Q&A from: Catalyst grant webinar – “Work Stress and Wellbeing Hackathon” Catalyst Grant

  1. What is the projected date for notification of funding and start date for the project?
    • Application deadline is October 18, 2016
    • Notice of decision date is March 31, 2017
    • Funding start date is April 1, 2017
  2. Can you speak to the issue of intellectual property in terms of what is created?
    • Host institutions have different rules and regulations regarding intellectual property (IP). Therefore, it will be important for the individual teams who are funded to find out their institution specific regulations relating to IP.
    • This will be important to know so that teams can be clear with potential collaborators at the Hackathon what they can offer in terms of any collaborative IP rights if non-grantee participants chose to work with a particular team.
  3. Can you clarify if you can have two Co-Applicants? I understand that two Principal Applicants are required, but can there be more than 1 academic researcher on the application?
    • No, the application should list only two individuals:
      • the Nominated Principal Applicant (an independent researcher)
      • a Principal Knowledge User.  (For applications to the Indigenous populations’ pool, the knowledge user must be from a First Nations, Métis or Inuit community or organization).
    • After the grants are awarded, additional team members of any kind may be added.
  4. Do you have to work with individuals you collaborated with at the hackathon for the remainder of the project?
    • No, you are free to collaborate with, hire, and/or consult with a team of individuals of your choice. If you connect with an individual at the Hackathon and all parties are in agreement, you are free to continuing working together on the project. It is your decision.
    • However, it is important to consider the IP implications of working on a solution with someone at the event and then not continuing this collaboration. See question #2, above.
  5. Is the expected outcome an app or can it be a broader e-mental health solution?
    • It does not have to be a mobile app, it can be a non-app e-mental health solution (eg. a web-based solution). This initiative is working on a second phase, which would include research on an e-mental health ecosystem; so, whatever the type of e-mental health solution, it would be ideal if it had the potential to include an API so it could eventually plug-in to the ecosystem in Phase II.
  6. What is an E-mental health "problem statement"? Does it refer to the knowledge gaps in addressing a certain work-related mental health issues or should it address the issues to be solved at the Hackathon event in Toronto?
    • The problem statement should articulate a particular gap or issue in workplace psychological health and wellness and then identify a direction or approach on how an e-mental health solution can begin to address that gap.
    • The problem statement should not be used to identify an app or delve into issues of functionality or design. That level of discussion should take place at the Hackathon, in collaboration with other participants attending the event.
  7. Can the knowledge user be a private organization?
    • An individual from a private organization can be listed as a knowledge user. The organization itself cannot be listed as the co-applicant, but a specific member of the organization can.
    • A definition of Knowledge User can be found in the Funding Opportunity (see section on Eligibility).
  8. Does the budget cover product development costs incurred by the IT/programme developers?
    • As long as the costs are directly related to the project being funded by the grant and are eligible according to the Use of Grant Funds section of the Tri-Agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC) Financial Administration Guide.
    • It is recommended that applicants ensure that the budget proposed as part of the grant is aligned with the evaluation criteria listed in the Funding Opportunity.
  9. What is allowed in the budget?
    • Please refer to the “allowable costs” section in the Funding Opportunity.
    • Of note, there will be funds available for caregiving costs to allow participants to attend the hackathon event, which will take place over a weekend.
    • The duration of the grant is one year. As such, successful applicants will have a one-year window to spend the funds budgeted. There is also a 1-year no-cost extension period where you will have an additional year to access unspent funds.
  10. What is an appropriate amount to pay a tech person for development? Is there some guidance on this?
    • Unfortunately, it is difficult to provide guidance on this as it depends on what the team decides to work on and develop, which will not be determined until the Hackathon.
    • Consider building a flexible budget when writing your application.
    • You may also consider consulting your institution's research grant office.. They may be aware of similar grants and could potentially connect you to a research team who has recently contracted for IT development.
  11. Are college researchers eligible to apply as PI?
    • If they are affiliated with an institution that is recognized as an eligible institution by CIHR then they are able to apply.
    • Refer to the Eligibility Section in the Funding Opportunity for more detail.
  12. Are there expectations for Knowledge Translation as part of the budget?
    • While knowledge translation is not being specifically evaluated and there are no expectations regarding how knowledge translation is addressed in applications, there is an evaluation criteria “Potential of the pair to establish and continue collaborations after the Hackathon event” which may include KT activities.
    • Please consult the Guidelines section of the Funding Opportunity for more information.
  13. Are there any model e-health solutions that can be shared as examples of ideal projects?
    • No, the goal is to develop solutions at the Hackathon in collaboration with others. The goal is to apply with an approach in mind that might lend itself to an e-mental health solution, but not an actual solution. The discussion and development of solutions is what is hoped will be achieved through collaboration at the Hackathon.
  14. Do you have established connections with tech developers that are willing to work on an ongoing basis with the hackathon pairs?
    • A pool of experts will be available for collaboration at the Hackathon. They include not only tech developers but also other experts (e.g. health informatics and workplace mental health).
    • Willingness of these experts to work with teams on an ongoing basis after the Hackathon depends on what arrangements individual teams can make with new collaborators/team members. This will likely depend on your IP guidelines and/or your ability to compensate new team members for their time on an ongoing basis. See Question #2, above.
  15. Will there be data available to use as is the case in traditional Hackathon models?
    • As we are not expecting anything other than a plan to be developed by the end of the Hackathon, we do not anticipate a need for data use as in traditional Hackathons.
    • However, in advance of the Hackathon, we do plan to have a few sample profiles (personas) of end users of the e-mental health solutions to facilitate discussions at the event.
    • If there are specific requests for data, we can examine this and support the teams as best as possible.
  16. What if multiple pairs who are applying independently come up with the same or very similar problem/gap statement? Will there be opportunities to collaborate or connect as a larger group?
    • Absolutely, funded teams at the Hackathon are free to come together at the Hackathon, combine efforts and collaborate going forward.
  17. Can we use proprietary data or should it be open source data only?
    • This will be left up to each individual team.
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