February 2016 Newsletter – Pan-University Network for Global Health

A quarterly newsletter from the Pan University Network for Global Health

Latest PUNGH Activities

Call for Proposals for Capacity Building from PUNGH

Due 1 April
For this round of funding, we are seeking proposals for educational and capacity building activities between network members and institutions. Up to $10,000USD in total has been allocated for these projects; the number of awards will be determined by the budgets of funded projects. It is anticipated that most funded projects will be completed by 1 April 2017. Funds are non-renewable.

Penn State PUNGH, in conjunction with PSU Hershey Medical School, has been hosting an ongoing speaker series entitled Conversations in Global Health. The talks are hosted online between the two campuses and many are available on YouTube for viewing. Speakers present global health research, activities, and campus initiatives. The next talk will be on 3 March by Dr. Alison Gernand, entitled €œPregnancies and Placentas in Bangladesh and Ghana.

The University of Freiburg has recently launched an MSc Global Urban Health Postgraduate Program, beginning in October 2016. For more information, contact Dr. Sonia Diaz-Monsalve (sonia.diaz-monsalve@uniklinik-freiburg.de). This modular course in English is intended for postgraduate students awarding 75 credit points (ECTS). The MSc GUH will be taken as full time study (one academic year). The initial phase will be in Freiburg (9 months) and the subsequent field study (for the MSc thesis) will be done abroad or as desk study in Freiburg. The course includes cross-disciplinary approaches with inputs from several faculties of Freiburg University and external lecturers, organized by the €œCentre for Medicine and Society€ on behalf of the Philosophical Faculty. There will be excursions to Geneva, Basel, Strasburg and other places of interest.

Savitribai Phule Pune University launched a joint center initiative with Penn State University, which opened in September 2015. The launch included a two-day workshop in Pune, with breakout sessions in four thematic areas: global health, infectious disease, social justice, and novel materials. The collaboration is in the process of funding their first round of seed grant proposals.

Interim Director, Rhonda BeLue, Ph.D.

As of 1 January 2016, Dr. Rhonda BeLue has begun her role as the interim director of PUNGH. Dr. BeLue is an Associate Professor of Health Policy and Administration at Penn State. She has an extensive record of research and outreach in health disparities, vulnerable populations, and global health in general. Since the inception of PUNGH, she has been an active member and we welcome her to her new role!

Publications

The network has a forthcoming publication in Globalization and Health on the network structure, logic model, and research priorities. Watch for the online publication sometime in March 2016 as a part of the journals series on Health Partnerships.
Winchester, M; R BeLue; T Oni; U Wittwer-Backofen; D Deobagkar; H Onya; TA Samuels; SA Matthews; C Stone; CO Airhihenbuwa. (forthcoming) The Pan University Network for Global Health: Framework for collaboration and review of global health needs. Globalization and Health.

Global Health Funding Opportunities

Understanding Barriers and Facilitators to Type 1 Diabetes Management in Adults (DP3)

National Institutes of Health
Due 22 June 2016
The goal of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to support research that will identify barriers and facilitators to good diabetes self-management in adults with type 1 diabetes. The results from this research should inform future intervention research in adults with type 1 diabetes.

Global Noncommunicable Diseases and Injury Across the Lifespan: Exploratory Research(R21)

Department of Health and Human Services
Due 22 Feb 2017
This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) supports planning, design and initial pilots for locally relevant and catalytic research on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) or injury in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Research addressing multiple NCDs and their risk factors and research addressing NCDs as comorbidities for/with infectious diseases including HIV/AIDS is encouraged. Scientists in the United States (U.S.) or upper middle income countries (UMICs) are eligible to partner with scientists in LMIC institutions.

International Research Scientist Development Award (IRSDA) (K01)

National Institutes of Health
Due 2 March 2016
The purpose of the International Research Scientist Development Award (IRSDA) is to provide support and protected time (three to five years) to advanced postdoctoral U.S. research scientists and recently-appointed U.S. junior faculty (at least two years beyond conferral of doctoral degree) for an intensive, mentored research career development experience in a low- or middle-income country (LMIC) leading to an independently funded research career focused on global health. FIC invites applications from early-career investigators from any health related discipline who propose career development activities and a research project that is relevant to the health priorities of the LMIC.

Planning Grant for Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D71)

National Institutes of Health
Due 29 July 2016
This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites new planning grant applications for the Global Infectious Disease (GID) Research Training Program from applicants at low- and middle-income research institutions (LMICs). The application should propose plans to develop a collaborative research training program with a U.S. institution that will strengthen the capacity of the applicant institution to conduct infectious disease (excluding HIV/AIDS and select agents) research. Planning grants should describe the planning process and detailed vision for developing a research-training program that focuses on major endemic or life-threatening emerging infectious diseases, neglected tropical diseases, infections that frequently occur as co-infections in HIV infected individuals or infections associated with non-communicable disease conditions in LMICs.

Emerging Global Leader Award (K43)

National Institutes of Health
The purpose of the Fogarty Emerging Global Leader Award is to provide research support and protected time to a research scientist from a low- or middle-income country (LMIC) with a junior faculty position at an LMIC academic or research institution. This intensive, mentored research career development experience is expected to lead to an independently funded research career. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites applications from LMIC scientists from any health related discipline that propose career development activities and a research project that is relevant to the health priorities of their country.

Grand Challenges

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Due 11 May 2016
Grand Challenges Explorations fosters early-stage discovery research to expand the pipeline of ideas for solving our greatest global health and development challenges. Launched in 2008 with an initial $100 million commitment from the foundation, Grand Challenges Explorations have already been awarded to more than 1100 researchers from more than 60 countries.

Translation Research Capacity Building Initiative in Low Income Countries (TREIN) (U24)

National Institutes of Health
Due 15 May 2016
The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to solicit applications that propose to build in-country capacity through the creation of a trans-disciplinary investigative team to guide the conduct of late-stage translation phase 4 research (T4TR) in low income countries (as defined by The World Bank) through skills development programming, needs assessment, and capacity building. Studies will be required to address chronic non-communicable heart, lung, blood and sleep diseases and disorders in low income countries.

Pilot funding for HIV Research

Penn State Methodology Center
Due 1 April 2016
This funding opportunity provides support for initiating new research collaborations that could lead to a program of significant research and competitive proposals to external agencies. Studies may last up to 12 months, and awards will be given for up to $20,000 to fund salary support, travel, research assistants, and/or necessary supplies.

Global Health Meetings and Workshops

Persistent and Emerging Issues in Population Health Science

Penn State University, 19-21 September 2016
Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Abstracts due 30 March 2016.

Fourth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research

Vancouver, 14-18 November 2016
The Symposium invites abstracts for organized sessions and individual presentations, linked to various subthemes, due 20 March 2016.

International Conference of the Dakar Institute of African Studies

Dakar, 1-2 July 2016
They invite scholars, artists, activists, and practitioners to submit proposals (no more than 500 words) that explore and/or challenge any perspective on the symposium€™s major theme. Presentations in French or English from the perspectives of anthropology, education, economics, health sciences, history, law, language and literature, philosophy, religion, sociology, and technology, are particularly welcomed, due 15 April.

Oxford Symposium on Population, Migration, and the Environment

Oxford, 21-22 March 2016
This interdisciplinary conference seeks to bring to the table academics and professionals from the realms of economics, education, environmental studies, urban studies, sociology and demography, law, food and agriculture, political science, and ethics, to present papers and engage in discourse relevant to global environmental issues and its effects on human welfare and progress.

International Population Conference

Cape Town, South Africa was selected as the host for the XXVIII International Population Conference, which will take place the week of 29 October to 4 November 2017. Statistics South Africa will be the primary organization hosting the Conference, with support from many other IUSSP members and their institutions in South Africa. Call for papers will be announced in March; deadline for submissions will be December 15, 2016.

NSF Methods Mall

Due 1 March 2016
National Science Foundation- sponsored opportunities for research methods training.

Other Links and Updates

2iE Center in Burkina Faso is home to a Penn State Centre for Collaborative Engagement in the areas of water and environmental engineering. Those interested in collaborating with faculty on global health related projects can contact Jessica Ouedraogo (Jio2@psu.edu)

Penn State PUNGH recently participated in the AESEDA Symposium for Penn State Engagement in Africa.

Dr. Stephen Matthews has been coordinating the development of a new online Certificate and Masters of Professional Service (MPS) in Applied Demography. The Certificate and the MPS will be launched Fall 2016-Spring 2017 via Penn State’s World Campus. The core courses focus on Principles of Demography; Demographic Techniques, Applied Demography, Data, and GIS and Applications in Applied Demography. In addition they are developing courses in areas such as Applied Demography and Public Policy and Applied Demography and Health; and Spatial Demography. All of these courses will include significant international examples, case studies and data. Indeed, as demography is ‘global’ and we are working through the World Campus we are attempting to develop courses for the world market not just US. He is also in the process of developing materials for a new course in fall 2016 on Spatial Inequalities (Sociology 452) at PSU which will explicitly draw on the PUNGH dual themes of urbanization and health

Follow our Twitter page for regular updates on global health events and opportunities.

Future newsletters will feature ongoing PUNGH projects and researchers. To be included in future newsletters or for any questions, contact network coordinator, Dr. Margaret Winchester.

Partner Universities

PUNGH is made up of faculty from six core institutions. See each university’s website for ongoing local activities.

Call for Capacity Building Seed Grants

PAN UNIVERSITY NETWORK FOR GLOBAL HEALTH (PUNGH)
CALL FOR CAPACITY BUILDING SEED GRANTS
DUE 1 APRIL 2016 (PDF Version)

The Pan University Network for Global Health (PUNGH) announces the availability of pilot funding for network member institutions to conduct educational and capacity building activities.

Founded in 2014, PUNGH consists of six founding member institutions and faculty researchers. For more information, see https://sites.psu.edu/globalhealthnetwork. The network focus includes two priority areas:

  1. Urbanization and Health
  2. Intersection of Infectious Diseases and Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

In late 2014, pilot funding was awarded to research projects within these thematic areas. To expand network impact and activities, this round of funding is to develop educational and research capacity through the network themes. Potential projects include course development, training modules, reciprocal methods exchange, or other activities that utilize member expertise and build local capacity in an assessable way.

Funding Type

For this round of funding, we are seeking proposals for educational and capacity building activities between network members and institutions. Up to $10,000USD in total has been allocated for these projects; the number of awards will be determined by the budgets of funded projects. It is anticipated that most funded projects will be completed by 1 April 2017. Funds are non-renewable.

Projects should relate to the network themes and engage multiple network institutional and individual members. Projects should lead to future projects and should include potential sources for subsequent funding.

The intent of these funds is to encourage new partnerships within the network. Faculty from participating network institutions may apply. If there are existing international partnerships involving two institutions, a minimum of one additional network institution must be proposed. If this proposal is for a new partnership, two institutions from different countries are adequate. Due to funding restrictions for this round of funding, teams must include one Penn State investigator.

Proposals are due 1 April 2016. Email questions and proposals to winchester@psu.edu.

PROPOSAL

All proposals should be a maximum of four (4) pages, not including the timeline and budget. Proposals should be collated into a single pdf file, with the primary applicant’s surname in the file name.

  1. Abstract (no more than 250 words): The abstract should give a layperson’s overview of the project, including the purpose and goals. This abstract will be posted on the network web portal.
  2. Specific Aims and Rationale (1/2-page max.): State the objectives of the proposed plan and an overview and statement of project goals for the proposed project
  3. Background and Significance (1/2-page max.): Describe the importance of the proposed topic or team of collaborators in relation to the priority areas.
  4. Methods or Strategy for Creating Collaboration (2 pages max.): Describe methods and activities that will be used to complete the collaborative effort or capacity building project.
  5. Potential for future network collaborations/projects (1/2 page max.): Describe how the proposed project or collaborative effort will lead to future network collaborations, projects, scholarly output, or engagement activities.
  6. Outcomes of the capacity building project or initiative: How will the project be assessed? Who will benefit from the project? Will the community be involved? What are the potential impacts?
  7. Timeline (1 page max.): Describe the project timeline. Please indicate key deliverables.
  8. Budget and Budget Justification: Please include a detailed budget and a justification for each line item. Funding may not be used for faculty salaries.
  9. A description of each partner and the role each will play in the proposed project. Alternatively, an investigator who has not identified a specific network partner can describe the role such a partner would need to play.
  10. A brief bio-sketch (3 pages maximum) for key personnel should be included.

Review Process and Criteria

Proposals will be reviewed by the Global Health Network, Pilot Funding Steering committee. For institutional members who would like to submit a proposal and have not identified partners, please email network coordinator Margaret Winchester (winchester@psu.edu), in advance of the proposal deadline for assistance in building teams.

Awards

All proposals will receive feedback and, if not funded initially, suggestions will be offered to improve chances of funding in the future. Proposals that leverage the network and have concrete objectives and deliverables will be prioritized. Proposals must focus on initiatives that would not be possible without the involvement of the network. Innovation and potential for sustainable collaborative relationships and future work among partners will also be evaluated. The number of awarded proposals will depend on the quality, alignment with PUNGH’s strategic objectives, and funding. Funded projects must be completed within 12 months. Each application will be reviewed by at least 3 partners, including 1 partner from a university not involved with the application.

Deliverables

Awardees are expected to 1) deliver an update and overview of the funded project at the next network meeting and 2) produce midterm and final reports on outcomes with key deliverables attached (e.g. agenda from meeting, manuscript, grant proposal).

Cape Town Global Health Network, 3rd Meeting, Final Report

PAN UNIVERSITY NETWORK FOR GLOBAL HEALTH (PUNGH)

THIRD MEETING REPORT   (PDF Version)

UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
12-13 OCTOBER 2015

Delegates from five universities and government representatives at the 3rd meeting of the Pan University Network for Global Health

SUMMARY

The two day network meeting hosted by the University of Cape Town included presentations of the first round of pilot funded projects, engagement with local government representatives, and in depth discussion of network activities and structure.

Network members agreed to consolidate future membership to prepare for the possibility of adding other universities in the future and develop a more equitable decision-making process. The six champions of the actively involved institutions (founding partners) will meet quarterly and act as a steering committee for future network activities. The next round of pilot funding will consolidate projects around the network’s two central themes (1. Urbanization and health and 2. Multimorbidities) and include funding to begin an engagement/ education project.

The next network meeting will be held in Pune, India in 2016.

ATTENDEES

University of Cape Town

  • Olufunke Alaba
  • Anna Coussens
  • Mohamed Jeebhay
  • Mamadou Kaba
  • *Tolu Oni (organizer)

Pennsylvania State University

  • Michael Adewumi
  • Collins Airhihenbuwa
  • *Rhonda BeLue
  • Rob Crane
  • Reni Elewonibi
  • Alison Gernand
  • Brian King
  • Caprice Knapp
  • Dana Naughton
  • Margaret Winchester (network coordinator)

University of Freiburg

  • Sonia Diaz-Monsalve
  • PUNGH 3RD MEETING REPORT PAGE 3
  • Richard Gminski
  • Rebekka Mumm
  • Michael Wirsching
  • *Ursula Wittwer-Backofen

University of Limpopo

  • *Hans Onya
  • Linda Skaal

University of the West Indies

  • *Alafia Samuels

Savitribai Phule Pune University

  • *Deepti Deobagkar (unable to attend)

*Indicates Institutional Champion

DAY ONE, MONDAY 12 OCTOBER 2015

Highlights

  • Morning remarks and welcome
  • Special address from Dr. Beth Engelbrecht, Head: Western Cape Department of Health
  • Seed grant presentations
  • Display of posters from Cape Town- Freiburg project on urban health
  • Meeting with government stakeholders

Morning remarks

The meeting was started with welcoming remarks from Porf Tania Douglas, the Deputy Dean of Research for the Faculty of Health Sciences at UCT and Prof Mohamed Jeebhay, Head of the School of Public Health and Family Medicine at UCT.

Dr. Collins Airhihenbuwa informed the network that he will be leaving Penn State, as of 1 January 2016, for a position at Saint Louis University as Dean of the College for Public Health and Social Justice. Dr. Rhonda BeLue, who has been involved in the network since its inception will be replacing Collins as the interim director of the network beginning in January.

Special address from Dr. Beth Engelbrecht, Head: Western Cape Department of Health

Facilitated by the UCT organizers, Dr. Beth Engelbrecht gave a talk about the state of the health Department in the Western Cape. She emphasized their patient-centered approach and two priority areas: 1) the first 1000 days, from conception to age two and 2) management of chronic conditions. They are also actively engaging and training community health workers to integrate care.

Seed grant presentations

The six seed grants funded through the network in December 2014 shared their work to date and plans for the future to showcase current network activities.

  1. Strengthening Health Systems for Chronic Care: Intersection of Communicable and Non-communicable Diseases Services in SA – PSU (BeLue), UL (Onya) and UCT (Oni)
  2. Development of a multidisciplinary network of established and emerging scholars on migration, urbanisation and health in southern Africa. – PSU (Matthews), UCT (Oni & Adams)
  3. Obesity Paradox: Body Mass Index and Mortality in US and Asian Older Adults. – PSU (Gao), SPPU (Deobagkar, Sahni, Tambe, Nagarkar), Hebei Union University and Kailuan Hospital (Wu)
  4. Identifying Urban Transition Priority Areas for Mother and Child Interventions in Cape Town. – PSU (Knapp), UCT (Oni), UF (Wittwer-Backofen), SPPU (Deobagkar)
  5. The Impact of Urbanization on Vitamin D Deficiency and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes.  – PSU (Gernand), SPPU (Deobagkar, Ashma, Jeyakumar), UCT (Coussens and Davids)
  6. Intersection of HIV/AIDS and CNCDs, focusing on Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs): Creating Collaborative Teams – PSU (Francis), UWI (Samuels), UCT (Oni)

Questions and discussion following the seed grant presentations covered the following themes:

  • What are some of the issues with the language of conducting interdisciplinary/ multidisciplinary work?
  • What are the upstream and downstream effects that we are studying?
  • What is the difference between studying “patients” and “populations”?
  • How can we evaluate engagement in research projects?
  • What are some of the structural drivers of the issues being studied?
  • What are some strategies for using difficult-to-obtain data in research?

Government Stakeholder Meeting

In the afternoon, network members engaged in conversation with government representatives about their work, the needs of the Western Cape region, and points of intersection between policy, practice, and research. In particular, the recently released Strategic Plan presents many opportunities for translating research to practice in the region (https://www.westerncape.gov.za/documents/plans/2015 ).

SA stakeholders

Western Cape Department of Health

Beth Engelbrecht; Head of Department

Anthony Hawkridge; Director: Health Impact Assessment Directorate

Western Cape Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning:

Gottlieb Arendse; Chief Director: Environmental Quality

Joy Leaner; Director: Air Quality management

Western Cape Department of Transport and Public Works

Hector Elliott; Chief Director: Road Safety coordination

Western Cape Department of the Premier

Tristan J Görgens; Policy and Strategy Analyst: Policy and Strategy Unit

Western Cape Department of Human Settlements

Tracy Jooste, Director: Policy and Research

Cape Winelands District Municipality

Gabriël de Klerk; Environmental Health Practitioner

DAY TWO, TUESDAY 13 OCTOBER 2015

Highlights:

  • Discussion of network-related and network-sponsored activities
  • Recommendations for a new steering committee and model for membership
  • Development of guidelines for second round of pilot funding

Objectives:

  1. Come together to create cross-national knowledge and innovation transfer between and within global North and South universities.
  2. Conduct capacity building, research and training activities around methodological, conceptual research activities based on network research themes.
  3. Develop a pipeline of early career, postgraduate and student researches trained to conduct interdisciplinary research characterized by cross-national knowledge and innovation transfer.
  4. Generate practice-based evidence and advocacy through stakeholder engagement

Rules of Engagement:

All network activities should be collaborative from inception and through all stages.

Definition of a Network Project:

  1. A project that resulted from network funding or
  2. Projects that were submitted to the Champions for approval, and other partners were invited to collaborate and move the project forward
  3. Network enabled projects are projects such as student theses or other papers/grant work that occurred due to proximity of network members or something that flows out of network projects.
  4. Network enables projects should be document as they were made possible because of the Network. They can become an official network project by following 1) above. Champions will discuss the details of the process at the next call.

Membership:

Membership-resources and Process Recommendations:

  1. All 6 participating Universities will be referred to as foundational members. The language about “core” institutions will be left in the past with the first phase of seed grant funding.
  2. The 6 champions from each of the foundational institutions will serve on an Executive Committee that will advise the Director and Network Coordinator (and other appropriate personnel)
  3. New members will have to apply for consideration. The Executive Committee and leadership will evaluate these applications on behalf of the entire network
  4. Potential new members have to meet criteria that span the research, teaching, and administrative areas (these are spelled out in more detail below)
  5. The Executive Committee and Network leadership is charged with ensuring there is a diversity of membership from geographic regions, type of institution, discipline represented…etc.
  6. The Executive Committee will play in role in setting the agenda for future international meetings.

In terms of the application process, the following were suggested as criteria that could be included:

  • The application should come from a person self-identified as the champion for the considered institution. Successful applications will have a team of interested people from that institution. It is not expected that they will have worked together previously, as the network might serve as a mechanism for new collaborations
  • Successful applications will come from a team with diversity in their disciplinary orientation
  • There should be a letter of support from the institution, ideally from a high-ranking administrator
  • The champion and other members should attend the meetings whenever possible
  • The application should have a statement that there will be an attempt to secure funding from the considered institution at some point. This could be used to fund their travel to the meetings or support future seed grants. A commitment of funding is not required for consideration of membership in the network
  • The application should describe the strengths and weakness of the group as they relate to the two topical areas (urban health and NCD-CD)
  • The application should describe how the group will contribute to research, education, and capacity building, and benefit from participating in the network in these areas. This will show how participation with the network will advance the network’s mission and that of the participating institution.

It was recommended that by the next quarterly meeting the champions would reflect on their home institutions to ensure that the expectations for members, as expressed in the application, are met by the 6 foundational members.

Pilot Funding

The groups discussed that pilot funding should lead to external funding in order to facilitate network sustainability.

Penn State will contribute $50,000. This money will be divided among the two themes to focus on scaling up and combining currently funded projects, plus one additional open call for training and capacity-building proposals.

$20,000 for a project related to urbanization. Investigators from round 1 urbanization projects met to combine their projects into one. Discussions will continue in preparation for the call for pilot 2 proposals.

$20,000 for a project related to multimorbidity. Investigators from round 1 multi-morbidity project met to combine their projects into one. Discussions will continue in preparation for the call for pilot 2 proposals.

$10,000 for a project related to training/education and outreach. An open call with ideas related to this topic will be released in November.

The call for pilot funding will request 1) Scientific objectives/content 2) Potential external funding opportunities 3) Resources that each investigators respective university will contribute to the pilot funding activities

Reni Elewonibi (PSU): melewonibi@gmail.com has volunteered to help search for funding opportunities.

Website

Meg has been working on an interactive website where all members can create research profiles, share data, and update the group with their information. Penn State has agreed to fund the first two years of the site and then the network will need to find a sustaining source.

FUTURE PLANS AND WAY FORWARD

Meetings:

  • Quarterly meetings will be held with the six champions via Skype
  • The next annual meeting will be held in Pune in 2016. UWI has offered to host the 2017 meeting in Barbados
  • Quarterly email updates will be sent out via email newsletter format. Requests for contributions will be requested on a quarterly basis. Conferences, manuscripts or funding opportunities of interest or project updates can be included in the email.
  • Champions will discuss issues of network-sponsored and network-related activities, as well as guidelines for engagement among members
  • Future meetings will consider potentially using a three-day format and continue to engage local stakeholders

Evaluation:

  • The network has to document outputs and outcomes so that we can provide evidence that the financial contributions are with the investment
  • Rhonda will send out a logic model that can guide ongoing evaluation and reporting for input from all network members
  • We will evaluate collaborative processes as a team in an ongoing basis to ensure inclusion among the member universities

Seed grant funding

  • The call for proposals will be sent out by the end of 2015, after discussion among the six institutional champions

Other

  • Members indicated that they are open to changing the name of the network. Ideas are welcome
  • If all universities are on board, we will proceed with signing of the network MOU to facilitate future funding applications

 

Global Health Engagement Network Pan University Network for Global Health Funded Pilot Projects

(PDF Version)

In the 2014/2015 academic year of the pilot funding made available for the global health network, 9 proposals were submitted and 6 projects were funded involving 6 Universities – Penn State University (PSU), University of Freiburg (UF), University of Cape Town (UCT), University of Limpopo (UL), University of Pune (UP) and University of the West Indies (UWI). The award letters were sent December 23, 2014. Following are the 6 funded projects and investigators.

Intersection of HIV/AIDS and CNCDs, focusing on Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs): Creating Collaborative Teams

PSU (Lori Francis), UWI (Samuels) , UCT (Oni)

Africa and the Caribbean have the highest rates of HIV/AIDS in the world, while dealing with a chronic non-communicable disease (CNCD) epidemic. In middle and high-income countries, a dedicated successful system of care for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) was developed in parallel to existing systems of care for CNCDs. HIV/AIDS is now a chronic disease because of effective use of Highly Active Anti-retroviral therapy (HAART). This improvement in prognosis has not been seen for CNCDs that cause the most ill-health and death in middle and upper income countries. This may in part be a result of access to relatively fewer resources than the HIV effort.  This project seeks to explore the strengths and limitations of HIV care compared to care for CVDs in the Caribbean (Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago), Cape Town, South Africa and Pennsylvania USA. During 2015 we will create a collaborative team of investigators from these countries, and from Penn State University, to undertake situational analyses of the systems of care for HIV and CVD.

Development of a multidisciplinary network of established and emerging scholars on migration, urbanisation and health in southern Africa

PSU (Stephen Mattthews), UCT (Oni & Adams )

The Southern African Development Community (SADC)  region is associated with rapid urban growth; migration and mobility are key dynamics at play yet responses to urban spaces are limited. The population of the SADC is expected to double from 250m to approx 500m by 2040; just 25 years.2 Given the historical and contemporary importance of population growth and urban redistribution within the SADC; and the high communicable – and increasingly non-‐‐communicable – disease burden in the region; and, the knowledge that healthy migration is good for development3, it is surprising that health responses do not sufficiently engage with and respond to migration, mobility and urbanisation.  A conference will be held to discuss the following questions: What are the current social and political contexts shaping migrant health in the Southern African Development Community (SADC)? • What are the migration trajectories, health histories, and lived experiences of urban migrants  -‐‐ with a focus on comparing long-‐‐term residents with new arrivals -‐‐ within the SADC region? • How should what is known about the lived experiences of migrants (both internal and cross-‐‐border) shape the research agenda with regard to health? • How does current policy and practice contribute to migrant well-‐‐being or marginality in SADC?

Strengthening Health Systems for Chronic Care: Intersection of Communicable and Non-communicable Diseases Services in South Africa

PSU (BeLue),  UL (Onya) and UCT (Oni)

HIV and AIDS is the leading cause of death among adults in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), but the burden of non-communicable chronic diseases (NCD) is high and growing. The current literature indicates that HIV/NCD co-morbidity is increasing in South Africa. Preliminary evidence from South Africa shows that this increase in HIV/NCD co-morbidity occurs at a younger age than usual NCD onset and is increasing most rapidly in urban areas.    This is exacerbated by the multiplication of both demands made by disease-disease interactions such as HIV/NCD, and by the interactions with treatment modalities and service providers. Through a collaboration between The University of Limpopo, The University of Cape Town, Penn State University, and the University of Southampton, we propose to conduct semi-structured interviews guided by the CCM with patients with dual HIV/Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) morbidity in the Limpopo and Western Cape regions, to understand: 1) patient engagement with the healthcare system and to identify points of intervention by which patient outcomes may be improved and 2) identify patient perspectives to inform appropriate health care professionals and policy makers in how to develop services for such multimorbid patients which take into account of competing issues of workload and capacity in SSA.

Obesity Paradox: Body Mass Index and Mortality in US and Asian Older Adults

PSU (Gao), UP (Deobagkar, Sahni, Tambe, Nagarkar) ,  Hebei Union University and Kailuan Hospital: Dr. Shouling Wu

United States, China, and India are the top 3 countries with the highest number of obese residents. While the relationship between obesity and adverse health outcomes is well documented in young and middle-aged adults, a body of literature suggested the obesity paradox phenomenon in older adults. Results from these studies indicated a lower risk of mortality in overweight or even mildly obese individuals when compared to ‘desirable’ weight participants. This underlines the importance to further investigate the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and mortality for policy changing in regards to potential modification of the current BMI guideline for the older adults. We will also examine whether the BMI-mortality relationships are different between people with versus without infectious diseases.

The Impact of Urbanization on Vitamin D Deficiency and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes

PSU (Alison Gernand), UP (Deobagkar, Sahni, Tambe, Nagarkar)

Abstract: Vitamin D has long been known for its role in bone health and more recently has been associated with a wide range of health issues including adverse pregnancy outcomes. Skin produces vitamin D from exposure to solar ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, and vitamin D is also found in foods. Poor vitamin D status is surprisingly common around the world, even in tropical countries where people should be exposed to UVB all year around. Moreover, research has shown that people living in urban settings have lower vitamin D concentrations than their counterparts in rural areas. The purpose of the current proposal is to form a collaborative research team from Penn State University, Pune University, and the University of Cape Town to examine how to study this complex issue in urban pregnancies, combining expertise across disciplines such as sociology, anthropology, geography, nutrition, and epidemiology.

Identifying Urban Transition Priority Areas for Mother and Child Interventions in Cape Town

PSU (Caprice Knapp), UCT (Tolullah Oni) , UF (Ursula Wittwer-Backofen) , UP(Deepti Deobagkar)

Abstract. Equitable access to quality, integrated health services for mothers and children is part of the 2015 Millennium Development Goals (WHO 2014). While some progress has been made, it has not been fast enough. The myriad of points along the mother-child continuum where society could intervene makes improvement complex. Our proposal uses a sequential, mixed methods approach to explore how best to intervene in Cape Town.

Source of Funding

The total pilot funds awarded was $50,000. This fund was made available through the generous support of:

  • The University Office of Global Programs
  • The College of Health and Human Development
  • The Office of the Vice President for Research

Each of the non-PSU institutional partners on a given project has been requested to provide some matching funds to supplement the PSU amount that was approved for each pilot. The total funds, including the match, will be included in the final report presented by each grant recipient at the conclusion of their project.

Global Health Engagement Network Pilot Funding

Important Dates

Release Date: October 31st 2014

Letter of Intent Due Date: Nov 21st 2014

Letter of Intent Feedback from Review Committee: Dec 1st 2014

Brief Proposal Due: December 15th 2015

Anticipated award date: January 15th 2015

(PDF Version of this Document)

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Scope

The Global Health Engagement Network announces the availability of pilot funding for network member institutions. As an outcome of the Inaugural Global
Health Workshop held at Penn State University, May 14-16, 2014, two priority areas for network research and collaboration were identified.

  1. Urbanization and Health
  2. Intersection of Infectious Diseases and Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

Pilot projects focused on either area will be considered based on the guidelines below. Other areas will be considered but should first be discussed with a
member of the review committee.

Funding Types

There are two types of awards for the 2014-2015 cycle. Up to $50,000 USD may be awarded for projects and collaborative initiatives
described below. It is anticipated that most funded projects will be completed by 12/31/2015.

I. Creating Collaborative Teams: Awards up to $10,000

Funding can be sought to create research teams among network partners around a specific aspect of the two priority areas. Funding may be put toward a small
conference or meeting to discuss innovative approaches to addressing one of the priority areas. Deliverables must include a concrete plan for future
research.

II. Pilot Research Projects: Up to $20,000

Both qualitative and quantitative research approaches to exploring the priority areas above are encouraged. Pilot projects should lead to future projects
and should include potential sources for subsequent funding.

Eligibility

The intent of these funds is to encourage new partnerships within the network. Faculty from participating network institutions may apply.
If there are existing international partnerships involving two institutions, a minimum of one additional network institution must be proposed. If this
proposal is for a new partnership, two institutions from different countries are adequate. Due to funding restrictions for this first round of funding, teams must include one Penn State investigator.

Application Process

The application will involve two steps: (1) A letter of intent; and (2) The proposal. During the review of these documents, the review committee will
attempt to be flexible and work with investigators to maximize an application’s possibility of success.

Letter of Intent:

A two (2) page letter of intent should include:

  1. An overview and statement of project goals for the proposed pilot project
  2. Background and significance
  3. Relevance to the network priorities
  4. Rationale for project as a network project (as opposed to a project that could be done independently of the network).
  5. A description of each partner and the role each will play in the proposed project. Alternatively, an investigator who has not identified a specific
    network partner can describe the role such a partner would need to play.
  6. Estimated budget categories and amounts: personnel, recruitment costs, travel (not included in the 2-pages)

Proposal

All proposals should be a maximum of four (4) pages, not including the timeline and budget.

  1. Abstract (no more than 250 words): The abstract should give a layperson’s overview of the project, including the purpose and goals. This abstract will
    be posted on the network web portal.
  2. Specific Aims (1/2-page max.): State the objectives of the proposed plan.
  3. Background and Significance (1/2-page max.): Describe the importance of the proposed topic or team of collaborators in relation to the priority areas.
  4. Methods or Strategy for Creating Collaboration (2 pages max.): Describe methods and activities that will be used to complete the collaborative effort or
    research project.
  5. Potential for future network collaborations/projects (1/2 page max.): Describe how the proposed project or collaborative effort will lead to future
    network collaborations, projects, scholarly output, or engagement activities.
  6. Community collaboration and dissemination plan (This only applies to those conducting Pilot Research Projects; 1/2 page max): Explain how the research
    team will disseminate results and how the team will engage local stakeholders to ensure that the study has practical implications and potential for
    sustainability.
  7. Timeline (1 page max.): Describe the project timeline. Please indicate key deliverables.
  8. Budget and Budget Justification: Please include a detailed budget and a justification for each line item. Funding may not be used for faculty salaries.
  9. A brief bio-sketch (3 pages maximum) for key personnel should be included.

Review Process and Criteria

Letters of intent (LOI) and proposals will be reviewed by the Global Health Network, Pilot Funding Steering committee. The steering committee will review
each LOI and provide feedback before submission of the proposal. For institutional members who would like to submit a proposal and have not identified
partners, please indicate this in the LOI. The review committee will assist in connecting with other network members who fit the proposal criteria.
Applicants may also inquire about potential partners before submitting the LOI. Contact information for members of the review committee is listed below.

Awards

All proposals will receive feedback and, if not funded initially, suggestions will be offered to improve chances of funding in the future.

Proposals that leverage the network and have concrete objectives and deliverables will be prioritized. Proposals must focus on initiatives that would not
be possible without the involvement of the network. Innovation and potential for sustainable collaborative relationships and future work among partners
will also be evaluated.

The number of awarded proposals will depend on the quality, alignment with the GHN’s strategic objectives, and funding. Funded projects must be completed
within 12 months and can only begin once ethical approval has been granted.

Each application will be reviewed by at least 3 partners, including 1 partner from a university not involved with the application.

Deliverables

Awardees are expected to 1) deliver an update and overview of the funded project at the next network meeting and 2) produce a report on outcomes with key
deliverables attached (e.g. agenda from meeting, manuscript, grant proposal). The format for the report will be sent with funding notices.

Future Funding

This is the first round of funding. Funding information for 2015-2016 will be announced in August of 2015.

Review Committee Contact Information

Ed Smith (Chair), Director of the PSU Bennett-Pierce Prevention Research Center: eas8@psu.edu

Rhonda BeLue, PSU Department of Health Policy and Administration: rzb10@psu.edu

Deepti Deobagkar, Pune Director Bioinformatics Centre: deepti@bioinfo.net.in

Benjamin Fredrick, PSU Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine: nfredrick@hmc.psu.edu

Xiang Gao, PSU Department of Nutrition: xxg14@psu.edu

Brian King, PSU Department of Geography: bhk2@psu.edu

Tolullah Oni, UCT School of Public Health: tolullah.oni@uct.ac.za

Stephen Matthews, Director, Graduate Program in Demography, Department of Sociology and Anthropology: sxm27@psu.edu

Ursula WittwerBackofen, Freiburg Biological Anthropology: ursula.wittwer-backofen@uniklinik-freiburg.de