We Want Your Ideas!!
On an Advanced Technology Program (ATP)
Proposed Focused Program in Medical Informatics
Learn About the ATP, Offer Your Ideas at:

The ATP is a unique partnership between government and private industry to accelerate the development of high-risk technologies that promise significant commercial payoffs and widespread benefits for the economy. Managed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the ATP encourages a change in how industry approaches R&D, providing a mechanism for industry to extend its technological reach and push out the envelope of what can be attempted.

The globalization of markets and the pace of technology change continue to drive private R&D to narrower, shorter term investments to maximize returns to the company. Most private capital sources are reluctant to invest in anything less than a “sure thing.” In sharing the relatively high development risks of technologies that potentially enable a broad range of new commercial opportunities, possibly across several industries, the ATP fosters projects with a high payoff for the nation as a whole--in addition to strong corporate rates of return. The ATP is designed to stimulate joint research ventures that link small suppliers with users or link several firms and other organizations together to solve a generic problem common to all.

Focused Programs

ATP focused programs provide critical-mass support for high-risk, enabling technologies in technology areas identified by U.S. industry as offering especially important opportunities for economic growth. An ATP focused program identifies a set of technical and business goals that require the parallel development of a suite of interlocking R&D projects. By managing groups of projects that complement and reinforce each other, the ATP reaps the benefits of synergy and, in the long run, can have a stronger impact on U.S. technology and the economy.

Focused programs are selected on the basis of four major criteria:

• potential for U.S. economic benefit;

• good technical ideas;

• strong industry commitment; and

• the opportunity for ATP funds to make a significant difference.

ATP relies on suggestions from industry and academia in selecting focused programs. ATP is encouraging “white papers” in which you outline ideas for a focused program in medical informatics. These white papers are shared with industry broadly, so they must contain no proprietary information. White papers should not focus on ideas for individual R&D projects, although examples of project ideas to illustrate the kinds of technologies to be pursued in the program may be included. White papers must define a broader program in which many companies would want to participate.

Goals of the Sessions

The goals of the sessions at the two major conferences listed above are to:

• answer questions about the ATP and criteria for development of focused programs;

• provide an opportunity to network with awardees from the successful ATP focused program in Information Infrastructure for Healthcare; and

• bring together individuals interested in participating in defining a proposed new focused program in medical informatics.

Additional Information

Bettijoyce Lide, NIST, telephone: (301) 975-2218; fax: (301) 926-9524.

For general ATP information, or to add your name to the ATP mailing list, contact the ATP Office: telephone: (800) ATP-FUND or (800) 287-3863; fax: (301) 926-9524; e-mail: atp@nist.gov

Visit www.atp.nist.gov for more information.

ATP welcomes your ideas on this potential ATP focused program in writing and/or at either of the meetings announced here.

Date created: April 20, 1998
Last updated: April 29, 2003