The NIMH is seeking general clinical coordination, data management and statistical services for multisite clinical research trials. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) uses contracts to conduct numerous multisite clinical trials. Sometimes awards are made directly to clinical sites to carry out the research and a Contractor is needed to provide clinical coordination and data management support for those trials. Other times, an award is made to a Data and Clinical Coordinating Center which in turn subcontracts with clinical sites to carry out the research. In those cases, a wider range of services is needed. For example, NIMH's Child & Adolescent Treatment & Preventive Interventions Research Branch sponsors and directly funds small clinical trials under the Research Units in Pediatric Psychopharmacology (RUPP). Trials conducted under this network generally have from 100 to 140 subjects, take about three years to complete, and involve one to six sites. Another example is the follow-up study of the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (MTA). The MTA was a randomized clinical trial that compared the relative effectiveness of different treatments in a sample of 579 children with ADHD, aged 7-9 years. Seven clinical sites participated in the study that was conducted under an NIMH-sponsored cooperative agreement. Now, the long-term effects of these treatments will be assessed prospectively, using contracts awarded directly to the sites.
