Purpose
Grants for hiring professionals who have completed the FSE (Specialized Health Training) program, to develop a training plan in health sciences and technologies research that they will pursue concurrently with clinical practice in their specialty.
The purpose of this initiative is to:
- To promote research training for healthcare professionals who have completed the mandatory residency period for physicians, pharmacists, chemists, biologists, biochemists, clinical psychologists, hospital radiophysicists, and nursing staff, in order to increase the critical mass of healthcare specialists who are also researchers—considered key to translational research—thereby helping to bridge the gap between biomedical research and clinical practice within the Spanish National Health System (SNS).
- Increase the critical mass of staff with FSE who combine clinical care and research activities to strengthen the capacity to translate knowledge into patient care and to generate research hypotheses based on clinical practice.
- To promote the integration of young researchers into the Spanish System of Science, Technology, and Innovation.
- Promote patient- and population-oriented research, particularly in clinical specialties with a smaller critical mass of researchers within the Spanish National Health System (SNS), through knowledge transfer activities.
Requirements
Requirements for applicants:
Public healthcare entities and institutions providing clinical care: hospitals, primary care centers, and other healthcare facilities not included in the preceding categories that hold a healthcare operating license issued by the competent authority.
Recipient research groups must be led by a researcher who has a civil service, statutory, or employment relationship with a healthcare center directly owned by the National Health System (SNS) and who carries out their work at that center.
All proposals submitted for this type of contract must fall into one of the following categories of research groups:
- Groups led by researchers born in 1981 or later, with a track record of scientific output that suggests they have the potential to become highly competitive groups, must submit proposals for distinctive and innovative research initiatives that do not involve the breakup of preexisting groups.
- The usual groups of this modality, which must comply with the general conditions established in the different sections, without any other specific conditions.
Individuals who are currently serving as group leaders for Río Hortega researchers with active contracts awarded under the AES’s 2025 call for proposals are not eligible to apply as group leaders in this call for proposals.
- Hold an official degree in a medical specialty (MIR), pharmacy (FIR), or an official certificate of specialization in biology (BIR), chemistry (QIR), Biochemistry, Psychology (PIR), Nursing (EIR), or Hospital Radiophysics (RIR). If the degrees were obtained abroad, they must be recognized or accredited by the competent authority.
- Have completed the ESF program that qualifies participants for this initiative in 2021 or at a later date, including those who complete it in 2026, provided that completion occurs prior to the date set for the deadline for filing objections to the provisional award decision. When calculating this period, interruptions due to duly justified reasons (maternity/paternity leave, serious illness or accident, pregnancy, or care for dependent persons), provided they occur between January 1, 2021, and the deadline for submitting applications.
- Not currently participating in a Río Hortega Contract at the time of application, nor having completed one previously.
Application
Applications and all other required documentation must be submitted exclusively through the ISCIII’s online portal.
The application forms will only require the signature of the legal representative of the applicant entity, who will collect the signatures of the rest of the interested persons (candidates and principal investigators), taking responsibility for their custody and veracity.
Applications must be accompanied by the following documentation:
The following are an integral part of the application:
- Proposal report in Spanish or English, using only the standardized template for LEIS 2025.
- Abbreviated Curriculum Vitae (CVA-ISCIII) in Spanish or English, automatically generated by the CVN editor or by any institution certified under the FECYT’s CVN standard that offers the CVA-ISCIII service, for the group leader and the candidate.
In addition, the applications must be accompanied by (documentation that can be corrected):
- Copy of valid passport, only in the case of foreign citizens not residing in Spanish territory.
- An FSE credential that has been accredited or recognized by the competent authority, if obtained abroad.
- Letter of support for the candidate Río Hortega from the head of the department and legal representative of the healthcare organization, using the standard form.
- If any of the grounds for extension apply, provide documentary evidence of such circumstances, which must also be indicated in the application.
- Full text of the selected publications, unless they are open access.
Call for Applications Guidelines
The complete terms and conditions of the call for applications can be viewed by clicking here.