Service-Ready Tools for Identification, Prevention, and Treatment of Individuals at Risk for Suicide (R34 Clinical Trial Optional) | RFA MH 21 111

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA MH 21 111

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), offered this R34 funding opportunity (RFA-MH-21-111) to support pilot effectiveness research on practical, service-ready tools and technologies that can strengthen suicide prevention services in real-world settings. The core idea is to move beyond early development and instead focus on resources that are already close to being deployable in routine care, where they can directly improve how individuals at risk for suicide are identified, supported, and treated. The opportunity sits on the effectiveness-implementation continuum, meaning applicants are expected to pay attention not only to whether a tool works, but also to whether it can realistically be adopted, delivered with fidelity, and sustained over time in everyday clinical workflows.

Projects supported under this announcement are intended to evaluate preliminary effectiveness while also answering the kinds of pragmatic questions that determine whether a tool will actually get used. NIMH is looking for studies that generate evidence about feasibility (can it be done in the intended setting), tolerability and acceptability (will patients and providers actually use it and stick with it), safety (particularly important in suicide prevention contexts), and early signals that the approach improves relevant outcomes. These pilot data are meant to set up the next step: a well-designed, fully powered effectiveness trial. In other words, the R34 is positioned as a bridge between a promising, nearly practice-ready tool and a definitive trial that can establish real-world impact at scale.

NIMH emphasizes two main research directions. First, applicants can propose to develop and test the preliminary effectiveness of optimized, service-ready tools for suicide risk identification, prevention, and treatment. The emphasis on "optimized" and "service-ready" implies that the tool should already be refined enough for real-world use, not a basic prototype. Second, applicants can focus on strategies that improve adoption, fidelity, and sustainment of these tools, explicitly using an implementation science framework. That expectation matters because it pushes projects to specify how implementation barriers will be assessed and addressed, how training or workflow changes will be supported, and how quality will be monitored so that outcomes do not degrade over time due to implementation drift.

A notable feature of this opportunity is its strong preference for scalable design and deployment-focused thinking. NIMH encourages the use of technology and design elements that help tools remain consistent and usable across sites and over time, such as automated decision supports, digital training resources, measurement and feedback systems, or other approaches that reduce burden on a stretched workforce. The announcement also highlights the importance of incorporating stakeholder perspectives, including service users, providers, and administrators, and of accounting for system-level constraints like workforce capacity and the realities of clinical operations. The practical takeaway is that an application is expected to show, in a concrete way, how the tool fits into clinical workflows and how the project team will increase the odds that it will be used correctly and routinely.

This R34 is "Clinical Trial Optional," meaning applicants may propose studies that include a clinical trial component, but a trial is not mandatory. The key requirement is that the research be aimed at pilot effectiveness and implementation-relevant outcomes for a service-ready resource. For applicants whose long-term plan is a large, definitive effectiveness study, NIMH directs that later-stage work to a companion R01 opportunity (RFA-MH-21-110). For small business-focused development and evaluation pathways, NIMH points to the SBIR mechanisms (RFA-MH-21-112; R43/R44). This positioning clarifies that the R34 here is meant for early, but practice-oriented, effectiveness testing and implementation planning rather than a final, large-scale evaluation.

In terms of eligibility, the opportunity is broadly open to many U.S.-based organizations and government entities, reflecting an intent to bring in applicants from healthcare delivery systems, academic settings, community organizations, and other applied research environments. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other organizations that meet NIH eligibility requirements. The announcement also explicitly calls out additional eligible applicant types such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, certain tribal governments (other than federally recognized), and U.S. territories or possessions.

Foreign eligibility is restricted in a way that is typical for many NIH opportunities but is stated clearly here. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply as applicant organizations, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible to apply. However, foreign components (as NIH defines them in its Grants Policy Statement) are allowed, which generally means a U.S. applicant may include certain collaborations or activities abroad when well-justified and compliant with NIH policy, even though the primary applicant organization must be domestic.

From the posted source details, this was a discretionary grant program in the health category (CFDA 93.242) administered by NIH, created on November 13, 2020, with an original closing date of June 15, 2022. The public listing does not provide an award ceiling or expected number of awards in the excerpt provided, suggesting those details may have been specified elsewhere in the full funding announcement or were not captured in the summary fields.

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a targeted push to make suicide prevention more reliably evidence-based in everyday practice by funding pilot studies of tools that are ready to be used now, paired with thoughtful, implementation-grounded strategies that help those tools actually take root in real systems of care. The strongest-fitting projects would typically be those that can show a credible path to near-term integration into clinical workflows, measurable improvements in care processes and patient outcomes, and a clear plan for scaling up to a definitive effectiveness trial if the pilot results support it.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Service-Ready Tools for Identification, Prevention, and Treatment of Individuals at Risk for Suicide (R34 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.242.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2020-11-13.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-06-15. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA MH 21 111

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