The Therapeutic Touch Network of Ontario Research Fund:
Policy and Procedures

Introduction: The Therapeutic Touch Network of Ontario (TTNO) believes it is essential for the growth of knowledge to conduct both qualitative and quantitative research on the outcomes of Therapeutic Touch™ on humans with various illnesses and conditions. To encourage an interest in and knowledge of Therapeutic Touch research, the TTNO published the Annotated Bibliography Published Therapeutic Touch™ Research 1975 to July, 2004. The proceeds from its sale are allocated to establishing and maintaining funding for research. The Treasurer will invest any excess portion of the Fund with a financial institution sanctioned by the Board of Directors. Interest earned on this investment will be added to the Research Fund. Should funds from the sale of the Annotated Bibliography be insufficient to meet research funding needs, the Board of Directors will examine the general budget to determine if additional funds could be made available for research.

Purpose:

1. To support and maintain an interest in and commitment to the growth of knowledge of the outcomes of Therapeutic Touch on humans with various conditions and illnesses.
2. To complete the research process by making this knowledge widely available, successful applicants will be encouraged to publish their research findings in refereed journals.
3. To financially assist TTNO members who are interested in conducting either qualitative or quantitative research on the outcomes of Therapeutic Touch on humans with various conditions and illnesses.

Eligibility for Research Funding:

To be eligible for TTNO research funding, applicants are to have been Recognized Practitioners (RP) for a minimum of two consecutive years prior to the application. If several members wish to form a research team, all need to meet the eligibility criteria i.e. have been Recognized Practitioners for a minimum of two years prior to submitting a funding application. If the RPs decide to include a clinician and/or academic e.g. faculty member in a nursing school on the research team, those team members need not be RPs.

Application Procedure:

Write a Letter of Intent (see Research Guidelines for details) and send it to the TTNO Board at the following address: The TTNO, attn. Coordinator, 156 Station U, Etobicoke, ON M8Z 5P1. While no funding is available for equipment or consultant fees, the Board is open to other funding requests, which will enable you to conduct your research.

Application Deadline:

To be eligible for funding, the Letter of Intent must be received by January 31 in the year for which the applicants wish to receive funding.

Procedures for Receiving Applications and Making Funding Decisions:

1. The deadline for applications is January 31 of each year. At any time during the year, you may contact the TTNO Chair of Research to clarify your research plans and/ or the application procedure. Letters of Intent may be sent at any time. However, they will not be formally considered until after the January 31st deadline.
2. The applicant or applicants will be notified of the receipt of the Letter of Intent by email or, if no email is available, by phone.
3. After the January application deadline, all applications will be reviewed by the full TTNO Board, which is elected annually at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). If, after reviewing the applications, the Board has additional questions about any of the research proposals, the applicants will be contacted and asked to respond to the Board’s questions within two weeks after receiving the request.
4. When the TTNO Board has made its decisions, it will send letters to all applicants informing them of the Board’s decisions including reasons for those decisions. When an application is successful, a cheque will be sent to the person designated as the Principle Investigator (PI).
5. Successful applicants will be asked to submit progress reports on January 31 of the following year. The report will include a short description of the research project and how the funds have been spent. If, at that time, the study has been completed the report will include the journal to which the research article has been submitted. If the research is ongoing, the Board requests yearly reports until the research has been completed.
6. At the Annual General Meeting (AGM), held during the yearly Vision and Reality Conference, the Research Chair will report on research being conducted with TTNO funding.

Evaluation of the Program:

Prior to the Annual General Meeting, the Board will review the Research Policy and The Application Guidelines. During the review, the Board will address the following questions and evaluate the answers:

1. What and how many research grants were allocated since the last report at the AGM?
2. After reviewing members’ reactions as indicated in comments, phone calls, letters, faxes, e-mails, what modifications might be made to create a more effective Research Policy and Procedures? What modifications might be made in the Research Guidelines to make them more useful?
3. What are the perceived benefits of TTNO supported research in the total body of research on the outcomes of Therapeutic Touch?
4. In general, is the Research Fund: Policy and Procedures effectively serving the TTNO Membership? Are the Research Guidelines effectively serving the TTNO Membership?

Download the TTNO Research Policy and Procedures  (as written above) and the TTNO Research Guidelines.

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