Scope of Forte's funding within the health area

The scope of what Forte does and does not fund within the health area are complex, and each application must be assessed individually. Forte does not fund clinical studies of pharmaceuticals, surgery or other invasive medical procedures. However, Forte may fund studies of interventions in areas such as psychology, social work or caring science. Analyses of environmental exposures that cannot be clearly linked to health effects or working life are also outside Forte’s area.

Forte does not fund studies where the primary intervention consists of pharmaceuticals, surgical procedures or other invasive medical methods, regardless of study design. Forte also does not fund biomedical research, including studies of molecules, cells or organs, biological mechanisms underlying diseases, or preclinical studies conducted in laboratory settings or using laboratory animals.

However, Forte may fund intervention studies or randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with a different focus, including within fields such as psychology, social work or health care. These typically concern non-invasive psychological or psychosocial interventions, such as counselling or parenting support programmes, caring sciences interventions, organisational-, process- or system-level studies within health and social care, as well as practice-oriented intervention studies that focus on how measures are designed, implemented or used, and where outcomes relate to function, quality of life, participation or behaviour rather than biological measures.

Analyses of environmental exposures that cannot be clearly linked to health effects or working life are also outside Forte’s area.

The distinction is complex

The distinction between what Forte does and does not fund within the health area is complex and cannot always be determined in advance. Decisions about whether a study falls within Forte’s remit are ultimately made in relation to the individual application and the specific call for proposals. It is primarily the object of study and the research question – not the study design, the clinical context or the profession conducting the study – that are decisive. In addition, different calls may have specific scopes and priorities, meaning that what is eligible and may receive funding in one call does not necessarily fall within the scope of another. It is therefore always important to read the call text carefully.