Frequently Asked Questions
1:1 Advising
STEP 1: DO YOU HAVE A CONTRACT?
We require a contract to begin any work. Your organization may already have one in place! This is our company requirement and is independent of your organization’s processes for creating a Purchase Order (PO), setting us up as a vendor in your system, etc.
STEP 2: ARE YOU SEEKING A CONTRACT?
We only contract for K and R applications with organizations for groups of projects valued at $25,000 or more. Organizations have flexibility to cover multiple projects and multiple grantees. A contract can be for any time period, including a year or more. Contact us to discuss contracts for center grant applications (P) and cooperative agreements (U).
You can use organizational funds such as start-up money only if your organization has a contract with us.
Please inquire about whether we have a current contract with your organization.
It is our policy only to conduct work with a contract in place. This requirement is separate from payment procedures.
Your PO alone is not enough. We require specific terms and conditions, which are necessary safeguards for us.
If your organization does not already have a contract with us we cannot help with this project. New organizational contracts typically take months to negotiate. In addition, Dr. Bouvier tends to book months ahead, so she likely cannot accommodate a deadline next month.
No. Only contracts with an organization are min. $25,000. However, you would need to have a lab chief, department chair, division head, or pre-award support office agree to sponsor such a contract, so that your work can be covered by it.
No problem. You can write a one-year contract for $25,000 and identify grantees and projects later.
It is usually a simple administrative matter to extend the date on a contract.
Continuing Medical Education Credits (CME)
Yes. You must complete an entire course including the evaluation. If you are an MD/DO, your certificate will state that you have been awarded AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ (CME credits). For others, your certificate will indicate that the activity was designated for AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. For many clinicians, these credits can be used toward your state’s licensing requirements.
CME stands for Continuing Medical Education. AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ is a type of CME.
You can read more here.
You can read more here.
The first one is required for CME so that you obtain the correct type of certificate (e.g., MD/DO versus other). The second one is what will be printed on the actual certificate, and you can write whatever you want there (MD, PhD, DO, NP, PA, RN, etc).
AMA PRA credit may only be claimed by, and awarded to, physicians, defined by the AMA as individuals who have completed an allopathic (MD), osteopathic (DO) or an equivalent medical degree from another country.
The Massachusetts Medical Society is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Accredited CME providers must ensure that activities certified for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ meet all AMA requirements, which include core requirements, format-specific requirements, and requirements for designating and awarding AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.
Credit for activities is determined by measuring the interaction within the education. Every 60 minutes equals one (1) AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™; credit is designated in 15 minute or 0.25 credit increments and rounded to the nearest quarter hour.
