The JCR Editorial Board and PANLAR Board of Directors have chosen to name this award after Dr. Schumacher in recognition of his many accomplishments and of his dedication to the betterment of Rheumatology in Latin America. This award is funded jointly by Mrs. H. Ralph Schumacher and PANLAR.

 

H. Ralph Schumacher Award for PANLAR Projects Criteria:

• Available to trainees, junior and senior investigators in countries served by PANLAR.
• Intended to stimulate valuable research that will produce results relevant to the region. 
• The grant is designed to support the development of projects that are PANLAR research priorities. These priority areas are:
  • Epidemiology of Rheumatic diseases in Latin America
  • Real world data on new and old treatments for the rheumatic diseases in Latin America
  • Infections and rheumatic diseases in Latin America
• The results of the research grant should lead to one or more manuscripts and must be published in JCR
• An explicit recognition of support from the award should be referred to in the published paper

 
 
The complete application should be written in English and will consist of the following components:

1. Curriculum Vitae or Bio sketch (page limit: 4)
2. Letters of support (2)
3. A brief presentation Letter from the national society supporting application
4. Personal statement
5. Previous research relevant to the current grant (page limit: 2)
6. Research Proposal as per this format (page limit: 10, excluding references):

• Specific Aims
• Background and Significance
• Preliminary work (pertinent to study being proposed),
• Study design methods, (including Statistical Analysis techniques and sample size calculations, Anticipated Results, Anticipated Limitations, Timetable).

7. Budget: a complete budget description.

Evaluation

Applications will be evaluated by a team of jurors from different PANLAR countries under the direction of Dr, Graciela S. Alarcón (US/Perú). The final ranking of the applications will be based on a pondered scoring system previously developed and agreed upon in which the project itself will weigh more than the other components of the application.

 

Award Ceremony

The winner will receive a USD 20,000.00 cash award. The award intends to recognize individuals for their outstanding contributions to clinical investigation in Latin America. The award will be presented at the 2025 PANLAR Congress in Mexico City (April 23-26, 2025)

The award will be distributed in the following way: 50% at the beginning of the project, 25% after the first advance report has been sent and approved, and 25% when the finished report is sent and approved.
 

Timeline:

Submission deadline: October 16, 2024

Award Announcement: December 2, 2024.

 
The prize will be awarded at the Annual Pan American Congress of Rheumatology PANLAR 2025 to be held in Mexico City on April 23, 2025.

 Complete applications should be submitted electronically on the following link before October 16, 2024