Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis (ASCOT): a pilot randomised controlled trial and process evaluation in Nepal
Lead Research Organisation:
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
Department Name: Clinical Sciences
Abstract
BACKGROUND. Tuberculosis (TB) kills more people than any infection. Poorer people in low income countries (LICs) are disproportionately affected by TB. Once ill, people with TB face severe psychological, social, and economic (socioeconomic) challenges, including mental illness, discrimination, income loss, and catastrophic costs of accessing TB care. These challenges reduce patients' chances of cure, push households deeper into poverty, and impede global TB control efforts. To combat this, the World Health Organization (WHO) advocates socioeconomic support for TB-affected households.
RELATED WORK. In Peru, a middle-income country, members of our team previously showed that socioeconomic support for TB-affected households increases TB cure rates and reduces catastrophic costs. However, no related evidence exists in LICs with significant TB burden, like Nepal. Over the past two years funded by a Wellcome Trust Seed Award, our team worked with communities, people with TB, and the National TB Program (NTP) of Nepal to address this knowledge gap. We identified barriers to accessing TB services in Nepal including low TB knowledge, perceived stigma, isolation, and high travel costs to receive care. We then suggested feasible and locally-appropriate socioeconomic support packages to overcome these barriers, including cash transfers and peer support. We are ready to field-test these packages and select the most promising for large-scale trial evaluation.
OBJECTIVES
1. Field-test socioeconomic support packages for TB-affected households to identify which is most feasible and acceptable in Nepal;
2. Inform design and delivery of a definitive, large-scale trial to evaluate the impact of the selected support package on health, finances, and stigma of TB-affected households in Nepal; and
3. Consolidate partnerships with communities, the Nepal NTP, and WHO, to ensure the future trial is achievable, act as a model for other LICs, and informs TB policy and practice.
SETTING. Four districts of Nepal with high TB and poverty: Chitwan, Mahottari, Morang, and Pyuthan.
DESIGN. A randomised-controlled pilot trial of socioeconomic support packages for TB-affected households.
POPULATION. 100 people with TB diagnosed in NTP clinics in the study sites (25 consecutively diagnosed participants per site).
INTERVENTIONS. Computer software will randomly allocate participants to receive:
i) Control standard of care with no additional socioeconomic support;
ii) Social support through home-based peer-led mutual support groups to reduce stigma;
iii) Economic support with monthly cash transfers to mitigate costs and enable treatment adherence ; or
iv) Socioeconomic support integrating social and economic support.
Interventions will be delivered by Birat Nepal Medical Trust (BNMT), a well-established, Nepalese non-governmental organisation. Interventions will be flexible to refine size or frequency of cash or support groups where needed.
STUDY ACTIVITIES. Participants will be surveyed on TB knowledge, stigma, mental health, quality of life, poverty level, costs of TB, and satisfaction with interventions received. Focus groups and interviews with selected participants, project and BNMT team members, and NTP staff will be combined with project costs data to evaluate the feasibility of the interventions.
PRIMARY OUTCOME. To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the interventions in order to select the most promising intervention for large-scale trial evaluation.
SECONDARY OUTCOMES. To explore the impact of interventions on TB cure and catastrophic costs of TB-affected households.
Benefits and applications. This research will ensure the most fundable, achievable, and impactful design of a definitive, large-scale trial of socioeconomic support for TB-affected households in Nepal, the findings of which will be the first of their kind in a LIC and will inform regional and international TB policy and practice.
RELATED WORK. In Peru, a middle-income country, members of our team previously showed that socioeconomic support for TB-affected households increases TB cure rates and reduces catastrophic costs. However, no related evidence exists in LICs with significant TB burden, like Nepal. Over the past two years funded by a Wellcome Trust Seed Award, our team worked with communities, people with TB, and the National TB Program (NTP) of Nepal to address this knowledge gap. We identified barriers to accessing TB services in Nepal including low TB knowledge, perceived stigma, isolation, and high travel costs to receive care. We then suggested feasible and locally-appropriate socioeconomic support packages to overcome these barriers, including cash transfers and peer support. We are ready to field-test these packages and select the most promising for large-scale trial evaluation.
OBJECTIVES
1. Field-test socioeconomic support packages for TB-affected households to identify which is most feasible and acceptable in Nepal;
2. Inform design and delivery of a definitive, large-scale trial to evaluate the impact of the selected support package on health, finances, and stigma of TB-affected households in Nepal; and
3. Consolidate partnerships with communities, the Nepal NTP, and WHO, to ensure the future trial is achievable, act as a model for other LICs, and informs TB policy and practice.
SETTING. Four districts of Nepal with high TB and poverty: Chitwan, Mahottari, Morang, and Pyuthan.
DESIGN. A randomised-controlled pilot trial of socioeconomic support packages for TB-affected households.
POPULATION. 100 people with TB diagnosed in NTP clinics in the study sites (25 consecutively diagnosed participants per site).
INTERVENTIONS. Computer software will randomly allocate participants to receive:
i) Control standard of care with no additional socioeconomic support;
ii) Social support through home-based peer-led mutual support groups to reduce stigma;
iii) Economic support with monthly cash transfers to mitigate costs and enable treatment adherence ; or
iv) Socioeconomic support integrating social and economic support.
Interventions will be delivered by Birat Nepal Medical Trust (BNMT), a well-established, Nepalese non-governmental organisation. Interventions will be flexible to refine size or frequency of cash or support groups where needed.
STUDY ACTIVITIES. Participants will be surveyed on TB knowledge, stigma, mental health, quality of life, poverty level, costs of TB, and satisfaction with interventions received. Focus groups and interviews with selected participants, project and BNMT team members, and NTP staff will be combined with project costs data to evaluate the feasibility of the interventions.
PRIMARY OUTCOME. To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the interventions in order to select the most promising intervention for large-scale trial evaluation.
SECONDARY OUTCOMES. To explore the impact of interventions on TB cure and catastrophic costs of TB-affected households.
Benefits and applications. This research will ensure the most fundable, achievable, and impactful design of a definitive, large-scale trial of socioeconomic support for TB-affected households in Nepal, the findings of which will be the first of their kind in a LIC and will inform regional and international TB policy and practice.
Technical Summary
BACKGROUND. Poverty drives TB rates and TB worsens poverty due to catastrophic costs of being ill and seeking care. WHO mandates ending catastrophic costs and providing social and economic (socioeconomic) support to people with TB. This has not been evaluated in low-income countries. With key stakeholders in Nepal, we designed locally-appropriate socioeconomic support packages for TB-affected households, which are ready to be tested.
OBJECTIVES
1. Identify the most feasible and acceptable support package
2. Inform definitive trial design
3. Optimise future chances of funding and trial success
METHODS
DESIGN. An adaptive randomised-controlled pilot trial and process evaluation
POPULATION. 100 people with TB registered at National TB Program (NTP) clinics in Chitwan, Mahottari, Morang, and Pyuthan districts of Nepal
INTERVENTIONS. Tablet-based software will randomly allocate participants equally to:
i) Standard of care (e.g. control)
ii) Social Support through home-based peer-led mutual support groups to reduce stigma
iii) Economic Support with monthly cash transfers to mitigate costs and meet NTP goals
iv) Socioeconomic Support integrating economic and social support
Interventions will be adaptive and delivered by the Nepal NGO, BNMT
ACTIVITIES. Poverty and TB costs will be measured by survey. TB treatment outcomes will be extracted from NTP registers. MRC process evaluation techniques will evaluate feasibility and acceptability by qualitative focus groups and interviews with participants and project staff to examine perceptions of the interventions; and quantitative data on intervention uptake, fidelity, and costs.
PRIMARY OUTCOME. Feasibility and acceptability of support packages
EXPLORATORY OUTCOMES. Impact of support on TB cure and catastrophic costs
APPLICATIONS. This work will ensure fundable, achievable, and impactful design of the first definitive trial of socioeconomic support for TB-affected households in Nepal.
OBJECTIVES
1. Identify the most feasible and acceptable support package
2. Inform definitive trial design
3. Optimise future chances of funding and trial success
METHODS
DESIGN. An adaptive randomised-controlled pilot trial and process evaluation
POPULATION. 100 people with TB registered at National TB Program (NTP) clinics in Chitwan, Mahottari, Morang, and Pyuthan districts of Nepal
INTERVENTIONS. Tablet-based software will randomly allocate participants equally to:
i) Standard of care (e.g. control)
ii) Social Support through home-based peer-led mutual support groups to reduce stigma
iii) Economic Support with monthly cash transfers to mitigate costs and meet NTP goals
iv) Socioeconomic Support integrating economic and social support
Interventions will be adaptive and delivered by the Nepal NGO, BNMT
ACTIVITIES. Poverty and TB costs will be measured by survey. TB treatment outcomes will be extracted from NTP registers. MRC process evaluation techniques will evaluate feasibility and acceptability by qualitative focus groups and interviews with participants and project staff to examine perceptions of the interventions; and quantitative data on intervention uptake, fidelity, and costs.
PRIMARY OUTCOME. Feasibility and acceptability of support packages
EXPLORATORY OUTCOMES. Impact of support on TB cure and catastrophic costs
APPLICATIONS. This work will ensure fundable, achievable, and impactful design of the first definitive trial of socioeconomic support for TB-affected households in Nepal.
Planned Impact
This Impact Summary gives an overview of the key pathways to and beneficiaries of impact. For clarity, the Impact Summary is divided by specific Pathways to Impact.
i) RESEARCH METHODS AND FINDINGS.
The adaptive trial design and rigorous process evaluation in this proposal are innovative and a world-first in this particular research field and low-income setting. To maximise impact, we will publish the research protocol on an open-access platform and write perspectives pieces on the process evaluation outcomes with a focus on barriers to implementation. We will also produce a practical manual on implementing socioeconomic interventions in LMICs. The health and other outcomes of the definitive trial and the resultant publications in high-impact journals will be ground-breaking (e.g. the first robust evidence from LICs in this field) and vital for other researchers.
BENEFICIARIES: research groups working in the same field in other LMICs; mixed-methods researchers and triallists; and intervention implementation teams.
ii) POLICY.
We involve national (NTP and Nepal government) and international (WHO) policy- and decision-makers throughout all stages of our research. We have worked with these collaborators to include catastrophic costs mitigation and socioeconomic support in the current National Strategic Plan 2020-2025. We have also forged collaborations with the Nepal Ministry for Health and Population including those working on social protection programs. We will continue to involve these colleagues and provide them with policy briefs detailing our ongoing research and findings. The PI and Co-I (Lonnroth) continue to work with WHO's Task Force for Catastrophic Costs of TB and will contribute to annual meetings and updates of the TB Patient Costs Survey Handbook 2017 (https://www.who.int/tb/publications/patient_cost_surveys/en/). They also co-lead the international Social Protection Action Research and Knowledge Sharing (SPARKS) network. SPARKS includes many policy makers from within and without the TB sphere (e.g. UNAIDS, UNICEF). This is a superb platform by which to influence policy through presentations at annual meetings, SPARKS mailing list, and depositing our papers in the SPARKS open-access depository.
BENEFICIARIES: Nepal NTP and government decision makers; WHO; SPARKS; multi-sectoral policy makers in poverty alleviation and social protection.
iii) RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE AND CAPACITY BUILDING.
A key theme within our four years of collaboration as a team has been to devise and execute a multi-stage collaborative plan to increase research infrastructure and capacity build in Nepal. At BNMT, this has been evidenced by comprehensive additional training for BNMT staff in in research methods and good research practice. Multiple BNMT team members have since published first author papers, won travel scholarships to international conferences, and registered for PhDs. Strengthening capacity at BNMT and collaboration with the NTP will be vital for the future, definitive trial and translation of our research into policy change in Nepal.
BENEFICIARIES: multi-disciplinary team BNMT members and NTP staff.
iv) ADVOCACY AND AWARENESS.
Our involvement of people with TB from study site communities in this work since its inception has driven the community-led design of potential socioeconomic support packages. We hope to formalise this collective of TB-affected people by registering an autonomous TB Civil Society group in Nepal. The PI and Sponsor Prof Squire of LSTM are part of the UK Academics and Professionals Against TB (www.ukaptb.org) UK network, which interacts with advocacy groups like TB Alert and Results UK and lobbies UK government. We continue to make in-roads into supporting other countries to form similar bodies.
BENEFICIARIES: TB Civil Society in Nepal/UK, TB Advocacy groups including UKAPTB and Results UK, and the general public.
i) RESEARCH METHODS AND FINDINGS.
The adaptive trial design and rigorous process evaluation in this proposal are innovative and a world-first in this particular research field and low-income setting. To maximise impact, we will publish the research protocol on an open-access platform and write perspectives pieces on the process evaluation outcomes with a focus on barriers to implementation. We will also produce a practical manual on implementing socioeconomic interventions in LMICs. The health and other outcomes of the definitive trial and the resultant publications in high-impact journals will be ground-breaking (e.g. the first robust evidence from LICs in this field) and vital for other researchers.
BENEFICIARIES: research groups working in the same field in other LMICs; mixed-methods researchers and triallists; and intervention implementation teams.
ii) POLICY.
We involve national (NTP and Nepal government) and international (WHO) policy- and decision-makers throughout all stages of our research. We have worked with these collaborators to include catastrophic costs mitigation and socioeconomic support in the current National Strategic Plan 2020-2025. We have also forged collaborations with the Nepal Ministry for Health and Population including those working on social protection programs. We will continue to involve these colleagues and provide them with policy briefs detailing our ongoing research and findings. The PI and Co-I (Lonnroth) continue to work with WHO's Task Force for Catastrophic Costs of TB and will contribute to annual meetings and updates of the TB Patient Costs Survey Handbook 2017 (https://www.who.int/tb/publications/patient_cost_surveys/en/). They also co-lead the international Social Protection Action Research and Knowledge Sharing (SPARKS) network. SPARKS includes many policy makers from within and without the TB sphere (e.g. UNAIDS, UNICEF). This is a superb platform by which to influence policy through presentations at annual meetings, SPARKS mailing list, and depositing our papers in the SPARKS open-access depository.
BENEFICIARIES: Nepal NTP and government decision makers; WHO; SPARKS; multi-sectoral policy makers in poverty alleviation and social protection.
iii) RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE AND CAPACITY BUILDING.
A key theme within our four years of collaboration as a team has been to devise and execute a multi-stage collaborative plan to increase research infrastructure and capacity build in Nepal. At BNMT, this has been evidenced by comprehensive additional training for BNMT staff in in research methods and good research practice. Multiple BNMT team members have since published first author papers, won travel scholarships to international conferences, and registered for PhDs. Strengthening capacity at BNMT and collaboration with the NTP will be vital for the future, definitive trial and translation of our research into policy change in Nepal.
BENEFICIARIES: multi-disciplinary team BNMT members and NTP staff.
iv) ADVOCACY AND AWARENESS.
Our involvement of people with TB from study site communities in this work since its inception has driven the community-led design of potential socioeconomic support packages. We hope to formalise this collective of TB-affected people by registering an autonomous TB Civil Society group in Nepal. The PI and Sponsor Prof Squire of LSTM are part of the UK Academics and Professionals Against TB (www.ukaptb.org) UK network, which interacts with advocacy groups like TB Alert and Results UK and lobbies UK government. We continue to make in-roads into supporting other countries to form similar bodies.
BENEFICIARIES: TB Civil Society in Nepal/UK, TB Advocacy groups including UKAPTB and Results UK, and the general public.
Organisations
- Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (Lead Research Organisation)
- World Health Organization (WHO) (Collaboration)
- Instituto Nacional de Saúde (Collaboration)
- Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (Collaboration)
- Karolinska Institute (Collaboration)
- York University Toronto (Collaboration)
- University of Tampere (Collaboration)
- Universitas Indonesia (Collaboration)
- University of California, San Francisco (Collaboration)
- LVCT Health (Collaboration)
- Kenyan Institute for Medical Research (KEMRI) (Collaboration)
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) (Collaboration)
- International Labour Organization (ILO) (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF LIVERPOOL (Collaboration)
- Stop TB Partnership (Collaboration)
Publications
Millington K
(2024)
The 2023 UN high-level meeting on tuberculosis: renewing hope, momentum, and commitment to end tuberculosis
in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine
Nuttall C
(2022)
Interventions pathways to reduce tuberculosis-related stigma: a literature review and conceptual framework.
in Infectious diseases of poverty
Pedrazzoli D
(2021)
Biosocial Strategies to Address the Socioeconomic Determinants and Consequences of the TB and COVID-19 Pandemics.
in The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
Rai B
(2022)
Protocol for the Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis in Nepal (ASCOT) pilot trial
in Wellcome Open Research
Rai B
(2022)
Protocol for the Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis in Nepal (ASCOT) pilot trial
in Wellcome Open Research
Rai B
(2022)
Protocol for the Addressing the Social Determinants and Consequences of Tuberculosis in Nepal (ASCOT) pilot trial
in Wellcome Open Research
Guideline Title | Case Definitions for Use in the 2022 Mpox Response |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Case Definitions for Use in the 2022 Mpox Response |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/136368/cdc_136368_DS1.pdf |
Guideline Title | Clinical Considerations for Monkeypox in Children and Adolescents |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Clinical Considerations for Monkeypox in Children and Adolescents |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/122340/cdc_122340_DS1.pdf |
Guideline Title | Clinical considerations for monkeypox in children and adolescents |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Clinical Considerations for Monkeypox in Children and Adolescents (2) |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/122340/cdc_122340_DS1.pdf |
Guideline Title | Clinical considerations for treatment and prophylaxis of monkeypox virus infection in people with HIV |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Clinical considerations for treatment and prophylaxis of monkeypox virus infection in people with HIV |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/120402/cdc_120402_DS1.pdf |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Clinical use of Tecovirimat (Tpoxx) for treatment of monkeypox under an investigational new drug protocol |
Geographic Reach | North America |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical reviews |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/121112/cdc_121112_DS1.pdf |
Guideline Title | Guidance for Tecovirimat use under expanded access investigational new drug protocol during 2022 U.S. monkeypox cases |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Guidance for Tecovirimat use under expanded access investigational new drug protocol during 2022 U.S. monkeypox cases |
Geographic Reach | North America |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/119911/cdc_119911_DS1.pdf |
Guideline Title | Isolation and prevention practices for people with monkeypox |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Isolation and prevention practices for people with monkeypox |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/119797/cdc_119797_DS1.pdf |
Description | Citation of publication in CDC: Science brief : Detection and transmission of mpox (formerly monkeypox) virus during the 2022 clade IIb outbreak |
Geographic Reach | North America |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical reviews |
URL | https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/124367/cdc_124367_DS1.pdf |
Description | Consultant and editor for WHO on their upcoming Social protection for people with TB guidance |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in other policy documents |
Description | Contribution of case study to National surveys of costs faced by tuberculosis patients and their households 2015-2021 https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240065536 |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
Impact | WHO International Report and Guidance Influence on UN High Level Meeting on TB declaration in 2023 that all people with TB should receive social benefits to mitigate financial hardship |
URL | https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240065536 |
Description | Invited participant at Brocher Foundation Workshop on Equality and Tuberculosis organised by SSHIFTB (Social science and health innovations for TB) |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to new or improved professional practice |
Impact | Influence on policymakers from WHO, ILO, and Stop TB. This will feed into upcoming guidance and manuals. Article upcoming. |
URL | https://sshiftb.org/updates/building-social-equity-and-person-centred-innovation-in-the-global-end-t... |
Description | Invited presenter and rapporteur at Brocher Foundation Workshop on Equality and Tuberculosis organised by SSHIFTB (Social science and health innovations for TB) |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to new or improved professional practice |
Impact | See previous entry regarding this workshop |
URL | https://sshiftb.org/updates/building-social-equity-and-person-centred-innovation-in-the-global-end-t... |
Description | Presentation to Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | See entry for WHO presentation |
Description | Presentation to UNITAID |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | See WHO presentation |
Description | Presentation to World Health Organization Global TB Programme |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | Will go on to influence TB Guidance of WHO and handbooks/implementation manuals |
Description | Stop TB and TB REACH consultation to set agenda for funding over coming decade (part of UNOPS) |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
Impact | Funding agenda of TB-REACH Move towards social protection and equality being considered in all funding calls by TB-REACH. This is a big win! |
URL | https://www.stoptb.org/waves-of-funding/wave-11#:~:text=For%20Wave%2011%2C%20there%20is,be%20made%20... |
Guideline Title | Framework for collaborative action on tuberculosis and comorbidities |
Description | Technical Consultant for WHO policy document: Framework for collaborative action on tuberculosis and comorbidities |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in clinical guidelines |
URL | https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240055056 |
Description | Academic Clinical Fellow in TB and Multimorbidity - Dr Greta Wood. I am Greta's primary research supervisor. Funding for 9 months of Greta's salary within this ACF post. |
Amount | £1 (GBP) |
Organisation | National Institute for Health Research |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 07/2022 |
End | 08/2025 |
Description | Addressing TB and Covid-19 in Nepal - awarded to Ms Kritika Dixit under my supervision |
Amount | £5,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2020 |
End | 03/2023 |
Description | An analytical framework for Test, Trace and Isolate in the UK: optimising and targeting deployment alongside other measures. |
Amount | £416,025 (GBP) |
Funding ID | MR/V028618/1 |
Organisation | Medical Research Council (MRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2020 |
End | 08/2021 |
Description | Competitively selected to attend the MRC South East Asia networking event in Bangkok, Thailand, February 20-22nd 2024 - see https://www.ukri.org/events/networking-event-infectious-diseases-relevant-to-southeast-asia/ |
Amount | £2,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Medical Research Council (MRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 02/2024 |
End | 02/2024 |
Description | Dorothy Temple Cross International TB Collaboration Award |
Amount | £30,000 (GBP) |
Funding ID | MRF-131-0006-RG-KHOS-C0942 |
Organisation | Medical Research Council (MRC) |
Department | Medical Research Foundation |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2023 |
End | 10/2024 |
Description | Farrar Institute Research Grant awarded to Project Manager on Wellcome Seed Award and AMS Starter Grant Research in Nepal, Ms Kritika Dixit |
Amount | £5,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Farrar Foundation |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2019 |
End | 09/2021 |
Description | Health Policy and Systems Research |
Amount | £4,100,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | National Institute for Health Research |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2022 |
End | 04/2026 |
Description | Leaving no one behind: gender pathways to end HIV and TB "LIGHT" consortium |
Amount | £8,100,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | UK Department for International Development |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2020 |
End | 06/2026 |
Description | London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine TB MAC Consortium |
Amount | £1,500 (GBP) |
Organisation | London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2019 |
End | 09/2019 |
Description | MRC PHIND |
Amount | £160,000 (GBP) |
Funding ID | MR/Y503216/1 |
Organisation | Medical Research Council (MRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 06/2023 |
End | 01/2025 |
Description | Meade International Travel Grant in Epidemiology and additional funding for travel/education |
Amount | £25,000 (GBP) |
Funding ID | MRF-STD-DTC-23104 |
Organisation | Medical Research Council (MRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2024 |
End | 04/2025 |
Description | Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Travel Grant |
Amount | £2,400 (GBP) |
Organisation | Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2019 |
End | 09/2019 |
Description | START4ALL UNITAID grant |
Amount | $14,000,000 (USD) |
Organisation | United Nations (UN) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United States |
Start | 03/2022 |
End | 03/2027 |
Description | Scoping review on TB and selected comorbidities including diabetes, mental health disorders, and malnutrition |
Amount | £29,980 (GBP) |
Organisation | World Health Organization (WHO) |
Sector | Public |
Country | Global |
Start | 05/2021 |
End | 09/2021 |
Description | Seed Awards in Science |
Amount | £99,800 (GBP) |
Funding ID | 209075/Z/17/Z |
Organisation | Wellcome Trust |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2017 |
End | 12/2019 |
Description | Starter Grants for Clinical Lecturers |
Amount | £15,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2018 |
End | 12/2019 |
Title | All ASCOT pilot trial documents shared on Open Science Framework and Wellcome Open Research |
Description | Longitudinal social determinants and consequences questionnaire Consent forms PIS |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2022 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Available internationally |
URL | https://wellcomeopenresearch.org/articles/7-141 |
Title | Contribution to how to interpret TB Patient Cost Surveys in WHO international report/publication |
Description | https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240065536 Disaggregation of analyses by gender and primary income earner ("breadwinner") status |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2023 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Use by practitioners Application in Nepal TB Programme |
URL | https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240065536 |
Description | CHEST study |
Organisation | Karolinska Institute |
Department | Department of Public Health Sciences |
Country | Sweden |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Co-applicant, co-investigator, and consultant on the CHEST project which aims to improve linkage of TB and social care in Mozambique. We were successful in receiving funding of 500,000 euros to conduct this research. I am going out to Mozambique in April for site visits and logistical planning. I will also present to the National TB Program and Ministry of Health about addressing the social determinants of TB. |
Collaborator Contribution | The study is being led and coordinated by Dr Salla Atkins of the University of Tampere, Finland. Other partners include Prof Knut Lonnroth, Dr Kerri Viney, and Ms Olivia Biermann of Karolinska Institutet, with whom I collaborate closely on other projects. Dr Atkins is making a visit to Liverpool to present at our cross campus research meeting "LIV-TB" later this year and has been helpful in terms of supporting my other research ideas including those related to the Academy of Medical Sciences Research Grant. |
Impact | Multi-disciplinary: clinicians, social scientist, trialists, TB researchers, health economists, social workers, national TB program, implementers. The project is in its infancy and so there are no outputs at the present time. |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | CHEST study |
Organisation | University of Tampere |
Country | Finland |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Co-applicant, co-investigator, and consultant on the CHEST project which aims to improve linkage of TB and social care in Mozambique. We were successful in receiving funding of 500,000 euros to conduct this research. I am going out to Mozambique in April for site visits and logistical planning. I will also present to the National TB Program and Ministry of Health about addressing the social determinants of TB. |
Collaborator Contribution | The study is being led and coordinated by Dr Salla Atkins of the University of Tampere, Finland. Other partners include Prof Knut Lonnroth, Dr Kerri Viney, and Ms Olivia Biermann of Karolinska Institutet, with whom I collaborate closely on other projects. Dr Atkins is making a visit to Liverpool to present at our cross campus research meeting "LIV-TB" later this year and has been helpful in terms of supporting my other research ideas including those related to the Academy of Medical Sciences Research Grant. |
Impact | Multi-disciplinary: clinicians, social scientist, trialists, TB researchers, health economists, social workers, national TB program, implementers. The project is in its infancy and so there are no outputs at the present time. |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | International Labour Organization (ILO) |
Country | Switzerland |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | Karolinska Institute |
Country | Sweden |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | Stop TB Partnership |
Country | Switzerland |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | Universitas Indonesia |
Country | Indonesia |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | University of California, San Francisco |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | University of Liverpool |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | University of Tampere |
Country | Finland |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | World Health Organization (WHO) |
Country | Global |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration on MRC Applied Global Health Research and Partnership Awards |
Organisation | York University Toronto |
Country | Canada |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Involved collaboration with SPARKS www.sparksnetwork.ki.se Centre for Capacity Research, LSTM LIGHT consortium, LSTM International |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint grant writing Application to MRC funding panel - one application not successful, another currently under review |
Impact | Grant applications Symposia (see other sections) Workshops Post-graduate courses Teachig |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Collaboration with IMPACT TB study team |
Organisation | Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | The research of our team and our outputs from the CRESIPT study have directly informed the IMPACT TB team. IMPACT TB is an international study involving collaborations with LSTMed, Karolinska Institutet, KNCV, and the National TB Programs of Nepal and Vietnam, examining active case finding. |
Collaborator Contribution | Using methodology developed by our research team, including measurement of TB patient costs and socioeconomic interventions to mitigate such costs, we have been able to develop some add-on studies for IMPACT-TB which will bring added value to their work and disseminate/broaden the impact of the CRESIPT study. |
Impact | 1) Presentation on CRESIPT findings at IMPACT-TB meeting in Liverpool March 2017 2) Further presentations and workshops with Nepal and Vietnam National TB Programs planned for late March 2017 3) Funding applications for add-on studies ongoing. |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | KEMRI Kisumu and Gates Medical Research Institute |
Organisation | Kenyan Institute for Medical Research (KEMRI) |
Department | KEMRI CGMRC Programme |
Country | Kenya |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | Working up to be international investigator on Gates MRI funded TB early bactericidal activity trial with trial site partner being KEMRI Kisumu |
Collaborator Contribution | Infrastrtucture, laboratory logistics, trial sites, relationship with study communities, intellectual capability, |
Impact | Grant applications to follow |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | Leave no one behind: gender pathways to end HIV/TB: the DFID-funded LIGHT consortium |
Organisation | London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Co-investigator |
Collaborator Contribution | Co-investigators. This DFID funded consortium was funded £8m by DFID and has partners in Malawi, Kenya, Uganda, and Nigeria. |
Impact | None yet |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | Multisectoral stakeholders in Mozambique |
Organisation | Instituto Nacional de Saúde |
Country | Mozambique |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Multisectoral workshop including INS and the National TB Programme Strengthened partnerships with INS and NTP Mozambique |
Collaborator Contribution | Refining SAFEST-1 MDR-TB design and methods Disseminating/engaging Considering policy translation of results and follow-on studies |
Impact | Workshop As above |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | NIHR Health Policy and Systems Research Grant |
Organisation | LVCT Health |
Country | Kenya |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | Co-investigator on recently awarded NIHR consortium grant. I lead health economics stream. Still in negotiation. |
Collaborator Contribution | Capacity / delivery / monitoring and evaluation Intellectual input Community engagement |
Impact | Funding of 4.1m (still in negotiation) |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | New Collaboration with Katharina Kranzer on future studies using mobile phone based applications for people with TB |
Organisation | London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Began collaboration due to shared interests in non-pharmacological interventions for people with TB in high burden settings |
Collaborator Contribution | Grant application preparation ongoing PhD examination |
Impact | PhD examination Grant applications ongoing |
Start Year | 2023 |
Description | UNITAID bid for combined TB diagnostic algorithm |
Organisation | World Health Organization (WHO) |
Department | UNITAID |
Country | Switzerland |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Seven country multi-continent study into combined TB diagnostic algorithms (still in negotiation) |
Collaborator Contribution | Kenya Brazil Malawi Nigeria Vietnam Bangladesh Country partners providing intellectual support, logistical support, and delivery, monitoring and evaluation support |
Impact | None yet |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | WHO Core Writing Team for TB Patient Costs Survey Manual |
Organisation | World Health Organization (WHO) |
Country | Global |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Member of core writing team. First draft of manual published in 2017: https://www.who.int/tb/publications/patient_cost_surveys/en/ Now been rolled out in 16 countries. Second updated edition due 2021. |
Collaborator Contribution | Other WHO TB Programme members involved too plus other experts in the field. |
Impact | WHO TB Patient Costs Survey: a Handbook https://www.who.int/tb/publications/patient_cost_surveys/en/ |
Start Year | 2018 |
Title | Addressing the social determinants and consequences of tuberculosis |
Description | Despite preliminary evidence from middle-income Peru, there is no evidence for socioeconomic support for TB-affected households in low-income countries. To address this, we developed a locally-appropriate support intervention for TB-affected households in Nepal. The aim of the ASCOT pilot trial is to field-test the feasibility and acceptability of the support intervention. The pilot trial aimed to recruit 120 people with TB notified to the Nepal National TB Program (NTP) to participate. The integrated process evaluation aimed to recruit 40 multisectoral stakeholders to participate including NTP staff, civil society members, policy makers, and ASCOT field team members. The study expected to run March 2021 to October 2022 and was funded by MRC. Overall trial status: Completed - SAP not yet available - Results not yet available and study completed for less than 1 year - Raw data not yet available |
Type | Support Tool - For Medical Intervention |
Year Development Stage Completed | 2021 |
Development Status | Closed |
Impact | N/A |
URL | https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN17025974 |
Description | 'We will not forget our colleagues who have died': two doctors on the frontline of the second wave |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | During the first wave of coronavirus in April, we wrote about our experiences as frontline healthcare workers in Liverpool. While working on COVID-19 wards, we described the stark psychological and health vulnerabilities faced by health workers around the UK. In those early days of the pandemic, our health systems were bogged down by inadequate communication, PPE shortages, and testing limitations. We also warned of the need to plan ahead to mitigate an inevitable second wave and avoid the negative knock-on effects on routine hospital care. Now, that second wave is here. After a lull over summer, Liverpool has been at the forefront of the second wave seeing a dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases. The city was one of the first areas to be placed under "very high" alert tier 3 as part of the government's three-tier system of coronavirus restrictions. During November, numbers of hospital admissions for COVID-19 were higher than the first wave and intensive care units were close to capacity. Around the country, healthcare workers continue to put our lives and those of our families on the line. We arrive at work to face daily, sometimes dangerous, staff shortages but also to see the inherent resourcefulness of NHS healthcare workers. In Liverpool, genito-urinary medicine and palliative care specialist colleagues have again expanded their care to cover or lead COVID-19 wards. Other hospital doctors have "upskilled" to look after people needing ventilators. What is unclear is how long we can keep stepping up. As frontline workers, we are concerned about the long winter that looms for the UK. Here, we set out the problems we and our colleagues are facing around the country, some lessons we might be able to learn from the first wave, and some positive developments which will make the future a little brighter. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://theconversation.com/we-will-not-forget-our-colleagues-who-have-died-two-doctors-on-the-front... |
Description | 160 public engagement and media activities in 2020 including BBC, Wall Street Journal, BMJ, Medscape, ITV, Sky, Daily Mail, Telegraph, Guardian, Observer, Independent, The Conversation, Reuters, Associate Press |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Please see all activity here: https://covid19.elsevierpure.com/en/persons/tom-wingfield |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020,2021 |
URL | https://covid19.elsevierpure.com/en/persons/tom-wingfield |
Description | Article in The Conversation |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Experience of covid-19 for healthcare workers in 2021 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://theconversation.com/covid-19-2020-was-horrendous-for-health-workers-early-2021-was-even-wors... |
Description | Article on SpringerNature Sustainability Community |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | In this invited "SDG 3 and me" blog , Bhola Rai, Kritika Dixit, and Tom Wingfield of Birat Nepal Medical Trust and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine explain how their team's mixed methods research to address tuberculosis informs -and is informed by- the Sustainable Development Goals framework. The Sustainability Community forum is a space for members to communicate with the wider research community; the blog post is also open to the general public. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://sustainabilitycommunity.springernature.com/posts/ascot-addressing-the-social-determinants-an... |
Description | Contribution to presentation on TB and social protection on the MSc in Public Health at the Institute for Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | As per title |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
Description | Coordinator and co-presenter at Scientific Symposium on Tuberculosis and Social Protection at the International Union Against TB and Lung Disease, Paris, France, November 2023 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Coordinator and co-presenter at Scientific Symposium on Tuberculosis and Social Protection at the International Union Against TB and Lung Disease, Paris, France, November 2023 (see abstract booklet) |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://theunion.org/sites/default/files/2023-11/UNION2023_Abstracts-compressed.pdf |
Description | Coordinator and co-presenter at Scientific Symposium on Tuberculosis and Stigma at the International Union Against TB and Lung Disease, Paris, France, November 2023 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Coordinator and co-presenter at Scientific Symposium on Tuberculosis and Stigma at the International Union Against TB and Lung Disease, Paris, France, November 2023 (see abstract booklet) |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://theunion.org/sites/default/files/2023-11/UNION2023_Abstracts-compressed.pdf |
Description | Faculty and Presener at 6th Forum on Respiratory Tract Infections in Glasgow January 2024 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | t's a great pleasure - as the conference chair- to welcome you to the 6th Forum on Respiratory Tract Infections Forum which takes place from 5th - 7th February 2024 in the wonderful city of Glasgow. The COVID-19 pandemic and the past several years of scientific progress have clearly placed respiratory tract infections at the centre of public health, clinical practice and scientific debate. The diversity and importance of respiratory tract infections and the multidisciplinary nature of their treatment necessitates close collaboration between specialities and different professionals. It is therefore the perfect moment for an internal clinical and translational research meeting focused on respiratory tract infections. Covering topics including pneumonia, COVID-19, respiratory viruses, chronic lung infections, mycobacterial and fungal diseases the Respiratory Tract Infections Forum promises to be an exciting and stimulating environment for learning and the development of new collaborations. We have truly seen breakthroughs in treatment and vaccinology in recent years that will change our way forward for respiratory tract infections, promising a potential "golden age" of respiratory research, particularly in infections. We invite you to enjoy the congress and actively contribute to the Golden age of Respiratory Research. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
URL | https://rti-forum.org/?page_id=201 |
Description | Head Talks - Covid, medicine, and the media |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | See https://www.lstmed.ac.uk/news-events/events/head-talks-at-carnival-brewing-with-lstms-dr-tom-wingfield-and-friends A talk about the role that the media has in spreading information and misinformation about Covid-19 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.lstmed.ac.uk/news-events/events/head-talks-at-carnival-brewing-with-lstms-dr-tom-wingfie... |
Description | Heroism now means keeping going - interview and article in Telegraph |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | 'Heroism now means keeping going': on the frontline of the Covid-19 second wave in Liverpool From helping families see each other to watching staff return exhausted, still recovering from the virus, two doctors on their experiences |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/heroism-now-keeping-going-frontline-se... |
Description | LEAP talk for MSF regarding Covid-19 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT4dYty_-wY As we near the one-year anniversary of the first COVID-19 cases recorded in East Asia, followed by the dramatic spread and impact across Europe, North America and other continents, there is still great concern about its expected impact across further communities. The potential impact on populations affected by humanitarian crises and/or living in poor resource settings; in particular in overcrowded urban contexts, detention sites, displaced people in camps, is still unknown. Governments and public health authorities are facing unprecedented challenges of planning, implementing and adjusting multi-sectoral responses in their respective societies balancing the public health good with the economic priorities and public perception. Join us(link is external)(opens in a new tab) for a panel discussion with leading humanitarian practitioners and academics who will reflect on first-hand experience and research, to discuss the approaches and challenges for adapting humanitarian responses to the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic. Registration via Eventbrite, click here(link is external)(opens in a new tab) Chair: Tom Ellman, Director of Southern Africa Medical Unit, MSF Tom is Director of the Southern Africa Medical Unit (SAMU). Since first working for MSF in Rwanda in 1995, he has over 15 years of experience in humanitarian medical work mostly with Medecins Sans Frontieres. His focus has been on HIV, TB, and malaria in Africa and South-East Asia, apart from a three-year 'break' working on Chagas disease - the 'AIDS of the Americas' - in Bolivia. Panel: Dr Raji Tajudee, Head of Division of Public Health Institutes and Research, Africa CDC Taj is a medical doctor with postgraduate qualifications in Pediatrics and Public Health. He is a Fellow of the West African College of Physicians and African Public Health Leaders Fellow of the Chatham House Royal Institute of International Affairs, UK. He has years of senior level experience in Child Health, Health System Management, Health Diplomacy, Maternal and Child Health, and Health in Humanitarian Emergencies. He has worked in different settings in the developing world; Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Ethiopia. He is currently the Head of Public Health Institutes and Research at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He heads the healthcare preparedness and countermeasures section of the Africa CCD COVID-19 response. He co-chairs the case management technical working group of the Africa Taskforce on COVID-19. Dr Tom Wingfield, Consultant Infectious Diseases Physician and Senior Clinical Lecturer, LSTM Tom is a Consultant Infectious Diseases Physician and Senior Clinical Lecturer at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK. He is passionate about addressing the social determinants and consequences of tuberculosis and other poverty-related illnesses. Since February 2020, Tom has cared for many with people with Covid-19 in Liverpool. He contributed to health systems' response and preparedness at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Trust, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, and the Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome centre. Tom leads quality improvement projects aiming to improve the care of people with Covid-19. Alongside Covid-19 clinical work and research, Tom is committed to providing accurate information about Covid-19 to the public, whether living in urban informal settlements in low-income countries or in the UK. Lucas Molfino, Deputy Medical Director, MSF OCG Reem Mussa, Humanitarian Affairs Advisor (Migration), MSF OCB The panel session is hosted by the LEAP Programme in Humanitarian Practice, a unique partnership between Médecins Sans Frontières(link is external)(opens in a new tab), The University of Manchester's Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute(link is external)(opens in a new tab) and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine(opens in a new tab). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.lstmed.ac.uk/news-events/events/leap-programme-panel-discussion-the-approaches-and-chall... |
Description | Lancet Global Health Podcast on original research article about MDR-TB in Sierra Leone |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Podcast about original article in Lancet Global Health where Dr Rashidatu Fouad Kamara and I explained our research and Rashida's role as MDR-TB lead in Sierra Leone. https://www.thelancet.com/in-conversation-with |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.buzzsprout.com/1358155?client_source=large_player&iframe=true&referrer=https://www.buzzs... |
Description | Leibniz Centre for Infection LCI Symposium 2024, Hamburg, Germany |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | The diverse programme of the event will highlight the long-term consequences of infections on the immune system, on the affected organs and on the socio-economic situation of those affected in three thematic blocks. In the session on the socio-economic consequences of an infection, scientists such as Prof César Muñoz-Fontela, Head of the Virus Immunology Working Group at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM), will discuss how misguided communication or disinformation campaigns have exacerbated epidemics in the past. "Global warming, the need to feed the world and political messages are factors that have a major impact on the occurrence of zoonotic viral infections," emphasises Muñoz-Fontela. "It is our goal as LCI to investigate the dynamics of infections and to find out why long-term consequences arise in some patients in order to develop innovative strategies to deal with the long-term consequences," says LCI spokesperson and Director at the FZB, Prof Ulrich Schaible. This symposium marks a further step towards a comprehensive understanding and more effective measures in dealing with infectious diseases worldwide. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
URL | https://www.bnitm.de/en/news/news/langfristige-folgen-von-infektionen-im-fokus |
Description | Long read in Independent: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/long_reads/coronavirus-nhs-dead-doctors-nurses-second-wave-frontline-b1764456.html |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | 'We won't forget our dead colleagues': NHS doctors on life on the frontline Tom Wingfield and Miriam Taegtmeyer share their experiences of Britain's second coronavirus wave |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www.independent.co.uk/news/long_reads/coronavirus-nhs-dead-doctors-nurses-second-wave-frontl... |
Description | Qiagen TB presentation |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | https://www.qiagen.com/us/clp/-/media/2CCF595A5E7346508A09C7EBA734167E.ashx Global TB Summit |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.qiagen.com/us/clp/-/media/2CCF595A5E7346508A09C7EBA734167E.ashx |
Description | Social Protection Action Research and Knowledge Sharing (SPARKS) network annual meeting |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Organised, gave presentation, and co-led workshop session at this annual international meeting of SPARKS, a network I co-founded. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | The Conversation Article - Future covid treatments |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Description of current and future treatments for people with Covid-19 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://theconversation.com/covid-is-unlikely-to-be-eliminated-heres-how-well-treat-it-in-the-future... |
Description | Two doctors describe working on the frontline of Liverpool's second wave - In Depth Out Loud podcast |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | This episode of The Conversation's In Depth Out Loud podcast features a report from two doctors on the frontline of the second wave of coronavirus in Liverpool. Tom Wingfield, an infectious diseases physician at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Liverpool, and Miriam Taegtmeyer, professor of global health at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, describe what it's like for healthcare workers who continue to put their lives and those of their families on the line. Listen on Apple Podcasts They describe arriving at work to face daily, sometimes dangerous, staff shortages but also seeing the inherent resourcefulness of NHS healthcare workers. Some specialist colleagues have expanded their care to cover or lead COVID-19 wards. Other hospital doctors have "upskilled" to look after people needing ventilators. What is unclear, they say, is how long they can keep stepping up. They set out the problems they and their colleagues are facing around the country, some lessons we might be able to learn from the first wave, and some positive developments which will make the future a little brighter. You can read the text version of this in-depth article here. The audio version is read by Megan Clement and produced by Gemma Ware. This story came out of a project at The Conversation called Coronavirus Insights supported by Research England. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://theconversation.com/two-doctors-describe-working-on-the-frontline-of-liverpools-second-wave-... |
Description | UK Academics and Professionals to End TB |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Welcome to the first UKAPTB all-members in-person meeting in Liverpool on Friday 26 January The UK Academics and Professionals to end TB (UKAPTB) network brings together UK-based academics and professionals with an interest in TB to accelerate progress to a TB-free world. The network primarily campaigns, advocates, and educates the public servants, politicians, and the public to improve UK policies on TB and devote more resources to TB research. The aim of this first in-person meeting is to keep the momentum and energy from the United Nations High Level Meeting on the Fight Against TB in 2023 to ensure that we are partnering effectively both in the UK and globally across disciplines, stakeholders, and sectors to follow through on commitments and contribute as best we can to ending TB by 2030. We look forward to an insightful day of knowledge sharing with plenty of opportunities to connect with other UK TB stakeholders: tuberculosis researchers health professionals civil society affected communities and other stakeholders all working on tuberculosis. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
URL | https://www.ukaptb.org/news-and-events/networkmeeting2024 |
Description | World Health Organization Postgraduate Course on Tuberculosis and Social Protection at the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease Annual General Meeting, Paris, France, 2024 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I co-organised and presented at a post-graduate workshop organised by WHO at the TB Union international meeting in Paris, France, in November 2023. Entitled: Planning and implementing social protection programmes for people affected by TB: an introduction |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://conf2023.theunion.org/post-graduate-courses-and-workshops/ |
Description | https://theconversation.com/comparing-pandemic-responses-in-australia-and-the-uk-watch-our-live-webinar-151920 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | The UK has been one of the countries hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic, and is currently in the grip of a deadly second wave alongside many of its neighbours in Europe. More than 60,000 people have died of the disease in the UK so far. Like success stories Taiwan, Vietnam and South Korea, Australia was feted early for its robust response to the crisis, but a second wave engulfed the state of Victoria in July this year after the virus escaped the country's hotel quarantine system. The capital city of Melbourne entered a lockdown that lasted almost four months and more than 800 people died in the southern state. Today, Australians are out of lockdown and gathering in groups, going to the theatre and getting ready for Christmas gatherings. Meanwhile, much of the UK remains under heavy restrictions as a long winter looms ahead and the first priority groups receive the new Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Yet the countries had similar rates of infection in the middle of this year. What can the UK and Australia learn from one another, and why were their responses so different? Containing COVID: comparing pandemic responses in Australia and the UK Wednesday December 16, 8.30am GMT/7.30pm AEDT. CC BY The Conversation's Megan Clement will chair the webinar at 8.30am GMT, 7.30pm AEDT on December 16, with Professor Catherine Bennett, an epidemiologist who has followed Melbourne's remarkable trajectory from one of the world's strictest lockdowns to more than a month of zero cases a day and Dr Tom Wingfield, a doctor and infectious diseases expert who has been working on the COVID wards in Liverpool throughout 2020. You can also watch the webinar via Facebook, YouTube or Twitter from 8.30am GMT/ 7.30pm AEDT on December 16. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://theconversation.com/comparing-pandemic-responses-in-australia-and-the-uk-watch-our-live-webi... |