Fiscal Year 2020
Released March, 2019
Topics on this page: Goal 4. Objective 2 | Objective 4.2 Table of Related Performance Measures
Goal 4. Objective 2: Expand the capacity of the scientific workforce and infrastructure to support innovative research
Tomorrow’s scientific breakthroughs depend on a highly trained and ethical scientific workforce, working in facilities and with tools that foster innovation. Efforts to expand the capacity of the scientific workforce and infrastructure can better prepare the nation for global health emergencies, extend the reach and impact of scientific investigations, and contribute to research of national or global significance.
Through various initiatives and programs, HHS recruits and trains students, recent graduates, and other professionals to conduct rigorous and reproducible research. HHS provides research training and career development opportunities to ensure that highly trained investigators will be available across the range of scientific disciplines necessary to address the nation’s biomedical and scientific research needs. Scientific integrity is a priority for the Department. Divisions responsible for research have developed policies and procedures to ensure the highest degree of scientific integrity in the research HHS conducts, funds, and supports—to ensure that our research is credible and worthy of the public’s confidence.
The Office of the Secretary leads this objective. The following divisions are responsible for implementing programs under this strategic objective: AHRQ, CDC, FDA, NIH, OASH, OGA, and SAMHSA.
Objective 4.2 Table of Related Performance Measures
By 2021, develop, validate, and/or disseminate 3-5 new research tools or technologies that enable better understanding of brain function at the cellular and/or circuit level (Lead Agency - NIH; Measure ID - SRO-2.12)
| Fiscal Year | Target | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2013 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| FY 2014 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| FY 2015 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| FY 2016 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| FY 2017 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| FY 2018 | Develop four novel neurotechnologies for stimulating/recording in the brain to enable basic studies of neural activity at the cellular level. | Projects funded through the BRAIN Initiative led to novel innovations in four neurotechnologies to enable basic studies of neural activity at the cellular level. | Target Met |
| FY 2019 | Test new and/or existing brain stimulation devices for 2 new therapeutic indications in humans through the BRAIN Public-Private Partnership. | 12/31/19 | In Progress |
| FY 2020 | Provide broad access to new research approaches and techniques for acquiring fundamental insight about how the nervous system functions in health and disease. | 12/31/20 | In Progress |
The Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative® was launched to accelerate the development and application of new neurotechnologies that will enable researchers to gain deeper understanding of how the human brain functions in normal conditions as well as states of disease or dysfunction. BRAIN researchers have developed four innovative technological approaches to record brain activity at the cellular level. Overall, these advances allow us to record neural activity from deeper brain regions, with higher temporal resolution, and in more neurons simultaneously than ever before, which brings us closer to the ambitious goal of observing brain activity “at the speed of thought”. These novel neurotechnological advances can be applied in future studies to enhance our ability to explore brain function at the cellular level. In FY 2019 and 2020, NIH plans to 1) test new and/or existing brain stimulation devices for 2 new therapeutic indications in humans through the BRAIN Public-Private Partnership and 2) provide broad access to new research approaches and techniques for acquiring fundamental insight about how the nervous system functions in health and disease.
Increase the percentage of scientists retained at FDA after completing the Fellowship or Traineeship programs (Lead Agency- FDA; Measure ID – 291101)
| FY 2013 | FY 2014 | FY 2015 | FY 2016 | FY 2017 | FY 2018 | FY 2019 | FY 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Target | 50% | 45% | 40% | 40% | 40% | 50% | 50% | 50% |
| Result | 63% | 78% | 80% | 81% | 72% | 53% | 2/28/20 | 2/28/21 |
| Status | Target Exceeded | Target Exceeded | Target Exceeded | Target Exceeded | Target Exceeded | Target Exceeded | Pending | Pending |
To support the Department’s mission and FDA’s scientific expertise, FDA is expanding its fellowship efforts by launching a new FDA Traineeship Program while continuing other Fellowship programs. This performance goal focuses on FDA’s efforts to retain a targeted percentage of the scientists who complete these programs. The size and focus of the new agency-wide Traineeship Program will be greater in number and scope than the current Fellowship Program, and FDA will be resetting the retention target in FY 2020 when the new FDA Traineeship Program is launched. Additionally, whether “graduates” from these programs continue to work for FDA or choose to work in positions in related industry and academic fields, they are trained in an FDA-presented understanding of the complex scientific issues in emerging technologies and innovation, which furthers the purpose of HHS Strategic Objective 4.2: Expand the capacity of the scientific workforce and infrastructure to support innovative research. In FY 2019 and 2020, FDA will continue to monitor its ability to retain scientists who have participated in the Fellowship or Traineeship Programs.
