May 2023  |  ICHAD & SMART Africa Monthly Monitor

Greetings from the ICHAD and SMART Africa Teams!

We wrap up the spring semester with graduation celebrations, a full roster of research activities in the field, travel to a conference in Tanzania, and preparing for an exciting summer ahead. We congratulate the three ICHAD student research associates that have graduated and look forward to seeing what they accomplish in their new pursuits. As we prepare to welcome new cohorts of research trainees, we want to recognize what an amazing year it has been for our first cohort of ACHIEVE trainees. We are so proud of the progress each trainee has made in their research work, methodological skills, and career development. We know they will have an impact on the populations they serve and we look forward to staying in touch for ongoing collaboration.

Looking ahead, we are planning the 2023 Forum on Child and Adolescent Global Health Research and Capacity Building: Ten Years of Creating Realistic Hope (Suubi) and Real Impact through Research and Capacity Building. For the second year in a row, the ICHAD team will gather in Uganda with trainees, faculty, stakeholders, and guests to learn together and advance our work supporting children and adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa. We look forward to seeing many of our partners there!

The newsletter will be taking a break in June and will be back in July. We wish you a wonderful start to the summer!
 

In partnership,

The ICHAD and SMART Africa Teams

ICHAD Celebrates Eleven Team Members Entering Graduate Programs

Photo credit: Brown School Communications

ICHAD has a strong track record of investing in the next generation of scholars. This year, ICHAD is celebrating a record number of eleven field staff and research assistants that have been admitted to Masters and Ph.D. programs. Each individual has made valuable contributions to the Center’s work to support vulnerable children and families in Sub-Saharan Africa.
 

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From Left: Melissa Reimer-McAtee, ACHIEVE Fellow; Nhial Tutlam, ACHIEVE Fellow; Noeline Nakasujja, ACHIEVE and CHILD-GRF Principal Investigator; Chelsea Hand-Sheridan, ICHAD Training Programs Manager; Anita Arinda, CHILD-GRF Alumna; Joyce Nankumbi, ACHIEVE Fellow; and Richard Mpango, CHILD-GRF Fellow

ICHAD Research Trainees Gather for a Regional Conference in Tanzania

Trainees, staff, and leadership from two of ICHAD’s D43 training programs, ACHIEVE and CHILD-GRF, were warmly welcomed to Tanzania and the first East Africa regional symposium for Fogarty Fellows at Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS), as part of the Fogarty International Center's LAUNCH global health research training program. Trainees and alumni from all seven LAUNCH consortia were present during the two-day symposium, and represented seven countries in eastern Africa. This event provided space for trainees to showcase their research, gain expertise from a variety of experts, and most importantly, make connections to fellows in similar or aligned fields to grow their networks.

The two days at MUHAS’s main campus were packed with opening speeches and keynote sessions, but the majority of the time was spent hearing from the 36+ trainees on their current and ongoing research projects in Eastern Africa. The scientific presentation topics covered a wide range of health topics and provided stimulating discussions which led to lively question and answer sessions with all presenters. 

Expert scientists, mentors, and principal investigators from around Eastern Africa and the US also provided critical professional development and capacity building keynote sessions to support and ignite the trainee’s professional growth. Keynote topics included “Manuscript Development- how to get published,” “Grant Writing - How to Get Funded,” “How to Write an NIH Biosketch,” “Challenges and Successes of An Early-Career Investigator,” and “Transitioning from a Fellowship to a K43 Grant.” Experts from MUHAS and mentors from across the LAUNCH consortia provided trainees and participants critical, detailed knowledge on how to move to the next stages of their professional career, and the trainees found these sessions invaluable. 

Despite the full schedule of training sessions and workshops, the trainees and participants also found time to make key connections with colleagues across fields and geographic areas. "This regional gathering of research training fellows is something that has been severely missed with the virtual-only connections over the past few years. It was a very special opportunity to participate in this event, and further our connections within the Fogarty Fellows network and local experts leading important scientific research in the region,” said Dr. Nhial Tutlam, ACHIEVE trainee.

ICHAD Welcomes New Research Trainees!

ICHAD is thrilled to welcome our newest and returning cohorts of emerging and early career investigators in mental and global health research in our four NIH-funded research training programs: CHILD- Global Research Fellowship, LEAD Global Training Program, Researcher Resilience Training, and ACHIEVE! Our trainees and fellows include doctoral students, postdocs, early career researchers, and medical residents focused on global health and mental health topics in low-resource settings. They will strengthen their research and analytical skills through a curriculum of advanced research methodologies and topics, hands-on mentored research experience, as well as opportunities to enhance their professional networks and mentors. The research interests and proposed projects of our trainees seek to address local and global health disparities in under-resourced communities. With projects focusing on adolescent and child mental health, HIV, non-communicable diseases, mental and behavioral health and maternal health, we can look forward to their prolific careers in research to address some of the world’s most pressing health challenges.
 
The intensive summer training session will begin June 1st for our newest research fellows from across the US, Uganda, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and South Africa. The summer curriculum will include virtual and in-person workshops, meetings, and mentorship. We look forward to meeting many of the trainees in person at the ICHAD 2023 Forum on Child and Adolescent Global Health Research and Capacity Building in Kampala and Masaka. Mentors and principal investigators who have been working virtually with our trainees will have the opportunity to connect while in Uganda. In addition, LEAD trainees will spend the month of July at a research site in Sub-Saharan Africa. We are thrilled to have these newest rising researchers join the ICHAD family! Please join us in welcoming our newest cohorts.

Recent Publications

Nabunya, P., Sensoy Bahar, O., Neilands, T. B., Nakasujja, N., Namatovu, P., Namuwonge, F., Mwebembezi, A., & Ssewamala, F. M. (2023). Bridges-Round 2: A study protocol to examine the longitudinal HIV risk prevention and care continuum outcomes among orphaned youth transitioning to young adulthood. PloS one, 18(5), e0284572. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0284572 

Nabayinda, J., Namirembe, R., Kizito, S., Nsubuga, E., Nabunya, P., Sensoy Bahar, O., Magorokosho, N., Kiyingi, J., Nattabi, J., Tozan, Y., Jennings Mayo-Wilson, L., Mwebembezi, A., Witte, S. S., & Ssewamala, F. M. (2023). Correlates of Intimate Partner Violence Among Young Women Engaged in Sex Work in Southern Uganda. Journal of interpersonal violence, 8862605231175908. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605231175908 

Nabunya, P., Byansi, W., Sensoy Bahar, O., Namuwonge, F., Atwebembere, R. (in press). Emotional and Behavior Difficulties and the Mental Health of Caregivers of Adolescents Living with HIV. Journal of child and family studies. 

Congratulations to ICHAD Graduates!

This year, ICHAD is proud to have three graduating staff from the Brown School who have worked tirelessly for this accomplishment. Vicent Ssentumbwe, Graduate Research Assistant at ICHAD, is completing his Master of Public Health; Daji Dvalishvili, Research Associate at ICHAD, is completing her doctoral degree in Social Work; and Solomon Achulo, Graduate Research Assistant, is completing his Master of Social Work. Join us in congratulating ICHAD’s class of 2023! We wish them the best!