An Early Look at Applications Submitted During the Pandemic

It has been four months since the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered laboratories and clinical studies across the country and the world.  On April 10, only a few weeks into the pandemic, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) published a report on the “Effects of COVID-19 on the Federal Research and Development Enterprise.”  The report described the consequences of social distancing and other pandemic mitigation measures.  These consequences included laboratory closures, de-prioritized projects, cancellation of meetings and conferences, loss of revenue, disrupted personnel processes (e.g. graduation, promotion, hiring), supply-chain interruptions, and, overlying all of these, a great deal of uncertainty. Since the CRS report was issued, we have learned more about the pandemic’s effects on non-COVID research and on the research workforce.  There have been substantial challenges to clinical trial activities as well as in research based on animal models.  A survey of the scientific workforce found that biomedical scientists have seen substantial reductions in productivity.  Of particular worry, women with young children appear to have been disproportionately affected.  Another study found a decline in women authors on pre-prints.  And another international survey found that half of scientists reported fewer research hours, while substantial proportions reported more time on data analysis, more time on manuscript (or thesis) preparation...
Source: NIH Extramural Nexus - Category: Research Authors: Tags: blog Open Mike coronavirus COVID-19 Funding data Source Type: funding