centers.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of domestic organizations and government entities, such as state, county, city, township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and private institutions of higher education; Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations (other than federally recognized governments); public housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. The FOA also calls out additional eligible applicants, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISIS institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations), reflecting an intent to support a diverse applicant pool and research that can reach varied populations and settings.

Administratively, the opportunity is offered by the National Institutes of Health as a discretionary grant program, categorized under Education and Health, and associated with multiple CFDA numbers (93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.307, 93.361, 93.393, 93.855, 93.866), indicating participation across several NIH components. The original posting date in the source data is March 28, 2018, and the listed original closing date is May 7, 2021, though applicants typically need to verify current deadlines and availability in NIH systems because NIH funding announcements can be reissued, updated, or superseded over time.

Overall, this FOA is aimed at advancing practical, mechanistically informed science on adherence across diseases, prevention behaviors, and healthcare settings. The strongest applications are likely to be those that define adherence clearly, choose meaningful and valid adherence and health outcomes, address determinants at the appropriate ecological level(s), and use rigorous methods to test both effectiveness and the underlying reasons an approach succeeds or fails.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Improving Patient Adherence to Treatment and Prevention Regimens to Promote Health (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.307, 93.361, 93.393, 93.855, 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-03-28.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-05-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

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