[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 233 (Thursday, December 4, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72004-72005]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-28498]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Proposed Collection; 60-Day Comment Request; Surveys and 
Interviews To Support an Evaluation of the Innovative Molecular 
Analysis Technologies (IMAT) Program (NCI)

SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, for opportunity for public comment 
on proposed data collection projects, the National Cancer Institute 
(NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), will publish periodic 
summaries of proposed projects to be submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval.
    Written comments and/or suggestions from the public and affected 
agencies are invited on one or more of the following points: (1) 
Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the function of the agency, including whether the 
information will have practical utility; (2) The accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (4) Ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including the 
use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other 
technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    To Submit Comments and For Further Information: To obtain a copy of 
the data collection plans and instruments, submit comments in writing, 
or request more information on the proposed project, contact: Anthony 
Dickherber, NCI Center for Strategic Scientific Initiatives, 31 Center 
Drive, Rm10A33, Bethesda, MD 20892 or call non-toll-free number 301-
547-9980 or Email your request, including your address to: 
[email protected]. Formal requests for additional plans and 
instruments must be requested in writing.
    Comment Due Date: Comments regarding this information collection 
are best assured of having their full effect if received within 60 days 
of the date of this publication.
    Proposed Collection: Surveys and Interviews to Support an 
Evaluation of the Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) 
Program (NCI), 0925-NEW, National Cancer Institute (NCI), National 
Institutes of Health (NIH).
    Need and Use of Information Collection: The purpose of the proposed 
evaluation is to pursue a comprehensive process and outcome assessment 
of the 15-year old Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) 
program. While the program consistently offers promising indicators of 
success, the full program has not been evaluated since 2008, and never 
in as comprehensive a manner as has been formulated in the current 
evaluation plan. An outcome evaluation of the long-standing National 
Cancer Institute's (NCI) IMAT program presents a rich and unique 
opportunity likely to serve institutes across the National Institutes 
of Health (NIH), and perhaps other federal agencies, considering the 
costs and benefits of directing resources towards supporting technology 
development. An award through the NIH Evaluation Set-Aside program to 
support this evaluation, for which NIH-wide relevance is a principle 
element of determining merit for support, is testament to this. The 
evaluation serves as an opportunity to gauge the impact of investments 
in technology development and also to assess the strengths and 
weaknesses of phased innovation award mechanisms.
    Like all institutes and centers (ICs) of the NIH, NCI seeks 
opportunities for improving their programs' utility for the broad 
continuum of researchers, clinicians and ultimately patients. NCI 
Director Harold Varmus and other leadership across NCI, as well as the 
NCI Board of Scientific Advisors, will be the primary users of the 
evaluation results. Findings are primarily intended for considering the 
long-term strategy to support innovative technology development and how 
to more efficiently translate emerging capabilities through such 
technologies into the promised benefits for cancer research and 
clinical care. Interviews with grantees, program officers, review 
officers, and other NIH awardees make up a crucial component of the 
evaluation plan and will largely follow set survey protocols. Specific 
near-term aims include the use of this information to consider the 
utility of continued investment through existing solicitations and in 
strategic planning generally for institute support for innovative 
technology development.
    OMB approval is requested for 1 year. There are no costs to 
respondents other than their time. The total estimated annualized 
burden hours are 575.

[[Page 72005]]



                                                            Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                                                                              Average
                                                                                             Number of       Number of      burden per     Total annual
                   Form name                               Type of respondents              respondents    responses per   response  (in   burden hours
                                                                                                            respondent        hours)
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IMAT Awardee Interview.........................  IMAT Awardees..........................             100               1               1             100
Evaluation Web-based Survey....................  IMAT Awardees, and other NIH Awardees               900               1           30/60             450
                                                  (Comparison group).
Tech End Users Interview.......................  Technology End-Users...................              50               1           30/60              25
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    Dated: November 24, 2014.
Karla Bailey,
NCI Project Clearance Liaison, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 2014-28498 Filed 12-3-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P