National Community Centers of Excellence in Women's Health

Phase 1 1.Provide 1 year of financial and technical support to an existing wellness coalition to develop a strategic action plan and implementation plan to reduce gender based health disparities in targeted communities. 2. Enhance collaborative working partnerships among health organizations, community based and faith based organizations, public and private academic institutions, hospitals, medical groups and practices. 3. Enhance consumer and provider awareness of gender-based health issues in the community; 4. Increase the capacity and strengthen infrastructure among local public health organizations to increase the coordination of services to better serve women and girls Phase II 5. Provide up to 5 years of financial and technical support for implementation of the strategic action health plan. 6. To develop and implement a health intervention plan which will be sustained after OWH funding ends. 7. To use a public health systems approach to improve on two or more identified health issues affecting women and/or girls. 8. Improve surveillance/information systems that allow tracking of program progress on gender based morbidity/ mortality objectives at the grantee level. 9. Reduce the incidence and prevalence of adverse health outcomes among women girls in local communities.

Eligible applicants include public and private non profit organizations (public and private academic institutions and hospitals); community-based and faith-based organizations, medical groups/practices and State, city, county, and local health departments, tribes and tribal organizations with expertise/experience in the proposed objectives. The applicant must be part of an existing coalition. At least a third of the partners should have demonstrated experience addressing gender differences through appropriate interventions, programs, or research related to the selected objectives. Phase II: Eligible applicants are limited to Phase I grantees.

Women and girls across the life span.

Each applicant for a cooperative agreement funded under this CCOE announcement must, at a minimum: (1) present a plan to integrate all six components of the CCOE program by the end of the first year of funding, although only four components have to be in place at the time the application is submitted; (2) develop a CCOE advisory board or ensure that their already established advisory board is included in the decision-making process for CCOE program development, identification of community-based research questions, and formulation of CCOE policies; (3) be a sustainable organization with an established network of partners capable of providing coordinated and integrated women's health services in the targeted community; (4) have an established clinical care center/facility, an operating public educational/outreach program, and a community identified as the recipient of technical assistance at the time the application is submitted; (5) demonstrate the ways in which the organization and the care that are coordinated through its partners are women-focused, women-friendly, women-relevant, and sensitive to the importance of patient/provider communication/relationships for medically underserved women of all ages; (6) detail/specify the roles and resources/services that each partner organization brings to the program, the duration and terms of agreement as confirmed by a signed agreement between the applicant organization and each partner, and describe how the partner organizations will operated within the CCOE structure; (7) describe in detail plans for the local evaluation of the CCOE program and when and how information obtained from the evaluation will be used to enhance the CCOE program; and(8) describe in detail the planned community-based research and the research methodology/procedure.

Funds may be used to implement evidence-based strategies to program objectives. Phase II: to implement the approved strategic plan and evaluate the effectiveness of the program

For Phase I, project period is not to exceed 1 year. For Phase II, project period is not to exceed 5 years.

All available grant opportunities are posted on www.grants.gov.

To be considered for review, applications must be received by the Office of The Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of Grants Management, c/o LCG by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date published in the "Dates" section of the FR. Applications will be screened upon receipt. Those that are judged to be in compliance will be reviewed for technical merit by a technical panel composed of experts with experience with sex and gender programs, program management, program delivery, outreach, health education and program assessment in accordance with DHHS policy. The technical review of the applications will consider the following factors for Phase I: • Factor 1: Background and Summary (10 points) • Factor 2: Coalition and Capacity Plan (20 points) • Factor 3: Management Plan (25 points) • Factor 4: Target Population (15 points) • Factor 5: Evaluation Plan (20 points) • Factor 6: Sustainability Plan (10 points) The technical review of the applications will consider the following factors for Phase II: • Factor 1: Background and Need (20 points) • Factor 2: Implementation Plan (25 points) • Factor 3: Management Plan (20 points) • Factor 4: Evaluation Plan (20 points) • Factor 5: Sustainability Plan (15 points) Details regarding the elements to be addressed within each Factor are available in the FR notice

Applications will be screened upon receipt. Those that are judged to be ineligible will be returned to the applicant. Accepted applications will be reviewed for technical merit in accordance with PHS policies. Applications will be evaluated by a technical review panel composed of independent experts. Funding decisions will be made by the OWH and will take into consideration the recommendations of the review panel; program needs; stated preferences; and geographic location. Applicants approved and funded will be issued a Notice of Grant Award.

Approximately 90 days from the application deadline date.