Request Guidelines

Eligible Support Requests
What types of programs are eligible for funding consideration by the Smith & Nephew Grants Review Committee?
  • Educational Grants for Healthcare Education
  • Educational Grants for Scholarships or Fellowships
  • Educational Grants for Public Education
  • Educational Grants for Medical Equipment/Supplies or Educational Materials
  • Research Grants
  • Donations
  • Smith & Nephew Charitable Donations are focused on education and community programs. Grants and Donations may be provided to a non-profit and/or charitable organization, medical institution, accredited educational program vendor, medical foundation or professional society that is entitled to receive Grants and Donations under local law. Grants and Donations may not be provided to individual Healthcare Professionals (HCPs), Group Practices, Physician Practice management companies, Provider Medical Groups or any commercial publishers, which are not also accredited as CME Providers. Please contact our office by phone or email, if you have any questions about eligibility.
  • Financial and in-kind educational grants are available for defined medical or scientific education programs including accredited and non-accredited Continuing Medical Education/Continuing Education programs (CME/CE) submitted by third-party providers but not limited to:
  • Healthcare provider (HCP) education.
  • Community Education programs including Patient and caregiver/family advocacy programs.
  • Medical or scientific education can also include material developed, printed, presented or distributed to HCPs, patients, or caregivers/families.
  • Product donations grants to support educational activities and treat indigent patients may also be supported.
What types of programs/activities are not eligible for funding consideration by the Grants Review Committee directly through this website?

Funding requests unrelated to the objective of medical education, education, or community programs such as:

  • Advertising, exhibit and display fees.
  • Investigator-Initiated Trials.
To submit advertising, exhibit and display fee requests:

Requests to purchase advertising items only including exhibit booth space and signage are generally not considered grants and should be submitted to the Convention Services Team for review. Please submit all Sports Med, Ortho, and Wound exhibit requests to Michael Everette at [email protected] and all  Reconstruction, Trauma, External Fixation and Extremities to Tommy Thompson at [email protected].

Here are the current procedures for submitting biomechanical and investigator-initiated study requests:


To submit a proposed orthopaedic biomechanical study request (does not involve live human subjects), please contact  Patrick Aldinger at [email protected] for the required submission forms. To submit a proposed sports med biomechanical study request, please Matt Koski at [email protected] for the required submission forms.

For proposed clinical study requests (involving live human subjects), please visit the following website for instructions and copies of our most recent submission documents:  http://www.smith-nephew.com/professional/resources/investigator-initiated-studies/

Your completed submission should be emailed to [email protected].

Any questions should be addressed to the appropriate study request email box.

Therapeutic Focus
In which therapeutic areas of interest will Smith & Nephew accept grant requests?

While Smith & Nephew will consider funding activities and initiatives in a variety of therapeutic areas, priority will be given to those in the following areas:

  • ENT
  • Orthopaedics (including Sports Med, Adult Reconstruction, Trauma & Extremities)
  • Wound Care

For a more detailed list of CME/CE areas of interest, please visit the Smith & Nephew website.

Selected Criteria/Requirements  for Educational Grants
What are some of the criteria used to determine funding for medical education grants?

All medical education program proposals are reviewed to determine if the proposed medical education program is scientifically rigorous, fair and balanced.

  • All accredited programs must fully comply with ACCME or similar accreditation guidelines.
  • Non-accredited programs remain eligible for support if the program is scientifically sound and balanced and if they comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations.
  • Any supportable medical education conference or meeting must be an activity held at an appropriate location where the meeting is primarily dedicated, in both time and effort, to furthering objective scientific and education activities and discourse. The main incentive for bringing attendees together is to further their knowledge on the topic(s) being presented.
  • Program must adhere to the PhRMA guidelines and the Advamed Code of Ethics.
What is an educational grant vs. exhibit space vs. corporate sponsorship?

Educational Grant

  • Supports bona fide educational activities
  • Includes funding and in-kind support
  • Provided to eligible recipient to:
    • Offset conference costs
    • Fund reasonable honoraria, travel, lodging and meals for conference faculty
    • Fund reasonable meals/catering for attendees
  • Submit request via Grants Portal

Exhibit/Booth Space

  • Strictly Promotional Support
  • Including:
    • Booth Fees
    • Advertising
    • Signage
    • Room Key Advertising
    • Cell Phone Charging Station
  • Processed by the Convention Services Team-does not need to be submitted to the Grants Portal

Sponsorship 

  • Promotional Exhibit/Booth Support combined with support for an educational activity in one funding package
  • Including the opportunity to present company sponsored activity such as:
    • Industry Symposia
    • Ask-the-Expert sessions
    • Hands-on skills workshop/lab sessions
    • Sponsoring the costs of an HCP-related event (Dinner/Reception)
  • Must be reviewed under grants process. Submit request via Grants Portal.
What specific types of requests cannot be supported?
  • Medical education grants for undefined programs or programs without a content outline/agenda are strictly prohibited.
  • Direct financial support (e.g., registration fees, travel expenses) for any participant attending a medical education event.
  • Payments to individuals.
  • Educational conferences that include social activities such as golf outings, city tours, or other recreational activities which take precedence over the educational component.
  • Recreational events (e.g. golf outing) or entertainment for meeting attendees.