PLEASE NOTE:
Your A&P Application must be completed in one session. Partially completed applications will not be saved in the system; if you close your browser before submitting your A&P Application, your work will be lost.
Before you begin filling out the A&P Application form below, ensure you have checked our Current Projects and Published Research webpages for overlap with your proposal, review and familiarize yourself with the A&P Processes and Procedures document and gather the required information and files. Some of the items you will need to properly fill out the form include:
1) STS National Database Participant ID - The 5-digit number corresponding to the investigator's participant affiliation in the Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD), General Thoracic Surgery Database (GTSD), or Congenital Heart Surgery Database (CHSD); or the 4 letter Code in case of Intermacs/Pedimacs database participants.
2) Principal Investigator contact information and biosketch;
3) File identifying any co-investigators (if applicable) and their contact information; and
4) File providing a full description of the research proposal; shell tables and list of requested variables also must be included.
Incomplete applications will not be considered. An example of a successful A&P application is available here.
A&P Research Study Plan
All applications must include a detailed research study plan that will be reviewed by STS Research and Analytic Center staff, surgeon reviewers, and A&P Specialty Committee and Task Force members. The research study plan should include the following information:
Research Plan
1. Study Background
2. Overview -
2.1 Research Question
2.2 Rationale for Research Question
3. Study Plan/Approach
3.1 Study Patients
3.1.1 Study Inclusion Criteria (must include years of study and, relevant database versions requested)
3.1.2 Study Exclusion Criteria (be as specific as possible)
3.1.3 Endpoints and Outcomes (be specific; indicate whether only 30 day outcomes will be examined and which ones; indicate if longer follow-up/outcomes are proposed (i.e. CMS linkage - currently available for Adult Cardiac and General Thoracic Proposals).
3.2 Statistical Methods and Analysis Plan (be as specific as possible; providing shell tables for anticipated presentation of results, as well as a list of requested STS variables, is required). Examples of shell tables can be found here.
3.3 Dissemination Plans1
3.3.1 Peer-reviewed Journal to which submission is anticipated (if any)
3.3.2 National meetings at which abstract presentation is anticipated (if any)
3.3.3 Timeline
3.4 Literature Cited
1STS strongly suggests that the investigators target the STS Annual Meeting and The Annals of Thoracic Surgery as the meeting and publication forums, respectively, for dissemination of A&P-based research.
