DEA Extramural Glossary: 'P' Terms

'P' Terms

Paperwork Reduction Act

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 revised and reauthorized the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 and encompasses Federal statistical and information technology programs, including the collection of data, authority over which was accorded to OMB under the Budget and Accounting Procedures Act of 1950. To further the goals of the Paperwork Reduction Act to have Federal agencies become more responsible and publicly accountable for reducing the burden of Federal paperwork on the public, the Senate and House of Representatives revised the act and it is now known as the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 significantly changes many aspects of Information Collection by the Federal government. The act, which went into effect October 1, 1995, requires agencies to plan for the development of new collections of information and the extension of ongoing collections well in advance of sending proposals to OMB. Agencies must:

Seek public comment on proposed collections of information through "60-day notices" in the Federal Register;
Certify to OMB that efforts have been made to reduce the burden of the collection on small businesses, local government and other small entities; and
Have in place a process for independent review of information collection requests.

Quoted from Section B of NIH Policy Manual Chapter 1825.

Parent Announcement: NIH-wide FOA enabling applicants to electronically submit investigator-initiated grant application for a specific activity code, e.g., Research Project Grant (Parent R01).
Learn more about types of funding opportunity announcements.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Partnerships to Advance Cancer Health Equity PACHE: Initiated in 2001, Partnerships to Advance Cancer Health Equity (PACHE), formerly known as the Minority Institution Cancer Center Partnership (MI/CCP), is a program that enables institutions serving underserved health disparity populations and underrepresented students (ISUPS) and NCI-designated Cancer Centers (CCs) to train scientists from diverse backgrounds in cancer research and to effectively deliver cancer advances to underserved communities. PACHE training awards are awarded to institutions, not to individuals.
For additional information, visit the NCI Partnerships to Advance Cancer Health Equity (PACHE) webpage.

Pass-through entity: Pass-through entity means a non-Federal entity that provides a subaward to a subrecipient to carry out part of a Federal program.
Quoted from 45 CFR §75.2.

Patent: A property right granted by the Government of the United States of America to an inventor "to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention throughout the United States or importing the invention into the United States" for a limited time in exchange for public disclosure of the invention when the patent is granted.
Quoted from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Glossary.

Patent License Agreement PLA

Exclusive Patent License Agreement

Exclusive licenses are available, when appropriate, to promote successful commercial development of an invention;
An exclusive patent license agreement with the NIH will be based on the model Exclusive Patent License Agreement adopted by the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) Technology Transfer Policy Board for use by the National Institutes of Health (NIH);
A company that wants a license to develop an NIH invention must complete and submit an "Application For License To Public Health Service Inventions" to the NCI Technology Transfer Center (TTC). It is important for the applicant to completely and comprehensively fill out the license application before submission.

Non-Exclusive Patent Licenses grant to the licensee the nonexclusive right to make, use, and sell the technology for commercial purposes. The license is for the life of the last-to-expire patent rights and allows a company to commercialize a technology on a non-exclusive basis. Some companies find that an exclusive license agreement is not required to successfully develop and market technologies, such as diagnostic and prognostic technologies and imaging agents.

Visit the NCI Technology Transfer Center website for additional information.

Pathways for Students and Recent Graduates: On December 27, 2010, President Obama issued an Executive order External Web Site Policy on recruiting and hiring students and recent graduates into the federal government. The NIH is seeking to recruit highly motivated and talented individuals to fill entry level positions. Whether you are a current student or recent graduate, you can find a career opportunity at NIH.
Quoted from the Jobs@NIH Pathways for Students and Recent Graduates webpage.

Patient Navigation Research Network PNRP: Active Date: 2005-2010
NCI addressed unequal patterns of standard health care access through CRCHD's multisite Patient Navigation Research Program (PNRP). The PNRP focused on developing and testing interventions for follow-up and treatment initiation of four cancers with significant disparity: breast, cervical, prostate, and colorectal.
Although anyone could benefit from patient navigation services, the primary participants for this research program were populations experiencing cancer health disparities. These encompass racial/ethnic minorities, individuals with lower socioeconomic status, and residents of rural areas across the U.S.
PNRP grantees conducted formal qualitative and quantitative program evaluations to measure efficacy and cost-effectiveness of interventions and made recommendations for improving access to health care among health disparity populations.
For addition information, visit the NCI Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities (CRCHD), Disparities Research, Patient Navigation Research Program (PNRP) webpage.

Patient-Oriented Research POR

Patient-oriented research. Research conducted with human subjects (or on material of human origin such as tissues, specimens and cognitive phenomena) for which an investigator (or colleague) directly interacts with human subjects. This area of research includes:

Mechanisms of human disease
Therapeutic interventions
Clinical Trials
Development of new technologies

Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List definition of clinical research.

See: Clinical Research

Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System PROMIS: PROMIS® (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) is a set of person-centered measures that evaluates and monitors physical, mental, and social health in adults and children. It can be used with the general population and with individuals living with chronic conditions.
For additional information, visit the HealthMeasures' PROMIS webpage.

Paul Calabresi Career Development Award for Clinical Oncology K12: For support to a newly trained clinician appointed by an institution for development of independent research skills and experience in a fundamental science within the framework of an interdisciplinary research and development program.
For additional information, visit the NCI Grant Activity Codes/Mechanisms webpage.

Payback: Requirement that the recipient of a NRSA postdoctoral fellowship engage in qualified research or teaching activities for a length of time equal to the period of NRSA support received. Only the first year of training incurs a payback obligation. In general, payback activity must involve at least 20 hours per week and be conducted over 12 consecutive months; special exceptions may be considered on a case-by-case basis. See Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards-Payback for additional information.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Payline: A percentile-based funding cutoff point determined by balancing the projected number of applications coming to an NIH Institute with the amount of funds available. Set after the budget is determined, paylines are not mandatory, are not made for all activity codes, and may be adjusted during the year.
For additional information see post on paylines, percentiles and success rates.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Paylist: Funding Selections
The NCAB approves more grants than the NCI budget can finance. Early in the fiscal year, the NCI formulates funding guidelines for its programs based on expected allocations of funds, program requirements, and prior history. Final funding decisions are made by the director of the NCI and the NCI Scientific Program Leadership (SPL), based primarily on review percentile/impact score ratings of scientific merit, the institute's program objectives, avoidance of duplicate effort, and other considerations. The funding mechanisms are reevaluated prior to each grant review cycle and adjusted to the current level of funds available and future funding.
After review and discussion with the NCI division, program and grants management, it becomes an authorization (paylist). The chief GMO and grants management staff use this paylist as the authority to complete the administrative review, negotiation, and award process.
Quoted from: Step 3: Peer Review and Funding Outcomes on the NCI Apply for a Grant webpage.

Payment Management System PMS: The HHS centralized grants payment system operated by the Division of Payment Management, Program Support Center. Most HHS (and some other Federal government agencies') recipients receive grant payments through this system.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium PBTC: The Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium (PBTC) was formed by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in 1999 to improve the treatment of primary brain tumors in children. The participating academic centers and children's hospitals are responsible for the diagnosis and treatment of the majority of children with primary brain tumors in the United States.
For additional information, visit the Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium website.

Peer Review: The core values of peer review drive the NIH to seek the highest level of ethical standards, and form the foundation for the laws, regulations, and policies that govern the NIH peer review process. The NIH dual peer review system is mandated by statute in accordance with section 492 of the Public Health Service Act and federal regulations governing "Scientific Peer Review of Research Grant Applications and Research and Development Contract Projects". NIH policy is intended to promote a process whereby grant applications submitted to the NIH are evaluated on the basis of a process that strives to be fair, equitable, timely, and free of bias.
The first level of review is carried out by a Scientific Review Group (SRG) composed primarily of non-federal scientists who have expertise in relevant scientific disciplines and current research areas.
The second level of review is performed by Institute and Center (IC) National Advisory Councils or Boards. Councils are composed of both scientific and public representatives chosen for their expertise, interest, or activity in matters related to health and disease.
Only applications that are recommended for approval by both the SRG and the Advisory Council may be recommended for funding. Final funding decisions are made by the IC Directors.
Quoted from the NIH OER Peer Review webpage.

Peer Review Appeal: See: Appeals of Initial Scientific Review

Peer Review Criteria: See: Initial Peer Review Criteria

Peer Review Group: Per 42 CFR §52h.2(k), Peer Review Group means a group of primarily nongovernment experts qualified by training and experience in particular scientific or technical fields, or as authorities knowledgeable in the various disciplines and fields related to the scientific areas under review, to give expert advice on the scientific and technical merit of grant applications or contract proposals, or the concept of contract projects, in accordance with this part.
Per 42 CFR §52h.2(u), Scientific Review Group (SRG) has the same meaning as Peer Review Group.
Per 42 CFR §52h.3, The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. app.) governs the establishment and operation of peer review groups.
See 42 CFR §52h.4 on the composition of a Peer Review Group.
Per 42 CFR §52h.6(b) meetings of peer review groups reviewing grant application or contract proposals are closed to the public.; See Also: Subcommittee

Peer Review Module: See: IMPACII Peer Review Module

Peer Review Oversight Group PROG: The function of the Peer Review Oversight Group (PROG) was to advise and make recommendations to the Deputy Director for Extramural Research, NIH, and the Director, NIH, on the development and implementation of policies pertaining to the monitoring of, coordination of, and evaluation of peer review conducted at the NIH, to ensure that the review processes keep pace with current advances in research and that the peer reviewer expertise is appropriate for the needs of science.

Peer Reviewers: Per 42 CFR §52h.2(k), ... a group of primarily nongovernment experts qualified by training and experience in particular scientific or technical fields, or as authorities knowledgeable in the various disciplines and fields related to the scientific areas under review, to give expert advice on the scientific and technical merit of grant applications or contract proposals, or the concept of contract projects, in accordance with this part.; See: Peer Review Group

Per Diem Allowance

The per diem allowance (also referred to as subsistence allowance) is a daily payment instead of reimbursement for actual expenses for lodging, meals, and related incidental expenses. The per diem allowance is separate from transportation expenses and other miscellaneous expenses. The per diem allowance covers all charges and services, including any service charges where applicable. Lodging taxes in the United States are excluded from the per diem allowance and are reimbursed as a miscellaneous expense. In foreign locations, lodging taxes are part of the per diem allowance and are not a miscellaneous expense. The per diem allowance covers the following:

(a) Lodging. Includes expenses, except lodging taxes in the United States, for overnight sleeping facilities, baths, personal use of the room during daytime, telephone access fee, and service charges for fans, air conditioners, heaters and fires furnished in the room when such charges are not included in the room rate.
(b) Meals. Expenses for breakfast, lunch, dinner and related tips and taxes (specifically excluded are alcoholic beverage and entertainment expenses, and any expenses incurred for other persons).
(c) Incidental expenses. Fees and tips given to porters, baggage carriers, hotel staff, and staff on ships.

Quoted from §300-3.1 of the Federal Travel Regulation

Percentile: Represents the relative position or rank of each impact/priority score (along a 100.0 percentile band) among the scores assigned by a particular study section.
For additional information see post on paylines, percentiles and success rates .
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.
Also, visit the NIH OER Peer Review Webpage's "Understanding the Percentile" section.

Percentile Rank: The percentile rank is based on a ranking of the impact scores assigned by a peer review committee. The percentile rank is normally calculated by ordering the impact score of a particular application against the impact scores of all applications reviewed in the current and the preceding two review rounds. An application that was ranked in the 5th percentile is considered more meritorious than 95% of the applications reviewed by that committee. This kind of ranking permits comparison across committees that may have different scoring behaviors. It is important to note than not all research project grant applications (RPGs) are percentiled. For example, applications submitted in response to a request for applications (RFA) are usually not percentiled. In the absence of a percentile rank, the impact score is used as a direct indicator of the review committee's assessment.
Quoted from the post on paylines, percentiles and success rates.; See: Percentile

Percentile Score: See: Percentile Rank

Performance Report: See: Research Performance Progress Report

Performance-based Acquisition PBA: "Performance-based acquisition (PBA)" means an acquisition structured around the results to be achieved as opposed to the manner by which the work is to be performed.
Quoted from §2.101 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

Performance-based Contracting: All aspects of an acquisition are structured around the purpose of the work to be performed with the contract requirements set forth in clear, specific, and objective terms with measurable outcomes as opposed to either the manner by which the work is to be performed or broad and imprecise statements of work (see FAR 2.101).
Quoted from the NIH Policy Manual 6315-1.

Period of Performance: The time during which the non-Federal entity may incur new obligations to carry out the work authorized under the Federal award. The Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity must include start and end dates of the period of performance in the Federal award.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Permanent Member: An individual who has been appointed to serve on a chartered review committee for a full term of appointment as designated in the committee's charter.
The charter of the NCI Initial Review Group specifies its full term of appointment as 6 years.

Permanent Resident Card: Shows a person's status as a permanent resident with a right to live and work permanently in the U.S. Commonly known as a "Green Card." Also called USCIS Form I-551. Go to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Permission: Permission means the agreement of parent(s) or guardian to the participation of their child or ward in research.
Quoted from 45 CFR §46.402.; See Also: Assent

Person Months: The metric for expressing the effort (amount of time) PD/PI(s), faculty and other senior/key personnel devote to a specific project. The effort is based on the type of appointment of the individual with the organization; e.g., calendar year, academic year, and/or summer term; and the organization's definition of such. For instance, some institutions define the academic year as a 9-month appointment while others define it as a 10-month appointment. See also Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Usage of Person Months.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Personally Identifiable Information PII: Information that can be used to distinguish or trace an individual's identity, either alone or when combined with other personal or identifying information that is linked or linkable to a specific individual. Some information that is considered to be PII is available in public sources such as telephone books, public Web sites, and university listings. This type of information is considered to be Public PII and includes, for example, first and last name, address, work telephone number, email address, home telephone number, and general educational credentials. The definition of PII is not anchored to any single category of information or technology. Rather, it requires a case-by-case assessment of the specific risk that an individual can be identified. Non-PII can become PII whenever additional information is made publicly available, in any medium and from any source, that, when combined with other available information, could be used to identify an individual.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Phase: The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4.
Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.; See: Clinical Trial

Phase 0 Clinical Trial: See: Early Phase 1

Phase IIB Competing Renewal: An application requiring competitive peer review and Institute/Center action to continue beyond the SBIR/STTR Phase II award.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Phase III Clinical Trial as Defined by NIH: See: NIH-Defined Phase III Clinical Trial

Phase Out Support: See: Non-Competing Extension

Phased Innovation Award and the Phased Technology Award R21 & R33, respectively: NCI staff developed these award to foster the translation of emerging technologies from pilot research-to-research development, speeding the adoption of near-term technological opportunities. The R21 award is an initial short-term award that allows the grantee(s) to test and prove the feasibility and validity of a new/innovative technologic approach to a problem in cancer research and the R33 award is a larger, longer-term award that is approved (or disapproved) by Institute staff after assessing how well the R21 grantee(s) or new R33 applicants have achieved specific milestones. Notices about the availability of these awards are published in the NIH Guide.

PHS 2590: Visit the Public Health Service (PHS) Non-Competing Continuation Progress Report PHS 2590 webpage for information.
Important: NIH requires use of the Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) for ALL Type 5 (non-competing continuation) annual progress reports. NIH use of the PHS 2590 is restricted to progress reports for administrative extensions (Type 4s; e.g., SBIR/STTR Fast-Track Phase II application).

PHS 398: Visit the PHS Grant Application PHS398 webpage for information.
These forms are to be used only with paper submissions using the PHS 398. Do not use the PDF samples provided below in an SF424 (R&R) application. These are fillable PDF forms which will cause an error in the electronic submission of an SF424 (R&R) application. See the SF424 (R&R) application page for appropriate formats to be used for electronic submission.

PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals: It is the Policy of the Public Health Service (PHS) to require institutions to establish and maintain proper measures to ensure the appropriate care and use of all animals involved in research, research training, and biological testing activities (hereinafter referred to as "activities") conducted or supported by the PHS.
The OLAW website has available in electronic form the PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals as well as a tutorial for new animal care and use committee members, institutional administrators, investigators, animal care personnel, veterinarians, and others who are interested in learning about the Public Health Service (PHS) Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.

Physician Data Query PDQ: PDQ® (Physician Data Query) is NCI's comprehensive source of cancer information. It contains cancer information summaries on a wide range of cancer topics; drug information summaries on many cancer-related drugs and drug combinations; and dictionaries of general cancer terms, drug terms, and genetics terms. PDQ also contains a directory of professionals who provide genetics services.

Physician Scientist Award PSA: See: Paul Calabresi Career Development Award for Clinical Oncology

Pink Sheet: This term is a common (but historic) term that continues to be used by the applicant community to refer to the summary statement, which is the official NIH record of the peer review of a grant application.

Placebo: An inactive substance or treatment that looks the same as, and is given the same way as, an active drug or treatment being tested. The effects of the active drug or treatment are compared to the effects of the placebo.
Quoted from the NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms.

Placebo-Controlled: Refers to a clinical study in which the control patients receive a placebo.
Quoted from the NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms.

Planning Grants for NCI Cancer Research Centers P20: See: Exploratory Grants

Pluripotent: The state of a single cell that is capable of differentiating into all tissues of an organism, but not alone capable of sustaining full organismal development.
Scientists demonstrate pluripotency by providing evidence of stable developmental potential, even after prolonged culture, to form derivatives of all three embryonic germ layers from the progeny of a single cell and to generate a teratoma after injection into an immunosuppressed mouse.
Quoted from NIH's Stem Cell Information Glossary.

Positron Emission Tomography PET: Positron Emission Tomography Scan is s procedure in which a small amount of radioactive glucose (sugar) is injected into a vein, and a scanner is used to make detailed, computerized pictures of areas inside the body where the glucose is taken up. Because cancer cells often take up more glucose than normal cells, the pictures can be used to find cancer cells in the body. Also called PET scan.
Quoted from the NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms.

Post-Baccalaureate and Post Masters Degree Students MPBM: See: Continuing Umbrella of Research Experiences

Pre-(F31) and Post-Doctoral Fellowship (F32 & F33) Applications: When processing these fellowship applications at least three reference letters must be included. None of these letters can be from the sponsors. The original letters are sent to the appropriate Institutes(s), and the copies are destroyed after the study section meeting. These letters are found in the back of the duplicated copies. The important point is that in these cases reviewers should get a duplicated copy and not an original.

Preapplication: A statement in summary form of the intent of the applicant to request funds. It is used to determine the applicant's eligibility and how well the project can compete with other applications and eliminate proposals for which there is little or no chance for funding.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Predoctoral Fellowship--Minority Students F31: To provide predoctoral minority students with supervised research training in specified health and health-related areas leading toward the research degree (e.g., Ph.D.).; See: Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) for Individual Predoctoral Fellows (F31)

Predoctoral Fellowship--Students with Disabilities F31: To provide predoctoral students with disabilities with supervised research training in specified health and health-related areas leading toward the research degree (e.g., Ph.D.).; See: Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) for Individual Predoctoral Fellows (F31)

Predoctoral Individual National Research Service Award F31 NRSA: To provide predoctoral individuals with supervised research training in specified health and health-related areas leading toward the research degree (e.g., Ph.D.).; See: Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) for Individual Predoctoral Fellows (F31)

President's Budget: The annual budget request submitted to Congress by the U.S. President. The process begins with a budget request from the Institute or Center, which, as part of the entire NIH budget request, is modified by the Office of Management and Budget.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.
Since enactment of the National Cancer Act of 1971, the NCI submits a separate Bypass Budget document directly to the President.; See Also: Bypass Budget

President's Cancer Panel PCP: The mission of the President's Cancer Panel is to monitor the activities of the National Cancer Program and report to the President of the United States on barriers to progress in reducing the burden of cancer.

Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers PECASE: The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, established by President Clinton in 1996, is the highest honor bestowed by the United States Government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. Recipients are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and for their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach.
For additional information, visit the NIH OER PECASE webpage.

Prevalence: Prevalence is defined as the number or percent of people alive on a certain date in a population who previously had a diagnosis of the disease. It includes new (incidence) and pre-existing cases and is a function of both past incidence and survival. Information on prevalence can be used for health planning, resource allocation, and an estimate of cancer survivorship.
Quoted from the NIH Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program webpage.

Prevention Trials: Cancer prevention trials are studies involving healthy people. In most prevention trials, the participants either do not have cancer but are at high risk for developing the disease or have had cancer and are at high risk for developing a new cancer. These studies look at cancer risk and ways to reduce that risk.
For additional information, on Prevention Trials and other types of Clinical Trials, visit the NCI Types of Clinical Trials webpage.

Primary Peer Reviewer

In the first level of review, a Primary Peer Reviewer is a reviewer assigned to an application who:

reviews the application;
writes and submits critiques and preliminary scores for the application;
reads the critiques of the application from other assigned reviewers; and
is prepared to discuss the score driving strengths and weaknesses of the application .

For additional information, visit the NIH OER Attendees Roles and the NIH OER Know Assignment Role webpages.

See Also: Chair ; Discussant ; First Level of Review ; Mail Reviewer or Mail-In Reviewer ; Peer Review Group ; Secondary and Tertiary Peer Reviewer

Principal Investigator PI: See: Program Director/Principal Investigator

Principal Investigator Role PI: See: Program Director/Principal Investigator

Prior Approval: Prior approval means written approval by an authorized HHS official evidencing prior consent before a recipient undertakes certain activities or incurs specific costs.
Quoted from 45 CFR §75.2.
Also see 45 CFR §75.407.

Prior Approval for Grants: Written approval by an authorized HHS official, e.g., a designated IC GMO, evidencing prior consent before a recipient undertakes certain activities or incurs specific costs (see Administrative Requirements-Changes in Project and Budget-Prior Approval Requirements).
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.; See Also: Prior Approval

Priority Score: See: Impact Score; See Also: Scoring, Grants and Cooperative Agreements

Privacy Act: The Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. § 552a, establishes a code of fair information practices that governs the collection, maintenance, use, and dissemination of information about individuals that is maintained in systems of records by federal agencies. A system of records is a group of records under the control of an agency from which information is retrieved by the name of the individual or by some identifier assigned to the individual.
The Privacy Act requires that agencies give the public notice of their systems of records by publication in the Federal Register. Click here to see a list of DOJ systems of records and their Federal Register citations. The Privacy Act prohibits the disclosure of a record about an individual from a system of records absent the written consent of the individual, unless the disclosure is pursuant to one of twelve statutory exceptions. The Act also provides individuals with a means by which to seek access to and amendment of their records, and sets forth various agency record-keeping requirements.
Quoted from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties' Privacy Act of 1974 webpage.
For additional information, visit the NIH Freedom of Information Office webpage.

Privately Owned Vehicle POV: Any vehicle such as an automobile, motorcycle, aircraft, or boat operated by an individual that is not owned or leased by a Government agency, and is not commercially leased or rented by an employee under a Government rental agreement for use in connection with official Government business.
Quoted from §300-3.1 of the Federal Travel Regulation.

Pro-Children Act: Public Law 103-227, Title X, Part C, also known as the Pro-Children Act of 1994 (Act), 20 U.S.C. 7183, imposes restrictions on smoking in facilities where certain federally funded children's services are provided. The Act prohibits smoking within any indoor facility (or portion thereof), whether owned, leased, or contracted for, that is used for the routine or regular provision of: (i) Kindergarten, elementary, or secondary education or library services or (ii) health or day care services that are provided to children under the age of 18. The statutory prohibition also applies to indoor facilities that are constructed, operated, or maintained with Federal funds
Quoted from 48 CFR §352.237.70(a).

Process Evaluation: Implementation evaluations (process evaluations) document whether a program has been implemented as intended—and why or why not? In process evaluations, you might examine whether the activities are taking place, who is conducting the activities, who is reached through the activities, and whether sufficient inputs have been allocated or mobilized. Process evaluation is important to help distinguish the causes of poor program performance—was the program a bad idea, or was it a good idea that could not reach the standard for implementation that you set? In all cases, process evaluations measure whether actual program performance was faithful to the initial plan.
Excerpted from the CDC's Introduction to Program Evaluation for Public Health Programs: A Self-Study Guide.

Procurement: The acquisition of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the government, generally via a contract.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.; See Also: Acquisition

Program: A coherent assembly of plans, project activities, and supporting resources contained within an administrative framework, the purpose of which is to implement an organization's mission or some specific program-related aspect of that mission. For the NIH Grants Policy Statement (NIHGPS), "program" refers to those NIH programs that carry out their missions through the award of grants or cooperative agreements to other organizations.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Advisory Committee PAC: Program Advisory Committees (PACs) provide advice on specific research programs, future research needs and opportunities, and identify and evaluate extramural initiatives.
Quoted from Office of Federal Advisory Committee Policy (OFACP) "Overview of Federal Advisory Committees at the NIH".

Program Advisory Group PAG: A peer review group which reviews and approves or disapproves concepts for R&D contract projects.
Quoted from NIH Policy Manual Chapter 6315-1.

Program Announcement PA: A PA is a formal statement about a new or ongoing extramural activity or program. It may serve as a reminder of continuing interest in a research area, describe modification in an activity or program, and/or invite applications for grant support. Most applications in response to PAs may be submitted to a standing submission date and are reviewed with all other applications received at that time using standard peer review processes. NIH may also make funds available through PARs (PAs with special receipt, referral, and/or review considerations) and PASs (PAs with set-aside funds).
PAs may be used for any support mechanism other than construction awards. Unless otherwise specified in the PA, new applications (and associated renewal and revision applications) submitted in response to PAs are treated as investigator-initiated. PAs also are used to annually solicit applications for the SBIR and STTR programs. Those applications must be received by the dates specified in the PA.
Program Announcements (PA) are published in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts. Go to Program Announcements. Learn more about types of funding opportunity announcements.
Quoted form the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Announcement Inactivation: Deactivates a program announcement (PA) that has achieved its objectives.

Program Announcement with Specific Referral PAR: Program Announcement with special receipt, referral and/or review considerations.
Learn more about types of funding opportunity announcements.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Announcements with Set-Aside Funds PAS: A Program Announcement with Set-Aside Funds (PAS) indicates that funds will be set aside to support research proposed in response to the announcement. The availability of a special fund to support the initiative signals NCI's interest in the research area to the scientific community.
Learn more about types of funding opportunity announcements.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Approval of Competing Application PACA: Documentation in the official grant file of a program director's (or officer's or official's) evaluation of the scientific aspects of a research project, other support to identify possible overlap, and other factors that may affect a grant's funding level.

Program as an Integrated Effort: See: Integration

Program Assistant PA: This person generally works with one or more Program Officers to support the NIH peer review process.; See Also: Staff Assistant

Program Balance: The need to balance an institute's support of research in all its programmatic areas with its high-quality applications eligible for funding.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Classification Code: An internal code unique for each I/C indicating the I/C's scientific interest and used to identify internal programs, branch classifications, the science or disease area, and sometimes program officials.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Coordination and Referral Branch PCRB: The Program Coordination and Referral Branch (PCRB) is a branch within the Office of Referral, Review, and Program Coordination of the NCI Division of Extramural Activities. The staff of this branch coordinate the development and publication of NCI program concepts (e.g., Requests for Applications and Program Announcements) and the receipt, referral, and assignment of all grant applications.

Program Director/Principal Investigator PD/PI: The individual(s) designated by the applicant organization to have the appropriate level of authority and responsibility to direct the project or program to be supported by the award. The applicant organization may designate multiple individuals as program directors/principal investigators (PD/PIs) who share the authority and responsibility for leading and directing the project, intellectually and logistically. When multiple PD/PIs are named, each is responsible and accountable to the applicant organization, or as appropriate, to a collaborating organization for the proper conduct of the project or program including the submission of all required reports. The presence of more than one PD/PI on an application or award diminishes neither the responsibility nor the accountability of any individual PD/PI.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program for the Assessment of Clinical Cancer Tests PACCT: Many decisions relating to cancer patient management depend on information derived from clinical laboratory tests. Significant research and development are involved in producing a test that is reliable enough for routine clinical use. CDP launched the Program for the Assessment of Clinical Cancer Tests (PACCT) in 2000 to develop a process for moving advances in new technologies and new understanding of cancer biology more efficiently and effectively into clinical practice. PACCT is not a grants program. It leverages many NCI-supported activities to accomplish goals identified by the PACCT Strategy Group. The Strategy Group is comprised of experts from government and the private sector. Areas of expertise include clinical oncology, cancer biology, pathology, diagnostics technology, assay development, clinical trials methodology, statistics, regulatory processes, and patient advocacy. Smaller Working Groups are formed to handle specific projects, and workshops are convened to study particular challenges. Membership in the group varies over time, and additional expertise is sought as needed. The group revisits its mission frequently and makes adjustments as appropriate. This flexibility allows the Program to keep abreast of ever-evolving clinical needs and redirect its efforts accordingly.
Quoted from the NCI DCTD CDP Program for the Assessment of Clinical Cancer Tests (PACCT) webpage.

Program Income: Gross income earned by the non-Federal entity that is directly generated by a supported activity or earned as a result of the Federal award during the period of performance except as provided in 45 CFR 75.307(f). (See Period of performance.) Program income includes but is not limited to income from fees for services performed, the use or rental or real or personal property acquired under Federal awards, the sale of commodities or items fabricated under a Federal award, license fees and royalties on patents and copyrights, and principal and interest on loans made with Federal award funds. Interest earned on advances of Federal funds is not program income. Except as otherwise provided in Federal statutes, regulations, or the terms and conditions of the Federal award, program income does not include rebates, credits, discounts, and interest earned on any of them. See also 45 CFR 75.307, 45 CFR 75.407 and 35 USC § §: 200-212 (applies to inventions made under Federal awards). (See Administrative Requirements-Management Systems and Procedures-Program Income).
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Official (PO)/Program Officer/Project Officer PO: The NIH official responsible for the programmatic, scientific, and/or technical aspects of a grant.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Program Project Application P01: See: Research Program Projects

Program Project Grant PPG or P01: See: Research Project Grant

Programmatic Reduction: The dollar amount a grant award is reduced from the amount recommended by the study section (scientific review group). This is done so Institutes can maintain a sufficient number of grants in their portfolio and to combat inflation of grant costs.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Progress Report: Periodic, usually annual, report submitted by the grantee and used by NIH to assess progress and, except for the final progress report of a project period, to determine whether to provide funding for the budget period subsequent to that covered by the report. This report may also be called the non-competing continuation progress report.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.; See Also: Research Performance Progress Report

Progress Review Groups PRGs: Panels consisting of 20 to 30 prominent members of the scientific, medical, and advocacy communities that assess the state of the science for a single type of cancer or a group of closely related cancers and make recommendations for future research.

Project: See: Subproject; See Also: Component ; Component Type ; Multi-Project Grant Application

Project Control: Notifies the applicant organization of the application number and the assigned study section, study section address, and SRO name and phone number.

Project Costs: See: Total Costs

Project Director, Contracts: A qualified individual designated by the contractor's organization to direct the project or program being supported by the contract. This individual has primary responsibility for guiding and/or performing the work as described in the contract work statement.

Project Leader: The person responsible for the scientific direction and conduct of an individual research project within a multi-project application.; See Also: Multi-Project Grant Application ; Subproject ; Component ; Component Type

Project Number: Commonly referred to as the application number or grant number, depending upon its processing status. This unique identification number for the grant is composed of the type code, activity code, Institute code, serial number, support year, and/or suffix code.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.; See Also: Application Identification Numbers

Project Officer: Grants:
The NIH official responsible for the programmatic, scientific, and/or technical aspects of a grant.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.
Contracts:
A program representative responsible for coordinating with acquisition officials on projects for which contract support is contemplated. After award and during contract administration, this representative is referred to as the "Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR)." The COTR is responsible for technical monitoring and evaluation of the contractor's performance after award.
Quoted from the NIH OAMP Acquisition Process Mapping Glossary.; See Also: Contracting Officer's Technical Representative

Project Performance Site: Location(s) of where the work described in the research plan will be conducted.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Project Period: The total time for which Federal support of a project has been programmatically approved as shown in the NoA; however it does not constitute a commitment by the Federal government to fund the entire period. The total project period comprises the initial competitive segment, any subsequent competitive segment(s) resulting from a renewal award(s), and extensions.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Project Report: Periodic, usually annual, report submitted by the grantee and used by NIH to assess progress and, except for the final progress report of a project period, to determine whether to provide funding for the budget period subsequent to that covered by the report. This report may also be called the non-competing continuation progress report.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Prompt Payment Act: The Prompt Payment Act and implementing regulations require that the Government make timely payments to vendors, but that such payments not be made earlier than seven (7) days prior to the due date. For most contracts this due date is 30 days after receipt of a proper payment request or the acceptance of the goods or services, whichever is later. If discount terms are favorable to the Government, processing of the invoice should be expedited so that the discount can be taken.
Late payments on invoices are subject to an automatic interest penalty. There is no interest penalty on late payments for contract financing requests (e.g., interim payments on cost-type contracts).
Quoted from NIH Policy Manual Chapter 6332-9.

Proof of Concept: A feasibility study demonstrating the viability of an idea.; See Also: Feasibility

Proposal: Responses to requests for proposals (negotiation) are offers called "proposals".; See: Offer; See Also: Requests for Proposals

Proposal Deficiency: A material failure of a proposal to meet a Government requirement or a combination of significant weaknesses in a proposal that increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance to an unacceptable level.
Quoted from the NIH Policy Manual 6315-1.

Proposal Evaluation: Proposal evaluation is an assessment of the proposal and the offeror's ability to perform the prospective contract successfully. An agency shall evaluate competitive proposals and then assess their relative qualities solely on the factors and subfactors specified in the solicitation. Evaluations may be conducted using any rating method or combination of methods, including color or adjectival ratings, numerical weights, and ordinal rankings. The relative strengths, deficiencies, significant weaknesses, and risks supporting proposal evaluation shall be documented in the contract file.
Quoted from §15.305 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.; See: Source Selection; See Also: Technical Proposal Evaluation

Proposal Weakness: A flaw in the proposal that increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance. A "significant weakness" in the proposal is a flaw that appreciably increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance.
Quoted from the NIH Policy Manual Chapter 6315-1.

Prostate Cancer Outcomes Study PCOS: The Prostate Cancer Outcomes Study (PCOS) investigated how prostate cancer and its treatments affect the quality of life of men with the disease.

Protected Personally Identifiable Information Protected PII: "Protected PII" means an individual's first name or first initial and last name in combination with any one or more of types of information, including, but not limited to, social security number, passport number, credit card numbers, clearances, bank numbers, biometrics, date and place of birth, mother's maiden name, criminal, medical and financial records, educational transcripts. This does not include PII that is required by law to be disclosed. (See also § 200.79 Personally Identifiable Information (PII) in the OMB Uniform Grants Guidance).
Quoted from Grants.Gov Grant Terminology.

Protection of Human Subjects: "Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, this policy (45 CFR 46 "Protection of Human Subjects") applies to all research involving human subjects conducted, supported or otherwise subject to regulation by any federal department or agency which takes appropriate administrative action to make the policy applicable to such research. This includes research conducted by federal civilian employees or military personnel, except that each department or agency head may adopt such procedural modifications as may be appropriate from an administrative standpoint.
NIH Policy Manual Chapter 3410 "NIH Human Research Protection Program" establishes responsibilities and procedures for protecting the rights and safeguarding the welfare of human subjects who participate in research conducted or supported by the Intramural Research Program (IRP) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
NIH Policy Manual Chapter 7410 "Review and Documentation of Protections for Human Subjects in Extramural Grant Applications and Research and Development Contract Proposals"specifies policies of the NIH Extramural Program for the protection of human subjects involved in (a) grants and cooperative agreements including, but not limited to, National Research Service Award (NRSA) fellowships, training grants, career development awards, and (b) contracts that arise from solicitations for Research and Development (R&D) Contract proposals.

Protest

"Protest" means a written objection by an interested party to any of the following:

(1) A solicitation or other request by an agency for offers for a contract for the procurement of property or services.
(2) The cancellation of the solicitation or other request.
(3) An award or proposed award of the contract.
(4) A termination or cancellation of an award of the contract, if the written objection contains an allegation that the termination or cancellation is based in whole or in part on improprieties concerning the award of the contract.

Quoted from §33.101 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

Protocol: A detailed plan of a scientific or medical experiment, treatment, or procedure. In clinical trials, it states what the study will do, how it will be done, and why it is being done. It explains how many people will be in the study, who is eligible to take part in it, what study drugs or other interventions will be given, what tests will be done and how often, and what information will be collected.
Quoted from the NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms.

Protocol Review and Monitoring System PRMS: A process used at cancer centers for performing in-house review and monitoring of the scientific merit of clinical protocols prior to their activation and use with patients.
The focus of the PRMS is on scientific merit, priorities, and progress of the clinical protocol research of the center. The PRMS should have the authority to open protocols that meet the scientific merit and scientific priorities of the center and to terminate protocols that do not demonstrate scientific progress.
For additional information, see the Current Cancer Center Support Grants (CSSGs) Program Announcement.

Prototype: A model of something to be further developed, which includes designs, protocols, questionnaires, software, and devices.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Public Access Policy: To advance science and improve human health, NIH makes the peer-reviewed articles it funds publicly available on PubMed Central. The NIH Public Access Policy requires scientists to submit final peer-reviewed journal manuscripts that arise from NIH funds to PubMed Central immediately upon acceptance for publication

Public Health Service PHS: The U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) was structured under the Public Health Service Act of 1944 as the primary division of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) which was later renamed the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The PHS comprises all Agency Divisions of Health and Human Services including:
-Administration for Children and Families (ACF);
-Administration on Aging (AoA);
-Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ);
-Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR);
-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC);
-Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS);
-Federal Occupational Health (FOH);
-Food and Drug Administration (FDA);
-Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA);
-Indian health Service (HIS);
-National Institutes of Health (NIH);
-Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA); and
-Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.
The central mission of the PHS is to protect the health of the country's population.
Quoted from the Federal Register.

PubMed: PubMed provides access to citations from biomedical literature. It includes over 17 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals for biomedical articles back to the 1950s, along with links to full text articles and other scientific resources. These citations are indexed with a PMID, a series of numbers
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

PubMed Central PMC: PubMed Central (PMC) is the NIH digital archive of full-text, peer-reviewed journal papers. These papers are indexed with a PMCID, a series of numbers preceded by PMC. PMC content is publicly accessible and integrated with other databases (go to http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/).
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

PubMed Central Reference Number PMCID: The reference number assigned to an article or manuscript archived in PubMed Central. The PMCID is the number that must be cited on applications, proposals or reports as part of compliance with the Public Access Policy.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym LIst.; See Also: Public Access Policy

PubMed ID Number PMID: The unique number assigned to a PubMed citation for an article published in a journal. This number does NOT indicate compliance with the Public Access Policy.
Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.