Development Call

Developing laboratory discoveries to clinical applications is of key importance in advancing healthcare and improving patient outcomes. It ensures that new interventions are not only scientifically sound but also relevant, feasible and (cost)effective in daily practice.  

Scope

Development is outlined as the process needed to translate research findings into practical implementation. Therefore, project proposals should include a development plan describing all steps, stakeholders involved, feasibility assessments, and potential risks.

Requirements

The Development Call is reserved for project proposals within the Creation of Modality, Preclinical, Clinical and Implementation research phases:

• Creation of modality (research phase 3)
  
  The goal of creation of modality research is the extensive characterization and further development of new inventions/modalities until there is sufficient (in vitro and in vivo) evidence from model systems or retrospective data and sample sets, to start preparing for human evaluation. The development of psychosocial interventions is included in thisresearch phase. Human participation in the development of inventions/modalities is possible in this phase when it is not meant for a validation in a human setting. Starting from this research phase, concrete solutions for specific problems and needs (including unmet medical needs) are developed and validated.
   
• Preclinal (research phase 4)
  
  The goal of preclinical research is the completion of all stages required to start the clinical/human evaluation of a new invention/modality in subjects, such as:
  • the development of GMP/clinical-grade production, toxicity testing, pilot or technical testing, successful IND/IMPD/CE submission and regulatory/ethical aspects;
  • prospective analyses of the clinical feasibility of an invention or modality without performing the actual intervention (e.g. prospective biomarker studies without changing the actual treatment).
     
• Clinical (research phase 5)
  
  The goal of clinical research is to realize prospective clinical research, such as:
  • a prospective clinical evaluation of a new invention/modality or assay/tool using a limited number of subjects;
  • establishing the effectiveness of a new invention, dosage, off-label usage, combinations of modalities or psychosocial treatment;
  • changes to treatment regimens associated with existing methodologies (including population
    checks) in a patient population.
     
• Implementation (research phase 6)
  
  Implementation research encompasses scientific studies on methods to promote the delivery and enhance the adoption of evidence-based interventions in (clinical) practice aligning with the main goals of KWF. A project proposal must have a research focus, including a scientific research question. Eligible projects focus on any aspect of Implementation research, including the factors affecting implementation, the process of implementation and the results of implementation. This also includes how to introduce potential solutions into a (health) system or how to promote their large scale use and sustainability. The purpose is to understand what, why, and how evidence-based interventions/new methods work in 'real world' settings, and to test approaches in order to improve them.

Timeline

Full proposal template

An example of our full proposal template is available for download below, but please do not use it to submit. As on the opening of the call you need to register and download the most recent version of the pre-proposal template in our Grant Management System (GMS).

Apply for funding

On opening of the call research proposals can be submitted through our Grant Management System (KWF GMS).

PLEASE NOTE: 

• Participating institutes not yet registered must submit a request through KWF-GMS at least 6 weeks prior to the call's closing date
• Guidelines are subject to changes; the final version can be found on our download page when the call opens 
• Terms and conditions are currently under development; the terms and conditions will be finalized when the call opens and can then be found on our download page

Review process

The review process spans around six months and comprises various stages, including internal review by KWF, board review by our Development Committee and external review by (inter)national referees.

More information

Please contact one of our science liasions for more information.