Past Projects
-
The COVID-19 pandemic stretched the capacities of health systems in almost every affected country. The ability to conduct case investigations, analyze case and surveillance data, and appropriately communicate epidemiological information emerged as key skills needed by first responders. These competencies are integral to Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETP), whose Frontline and Intermediate programs target district and regional health officers via in-service training. In early 2021, the US CDC funded RTI International and GU to develop and pilot test five exercises and one longer-form case study, leveraging examples from the COVID-19 pandemic, to use in Frontline and Intermediate FETP training. Given the restrictions on in-person training during the pandemic, the team developed both classroom and “virtual” modalities for the materials, which were piloted with FETP RAs and trainees in over ten countries. The team also presented a virtual interactive learning session on how to construct narrative-based exercises for FETP training at the 11th TEPHINET Regional Conference of the Americas. Although the project concluded in 2021, Dr Standley has continued to provide subject matter expertise to CDC and TEPHINET as part of an effort to adapt the exercises and case study to an online e-learning platform.
-
In collaboration with the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Talus Analytics, a website was developed to provide rapid access to training materials, checklists, and other resources for development and strengthening of public health emergency management capacities, with an emphasis on Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs). The website was used to conduct a pilot virtual training with South African first responders, to improve knowledge, understanding and application of incident management and public health emergency management principles. For free access to all the resources, click here.
-
With support from Georgetown’s Global Health Initiative, we collaborated with the West African Health Organization and the Burkinabe National Center for Malaria Research and Training to host a multi-country workshop in February 2020 to develop implementation science areas related to One Health approaches for neglected tropical disease control. Held in Ouagadougou, participants included the national NTD coordinators for Guinea, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso as well as NGO implementing partners and representatives from national and regional health research institutes. The workshop identified a number of promising avenues for building the evidence-base for integrating NTD control interventions within One Health frameworks.
-
This pilot project aims to study the prevalence and characteristics of malaria and Salmonella typhi infection and co-infection in Karachi, Pakistan. Diagnostic challenges for both endemic infections mean that they may be over- or underreported throughout the country. Pakistan’s decentralized health system and resource constraints limit disease control and testing capacity. Without an accurate diagnosis, patients do not receive adequate training. The project had four aims, to 1) examine prevalence of malaria and typhoid, as well as co-infection, in two hospitals in Karachi, Pakistan; 2) identify risk factors for infection of both diseases; 3) assess the feasibility and accuracy of different diagnostic approaches; and 4) develop policy and surveillance recommendations for better prevention, case identification, treatment, and control of malaria and typhoid. Preliminary findings from this project were presented by Georgetown doctoral candidate Zoumana Isaac Traoré at the 71st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in Seattle, WA.
-
This project, funded by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in collaboration with Georgetown Global Health Nigeria (part of the Center for Global Health Practice and Impact), will design and conduct evaluations relating to the technical, governance, and policy elements of global health security, with a particular focus on the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a case study approach, we are collaborating with academic and governmental partners in countries such as Nigeria, Singapore, the United Kingdom and South Africa to gain insights into the governance of regional, national and sub-national public health decision-making. Additionally, we aim to identify opportunities for more targeted and effective preparedness and response efforts against future pandemic threats. Results of a systematic review, focused on empirical methods for assessing COVID-19 response governance, as well as preliminary results from our Nigeria evaluation, were presented by Sumegha Asthana and Sanjana Mukherjee at the Seventh Global Symposium on Health Systems Research in October 2022.
-
In collaboration with RTI, we supported project activities related to risk communications and community engagement (RCCE) as well as implementation of intra-action reviews at the provincial level. The focus was on improving the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out and had three main objectives; to work with RCCE Pillar leads to update the national COVID-19 risk RCCE strategy to reflect current outbreak status, needs, and resources available and include plans for future potential lockdown and post-outbreak recovery phases; to work with partners to implement the updated DRC National RCCE strategy for COVID-19 response; and to establish a plan for developing, integrating, and maintaining RCCE functions for emergency response as a component of the newly forming national public health institute to ensure effective and responsive RCCE in future outbreaks. To read more, click here.