This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Nabel, E. G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Nabel, E. G.

(Circulation Research. 2007;101:849.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Editorials

Shaping the Future of Research

The NHLBI Strategic Plan

Elizabeth G. Nabel

From the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, Bethesda, Md.

Correspondence to Elizabeth G. Nabel, MD, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 31 Center Dr., Room 5A48, Bethesda, MD 20892. E-mail nabele@nih.gov

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

	Introduction

 
With the extensive involvement of the communities it serves, the NHLBI has just completed development of a scientific working plan to guide its activities and initiatives in the near future. Shaping the Future of Research: A Strategic Plan for the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute is accessible on the NHLBI Web site at http://apps.nhlbi.nih.gov/strategicplan/.

	The Planning Process

 
The plan is the outcome of an inclusive "bottom-up" approach that called on the wisdom and expertise of more than 600 individuals, including researchers, representatives of patient-advocacy groups and professional societies, and other members of the scientific and lay communities. The initial step (Level One) comprised 23 thematic meetings held during the spring and summer of 2006. Participants were asked to identify scientific areas that the NHLBI could and should play a major role in advancing and to recommend operational policies to facilitate conduct of high-priority scientific research.

In October 2006, a Level Two meeting brought together members of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory Council, chairpersons of the Level One meetings, and other leaders from the research community. Their task was to review the reports of the Level One meetings, synthesize and prioritize objectives and strategies, determine methods for measuring progress toward achieving objectives, and recommend approaches for fostering development of the research workforce.

Level Three, which was completed in February 2007, entailed development of a draft plan to reflect the vision of the research community. Comments on the draft were widely solicited from the Institute’s diverse stakeholders and incorporated, as appropriate, into . . . [Full Text of this Article]