The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), which was established by the ACA, is seeking public feedback on eight initial topics for a series of “Tier 1” pilot projects. The pilot projects are intended to help PCORI set national priorities for research, support the development of novel methods or collection of preliminary data that can advance patient-centered outcomes research (PCOR), and inform the development of a future PCORI research agenda. The eight initial topics for the PCORI pilot projects include developing/identifying, testing, and/or evaluating:

  1. Methods to inform the process of establishing and updating national priorities for PCOR.
  2. Methods for bringing together patients, caregivers, clinicians and non-traditional partners in all stages of a multi-stakeholder research process, from the generation and prioritization of research questions to the conduct and analysis of a study to dissemination of study results.
  3. Approaches for translating research findings into changes in health care practices.
  4. Approaches that could systematically, without bias, identify gaps in evidence that most affect low-income populations; minorities; children; elderly; women; people with disabilities, multiple medical conditions, rare conditions, and other vulnerable populations.
  5. Predictive outcomes instruments of interest to patients.
  6. Methods for researching behaviors, lifestyles, and choices within patient control that may influence outcomes.
  7. Methods for studying the patient-clinician interaction in situations where multiple options for prevention, diagnosis, or treatment exist.
  8. Methods to assess strategies that respect patient autonomy and promote informed decision-making, incorporating the best healthcare knowledge into the application of care.

Note that this request is for input on the pilot project topics, not a request for applications (RFA) for pilot project grants; PCORI expects to issue an RFA for pilot project grants in late September. Comments on the topics will be accepted until August 31, 2011.