[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 137 (Tuesday, July 16, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37072-37074]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-17998]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Health Resources and Services Administration


Program Announcement, Proposed Project Requirements, Review 
Criteria, and Funding Preference for Regional Nursing Partnerships to 
Provide Continuing Education in Nursing Informatics for Faculty in 
Medically Underserved Communities

    The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announces 
that applications will be accepted for fiscal year (FY) 1996 
Cooperative Agreements for Regional Nursing Partnerships to Provide 
Continuing Education in Nursing Informatics for Faculty in Medically 
Underserved Communities. These cooperative agreements will be funded 
for one year under the Public Health Service Act, as amended by Nurse 
Education and Practice Improvement Amendments of 1992, Title II, Public 
Law 102-408, dated October 13, 1992, Section 820 (c), Continuing 
Education for Nurses in Medically Underserved Communities. It is 
anticipated that $280,000 will be available to support up to three 
competitive one-year awards.

Purpose

    The purpose of the cooperative agreements is to support the 
formation of partnerships between recognized regional nursing 
organizations and nursing entities qualified to provide continuing 
education in nursing informatics for nursing faculty in schools located 
in, or preparing students to serve in, medically underserved 
communities. Nursing informatics is defined as the integration of 
nursing science, computer science, and information science applied to 
the identification, collection, analysis, and management of data for 
nursing education, practice, and research. Increasing the number of 
nurses in the workforce who are knowledgeable about nursing 
informatics, especially those practicing in underserved or rural 
communities, will enhance clinical proficiency and improve access to 
and quality of health care for increasing numbers in the population. 
For the purpose of these cooperative agreements, regional nursing 
organizations are those regionally based nursing organizations whose 
members must include schools of nursing in institutions of higher 
education located within the designated region, and whose members may 
also include health care agencies and other health care entities.
    Applicants must establish and maintain effective partnerships to 
implement sound continuing education programs designed to meet the 
identified nursing faculty needs in nursing informatics. Continuing 
education program curricula must be based on regional assessments of 
undergraduate and graduate nursing faculty proficiency in computer 
technology and nursing informatics.

Eligibility and Proposed Funding Preference

    Eligible applicants include public and non-profit entities. A 
funding preference is defined as the funding of a specific category or 
group of approved applications ahead of other categories or groups of 
approved applications in a discretionary program. It is proposed that a 
funding preference will be given to recognized regional nursing 
organizations who enter partnerships with nursing entities experienced 
in teaching nursing informatics. These entities may include, but are 
not limited to, schools of nursing. The partner providing the nursing 
informatics expertise must be located within the recognized regional 
nursing organization's designated region. It is highly unlikely that 
any applicant not meeting the funding preference will be supported 
under this cooperative agreement.

Proposed Project Requirements

    1. Develop a formalized partnership between the regional nursing 
organization and nursing entities qualified to provide continuing 
education in nursing informatics.
    2. Establish an Advisory Board to oversee the development, 
administration, and evaluation of the project. The Advisory Board must 
include at least one non-academically based nurse practicing in a 
medically underserved community.
    3. Utilize an existing assessment of undergraduate and graduate 
nursing programs within the region to determine:
    (a) The availability of computer-based systems;
    (b) Faculty knowledge, skills, and abilities in the use of 
computer-based systems; and
    (c) The ability of faculty to prepare students for practice in 
technologically advanced practice environments.
    4. Based on analysis of the assessment in #3, develop and implement 
four regionally-based nursing informatics continuing education programs 
during the 1997 academic year. Each continuing education program must 
be designed to:
    (a) Enhance faculty knowledge, skills, and abilities in nursing 
informatics in the areas of computer technology;

[[Page 37073]]

human factors; information and database management; professional 
practice, trends, and issues; system analysis and design; system 
implementation and support; system testing and evaluation; and 
theoretical frameworks;
    (b) Include a computer lab practicum;
    (c) Be completed in a one-week, 30-36 hour session;
    (d) Be provided in two or more different geographic locations to 
facilitate participation by faculty from distant areas within the 
region;
    (e) Enroll a minimum of 14 nursing faculty from schools of nursing 
located in or experienced in preparing nurses to serve in medically 
underserved communities;
    (f) Provide participants a syllabus and reading materials prior to 
the session; and
    (g) Award continuing education credit in nursing informatics.
    6. Project must be documented in a format to facilitate replication 
by other organizations.

Substantial Federal Programmatic Involvement

    Personnel in the Bureau of Health Professions, Division of Nursing 
will have substantial programmatic involvement with the planning, 
development, administration, and evaluation of the Regional Nursing 
Partnerships to Provide Continuing Education in Nursing Informatics for 
Faculty in Medically Underserved Communities and their outputs by:
    1. Participating in the identification and selection of an Advisory 
Board. This includes participation in the selection of co-chair(s), one 
of whom will be the Division of Nursing representative, Meribeth Reed, 
PhD, RN.
    2. Providing guidance for obtaining an existing regional assessment 
on the availability of computer-based systems; faculty knowledge, 
skills, and abilities in the use of computer-based systems; and the 
ability of faculty to prepare students for practice in technologically 
advanced practice environments.
    3. Providing technical assistance, guidance, and recommendations 
for project modifications.
    4. Reviewing and advising on curricula content, selection of 
participants, methodologies, and teaching techniques.
    5. Reviewing and advising on program evaluation methods.
    6. Reviewing and advising on documenting project activities and 
experiences for dissemination and replication.
    7. Providing data and information about Federal programs that may 
impact the project.

National Health Objectives for the year 2000

    The HRSA urges applicants to submit work plans that address 
specific objectives of Healthy People 2000. Potential applicants may 
obtain a copy of Healthy People 2000 (Full Report; Stock No. 017-001-
00474-0) or Healthy People 2000 (Summary Report; Stock No. 017-001-
00473-1) through the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing 
Office, Washington, D.C. 20402-9325 (Telephone 202-783-3238).

Education and Service Linkage

    As part of its long-range planning, HRSA will be targeting its 
efforts to strengthening linkages between HRSA education programs and 
programs which provide comprehensive primary care services to the 
underserved.

Smoke-Free Workplace

    The HRSA strongly encourages all grant recipients to provide a 
smoke-free workplace; to promote the non-use of all tobacco products; 
and to promote Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994, which 
prohibits smoking in certain facilities that receive Federal funds in 
which education, library, day care, health care, and early childhood 
development services are provided to children.

Proposed Review Criteria

    The review of applications will take into consideration the 
following criteria:
    1. The need for the proposed project.
    2. The potential effectiveness of the proposed project in carrying 
out the stated purpose.
    3. The administrative and managerial capability of the applicant to 
carry out the proposed project.
    4. The efficacy of the proposed partnership.
    5. The adequacy of the facilities and resources available to the 
applicant to carry out the proposed project.
    6. The qualifications of the project director and proposed staff.
    7. The feasibility of the proposed budget in relation to the 
proposed project.
    8. The potential of the project to continue on a self-sustaining 
basis after the period of Federal support.

Additional Information

    Interested persons are invited to comment on the proposed project 
requirements; review criteria; and funding preference for recognized 
nursing organizations in partnership with nursing entities qualified to 
provide continuing education in nursing informatics. The comment period 
is 30 days. All comments received on or before August 15, 1996 will be 
considered before the final project requirements and review criteria 
are established. The final project requirements and review criteria 
will be included in the final notice published in the Federal Register. 
Written comments should be addressed to Marla Salmon, ScD, RN, FAAN, 
Division of Nursing, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and 
Services Administration, Parklawn Building, Room 9-35, 5600 Fishers 
Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857. All comments received will be 
available for public inspection and copying at the Division of Nursing, 
Bureau of Health Professions, at the above address, weekdays (Federal 
holidays excepted) between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., 
Eastern Standard Time.

Application Availability

    Application materials, including Supplemental Instructions and 
Training Application Form PHS 6025-1, are available on the World Wide 
Web at: http://www.os.dhhs.gov/hrsa/bhpr. To obtain the supplemental 
instructions, click on the file named ``NICE.EXE'' to download to your 
computer. Click on ``save to disk.'' The file will be saved as a self-
extracting WordPerfect 5.1 file named NICE.EXE. Once the file is 
downloaded to your disk or hard drive, you may exit the web site.
    The NICE.EXE file will be a compressed file. To decompress or 
expand the file in DOS, go to the DOS directory where the file has been 
downloaded and type in ``NICE.EXE'', then ``enter.'' The file will 
expand into a WordPerfect 5.1 file, now named ``NICE.''
    To decompress the file in Windows, go to ``program manager,'' then 
click on ``file,'' then ``run.'' The file will expand to a Windows file 
now named ``NICE.'' Note that in DOS or in Windows, you will retain a 
file with the extension ``.EXE,'' and one without the extension, but 
with considerably larger disk size. The expanded file is the one you 
will use. To obtain the PHS 6025-1, follow the same instructions, after 
clicking on ``PHS 6025-1.''
    Questions regarding grants policy and business management issues 
should be directed to Ms. Wilma Johnson, Acting Chief, Centers and 
Formula Grants Section ([email protected]), Grants Management 
Branch, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and Services 
Administration, Parklawn Building, Room 8C-26, 5600 Fishers Lane, 
Rockville, Maryland 20857. Applicants are strongly encouraged to obtain 
application materials from the

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World Wide Web via the Internet. However, if you are unable to obtain 
the application materials electronically, you may obtain application 
materials in the mail by sending a written request to the Grants 
Management Branch at the address above. Written requests may also be 
sent via FAX (301) 443-6343 or via the internet listed above. Completed 
applications should be returned to the Grants Management Branch at the 
above address.
    If additional programmatic information is needed, please contact 
Meribeth Reed, PhD, RN, Division of Nursing, Bureau of Health 
Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, Parklawn 
Building, Room 9-35, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857. Dr. 
Reed may be reached by telephone at (301) 443-5763, by fax at (301) 
443-8586, or by e-mail at: ([email protected]).

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The standard application form PHS 6025-1, HRSA Competing Training 
Grant Application, has been approved by the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act. The OMB Clearance 
Number is 0915-0060.
    The deadline date for receipt of applications is August 19, 1996. 
Applications will be considered to be ``on time'' if they are either:
    (1) Received on or before the established deadline date, or
    (2) Sent on or before the established deadline date and received in 
time for orderly processing. (Applicants should request a legibly dated 
U.S. Postal Service postmark or obtain a legibly dated receipt from a 
commercial carrier or U.S. Postal Service. Private metered postmarks 
will not be acceptable as proof of timely mailing.)
    Late applications not accepted for processing will be returned to 
the applicant. In addition, applications which exceed the page 
limitation and/or do not follow format instructions will not be 
accepted for processing and will be returned to the applicant.
    This program is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order 
12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs (as implemented 
through 45 CFR part 100). This program is also not subject to the 
Public Health System Reporting Requirements.

    Dated: July 10, 1996.
Ciro V. Sumaya,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 96-17998 Filed 7-15-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-15-P