[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 48 (Monday, March 12, 2018)] [Notices] [Pages 10734-10736] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 2018-04918] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES National Institutes of Health Proposed Collection; 60-Day Comment Request; Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery (National Institute of Nursing Research) AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, HHS. ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirement of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 to provide opportunity for public comment on proposed data collection projects, the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) will publish periodic summaries of propose projects to be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. DATES: Comments regarding this information collection are best assured of having their full effect if received within 60 days of the date of this publication. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To obtain a copy of the data collection plans and instruments, submit comments in writing, or request more information on the proposed project, contact: Diana Finegold, Division of Science Policy and Public Liaison, NINR, NIH, 31 Center Drive, Building 31, Suite B1B55, Bethesda, MD 20892, by phone at (301) 496-0209 or email your request, including your address to: [email protected]. Formal requests for additional plans and instruments must be requested in writing. [[Page 10735]] SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 requires: Written comments and/or suggestions from the public and affected agencies are invited to address one or more of the following points: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the function of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) Ways to minimizes the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Proposed collection title: Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery, 0925-0653, Expiration Date 4/30/2018, EXTENSION, National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR). Need and Use of Information Collection: There are no changes being requested for this submission. The information collection activity will continue to garner qualitative customer and stakeholder feedback in an efficient, timely manner, in accordance with the Administration's commitment to improving service delivery. By qualitative feedback we mean information that provides useful insights on perceptions and opinions, but are not statistical surveys that yield quantitative results that can be generalized to the population of study. This feedback will provide insights into customer or stakeholder perceptions, experiences and expectations, provide an early warning of issues with service, or focus attention on areas where communication, training or changes in operations might improve delivery of products or services. These collections will allow for ongoing, collaborative and actionable communications between the Agency and its customers and stakeholders. It will also allow feedback to contribute directly to the improvement of program management. Improving agency programs requires ongoing assessment of service delivery, by which we mean systematic review of the operation of a program compared to a set of explicit or implicit standards, as a means of contributing to the continuous improvement of the program. The Agency will collect, analyze, and interpret information gathered through this generic clearance to identify strengths and weaknesses of current services and make improvements in service delivery based on feedback. The solicitation of feedback will target areas such as: Timeliness, appropriateness, accuracy of information, courtesy, efficiency of service delivery, and resolution of issues with service delivery. Responses will be assessed to plan and inform efforts to improve or maintain the quality of service offered to the public. If this information is not collected, vital feedback from customers and stakeholders on the Agency's services will be unavailable. NINR will only submit a collection for approval under this generic clearance if it meets the following conditions:The collections are voluntary; The collections are low-burden for respondents (based on considerations of total burden hours, total number of respondents, or burden-hours per respondent) and are low-cost for both the respondents and the Federal Government; The collections are non-controversial and do not raise issues of concern to other Federal agencies; Any collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the near future; Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected only to the extent necessary and is not retained; Information gathered will be used only internally for general service improvement and program management purposes and is not intended for release outside of the agency; Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions; and Information gathered will yield qualitative information; the collections will not be designed or expected to yield statistically reliable results or used as though the results are generalizable to the population of study. Feedback collected under this generic clearance will provide useful information, but it will not yield data that can be generalized to the overall population. This type of generic clearance for qualitative information will not be used for quantitative information collections that are designed to yield reliably actionable results, such as monitoring trends over time or documenting program performance. Such data uses require more rigorous designs that address: the target population to which generalizations will be made, the sampling frame, the sample design (including stratification and clustering), the precision requirements or power calculations that justify the proposed sample size, the expected response rate, methods for assessing potential non-response bias, the protocols for data collection, and any testing procedures that were or will be undertaken prior to fielding the study. Depending on the degree of influence the results are likely to have, such collections may still be eligible for submission for other generic mechanisms that are designed to yield quantitative results. OMB approval is requested for an additional 3 years. There are no costs to respondents other than their time. The total estimated annualized burden hours are 500. Estimated Annualized Burden Hours ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Average Type of Number of Number of burden per Total annual Form name respondents respondents responses per response (in burden hours respondent hours) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A............................. General Public.. 500 1 30/60 250 B............................. Health 300 1 30/60 150 Professionals. C............................. Educators....... 200 1 15/60 50 D............................. Students........ 200 1 15/60 50 --------------------------------------------------------------- Total..................... ................ 1,200 1,200 .............. 500 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [[Page 10736]] Dated: March 5, 2018, Diana F. Finegold, Health Communications Specialist, National Institute of Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health. [FR Doc. 2018-04918 Filed 3-9-18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4140-01-P