The Ministry of Health, having regard to the National Health Research Program 2017-2019, intends through this call for proposals, to invite all practitioners of the National Health Service to submit three-year research projects that have an explicit application orientation and the ambition to provide potentially useful information to guide the choices of the National Health Service itself, patients and citizens.

The following project types are planned for the call:

1. Ordinary targeted research (RF) projects: these are research projects not covered by the following types: section A.
2. Co-funded projects (COs): are research projects submitted by researchers who are assured private funding from companies with operations in Italy in order to secure the development of ideas or products whose patent is owned by the NHS researcher or the NHS facility at which the researcher works or the institutional recipient: section B
3. Ordinary projects submitted by Young Researchers (GR): these are research projects submitted by researchers under 40 years of age on the call deadline date: section C
4. “Starting Grant” (SG) projects: these are research projects submitted by researchers under the age of 33 at the call deadline: section D
5. Network Programs (NET): network programs aim to create research and innovation groups (partnerships) for the development of highly innovative studies characterized by their high impact on the NHS: section E

The procedure takes place in three separate periods:

• April 11, 2018 to April 26, 2018 5:00 p.m. accreditation of researchers
• from day April 19, 2018 to day May 21, 2018 5:00 p.m.: drafting the complete research project in English and sending it to its institutional recipient (“complete project submission template” – Annex 1);
• May 22, 2018 to June 19, 2018 5:00 p.m.: Institutional recipients must carry out project validation and proceed to submit the projects they intend to submit to the Ministry of Health.

The procedure is carried out in four separate steps:

• from April 11, 2018 to April 26, 2018.5 p.m.: Accreditation of researchers to this call as principal investigator of work package or as research collaborator of the whole program to the application system;
• from April 19, 2018 to May 21, 2018 5:00 p.m. proposing researchers should arrange for the complete program to be written in English and sent to the Ministry of Health (“complete project submission template” – Annex1);
• May 22, 2018 to May 29, 2018 5:00 p.m.: communication by the Ministry of Health to the funding institutions of the list of work packages that are part of the network program for the purpose of acquiring the declaration of eligibility provided in Section E of the notice;
• from May 30, 2018 to June 11, 2018 5:00 p.m. Funding institutions must declare the eligibility or ineligibility for funding of the work packages under their responsibility, as stipulated in Section E of the announcement.