The following is guidance on how to submit a project to the OCTN.

We are happy to consider proposals and help develop them through the network. You will retain ownership of the idea.

What if my idea is at an early stage?

We are happy to help with this. Substantial contributions by members of the London OCTN should be reflected in authorship for presentations/publications, as stated by ICMJE criteria

http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html

How do we decide about proposals?

We have committee meetings to discuss new proposals. We will give you feedback about whether we consider the idea to be at an ‘early’ stage. You are welcome to develop it independently or invite member(s) of the London OCTN to join your working group. Our consultant mentors will advise us if there is uncertainty about how best to proceed.

Can you help us with data collection only?

Yes; however your proposal needs to be approved by the committee. If the committee feel the idea is strong but there are design flaws and/or the idea is at an early stage, data collection would not be recommended without further work-up. For well-developed ideas, data collection alone would not give the OCTN member(s) authorship; citable collaborator status and an acknowledgement would be expected instead.

What if people in the team think differently?

1. communication to be open and courteous.
2. a clear plan from the outset about intended outputs and how to credit each individual’s involvement.
3. design and/or methodology to be discussed openly – inviting all trainees involved in design – with the consultant lead(s) for the study.
4. the working group should agree in advance who will make final decisions; this would typically be the study trainee and consultant lead(s).