1 Science Administration at the United States National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Atlanta Conference on Science and Innovation Policy September 15-17, 2011 Section 8.a: Global Experiences in Innovation Policy Maryann D’Alessandro, Ph.D. Associate Director for Science, NPPTL NIOSH PPT Program Coordinator

2 Case study objective Gather information regarding NIOSH strategies and processes to generate annual research plans, priorities, across operating units. Use information to generate a consolidated description of these processes. Develop and recommend best practices across the Institute

3 Overall goals of effective science administration Provides a concentrated source for coherent management information (Sandia report, 2010) Conveys consistent information for decision making (Sandia report, 2010) Links inputs to outputs and outcomes (NIOSH logic model, 2007)

4 Overview NIOSH background Case study methodology Key findings

5 NIOSH background

6 NIOSH The mission of NIOSH is to generate new knowledge in the field of occupational safety and health and to transfer that knowledge into practice for the betterment of workers. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is the U.S. federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness.

7 HHS CDC NIOSH Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health NIOSH resources ~$6.5 billion ~$294.1 million ~$910.7 billion

8 Office of the Director, NIOSH Office of Extramural Programs (OEP) National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory (NPPTL) Office of Mine Safety and Health Research (OMSHR) Alaska Pacific Regional Office (APRO) Division of Respiratory Disease Studies (DRDS) Division of Safety Research (DSR) Health Effects Laboratory Division (HELD) Education and Information Division (EID) Division of Applied Research and Technology (DART) Division of Surveillance Hazard Evaluation and Field Studies (DSHEFS) Division of Compensation Analysis and Support (DCAS) Western States Office (WSO) NIOSH Divisions, Laboratories and Offices

9 NIOSH Program Portfolio NIOSH Industry Sectors (10) NIOSH Cross Sector Programs (24) Agriculture, forestry, and fishing * Construction * Healthcare and social assistance Manufacturing Mining * Oil and Gas Extraction Public Safety Services Transportation, warehousing, and utilities Wholesale and retail trade Authoritative recommendations development Cancer, reproductive, and cardiovascular diseases Communications and information dissemination Economics Emergency preparedness and response Engineering controls Exposure assessment Global collaborations Health hazard evaluation (HHE) * Hearing loss prevention * Immune, dermal and infectious diseases Musculoskeletal disorders Nanotechnology Occupational health disparities Personal Protective Technology (PPT) * Prevention through design Radiation dose reconstruction Respiratory diseases * Small business assistance and outreach Surveillance Total worker health Training grants Traumatic injury * Work organization and stress-related disorders * Program recently reviewed by the National Academies

10 Federal legislation, evaluations and stakeholder involvement help prioritize initiatives Federal legislation – OSH Act of 1970 Evaluations – National Academies reviews of 8 NIOSH programs – Additional National Academies initiatives – NIOSH Board of Scientific Counselors Stakeholder involvement – First nine Education Research Centers (ERCs) awarded – First State-based OSH cooperative agreements established – National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) established – Second Decade of NORA begins (Program Portfolio Structure established)

11 NIOSH funding mechanisms Base budget Competitive Reimbursable – CDC Foundation – External Funding sources Other

12 NIOSH Project Management and Planning System (NPPM) Developed in 2004 to account for all funds expended by project Evolved to a project management system to track multiple project dimensions – Project activities – Outputs – Outcomes – Partners – Funding – Milestone tracking Reports generated from NPPM support Program and Project reviews Congressional budget process drives the timing of the planning process

13 Number of FY11 NIOSH Intramural Projects by Funding Category

14 NIOSH Science administration challenges There are many needs across all NIOSH sector research programs Prioritizing agency resources during tight budgetary times is important Approaches to maximize relevance and impact while sustaining innovation are needed Dual structure introduces activity alignment complexities

15 Case study methodology

16 Questionnaire design Dimensions used to survey operational units – Documentation of current processes – Schedule – Roles – Evaluation criteria – Ongoing projects – New starts – Emergency response activities – Emerging issues

17 Sample survey questions How well documented is the program/budget formulation process that is presently being used? What are the steps followed for the process? What are the criteria used to evaluate and prioritize proposed projects? After a project concept is generated, how are decisions made to fund the project?

18 Communication with operational units and telephone communication described process and information to be gathered with telephone interviews Questionnaire ed to operational unit representative prior to interview Science administration team contacted each operational unit by phone to conduct interview Processes for each operational unit documented

19 Key findings

20 Various strategies are used to generate project concepts Regulation Advisory committee recommendations Surveillance Stakeholder needs Requests from stakeholders Relevance Impact Uniformly there is significant stakeholder involvement in program and project formulation

21 Project selection and monitoring processes vary throughout Institute Midyear reviews Quarterly reviews Monthly reviews and reporting Program reviews Milestone assessments National academies reviews of select activities All operating units conduct vigorous reviews of project status (usually midyear), but there is a wide variation on the evaluation criteria used to select future projects

22 FY11-FY12 NIOSH project planning activities

23 Candidate best practice strategies Competitive and rigorous scientific and stakeholder review process at project conception Documented planning process including an agreed upon set of evaluation criteria for project selection Harmonized timeline for project formulation activities

24 Next steps Establish consensus among NIOSH Science Administration Working Group members regarding best practice strategies Recommend adoption of best practice strategies to Institute management Adopt and implement best practice strategies across the Institute

25 Acknowledgements The efforts of the NIOSH Science Administration Working Group Members to develop the strategy and gather the data for this effort are acknowledged. Ann Berry, Senior Scientist John Decker, Senior Scientist Amia Downes, Public Health Analyst Amanda Harney, Health Communications Specialist John Sporrer, Public Health Analyst

26 Contact information: Maryann D’Alessandro Visit us at: Disclaimer: The findings and conclusions in this presentation are those of the author and have not been formally disseminated by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and should not be construed to represent any agency determination or policy.