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Project Topic
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The project ‘Strengthening Laboratory Capacities in the St Joseph’s Catholic Hospital (Monrovia, Liberia) for Clinical Trials on infectious diseases’ (SELeCT) aims at building institutional capacities to conduct biomedical research and clinical trials between and during infectious disease outbreaks. The project started in February 2016 and is led by the Barcelona Institute of Global Health (ISGlobal) in collaboration with the NGO Juan Ciudad Foundation (FJC) and the Saint Joseph’s Catholic Hospital (SJCH) in Monrovia, where all activities take place. The specific objectives of this 18 month project are: ? Train hospital personnel on clinical trial conduct, ? Upgrade laboratory infrastructure and capacities, ? Build community trust and engagement in clinical trials. Main results achieved In achieving these specific objectives, a range of training, research, laboratory upgrading and community engagement activities have been conducted: Training: Fourteen staff, selected among 24 applicants, received a 6-month training program on Good Laboratory and Clinical Practice, composed by an eLearning mentoring program and a 4-days hands-on workshop. Staff from the Liberian Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority also participated in the workshop. To evaluate the acquired competences, the trainees were involved in a practical exercise to determine the burden of malaria among pregnant women that attend antenatal care at the SJCH. This exercise included preparing and submitting the research protocol to the corresponding ethics board, recruitment of participants, sensitization of communities, informed consent, data management, shipping of specimens, and performing interviews and focus group discussions. Upgrading laboratory infrastructure: After an assessment of training and infrastructure needs, we purchased, among other items, a biosafety cabinet and a biochemistry analyzer. The laboratory supervisors received training in good laboratory practice and in handling and shipping infectious specimens, and are now in the process of elaborating standard operating procedures. The laboratory will be a key operative department in preparation for the SJCH to function as a clinical trial unit. Building community trust: We identified ten community key representatives (including chairman, youth leaders, birth attendants, herbalists) in various sub-districts of Congo Town and invited them to participate in a 2-days Good Clinical Practice & Communication workshop and to become members of the Community Advisory Board (CAB) that will advise the design of future health research at the SJCH. The CAB, constituted in December 2016, helped us to ensure the acceptability of the practical exercise among neighboring communities. In addition, a series of brochures, t-shirts and posters on the project and the importance of health research conduct were prepared and distributed among the communities, and a football match was organized to support community engagement activities. Perspectives The SJCH staff that participated in the training program has shown a great interest and motivation to engage in health research. One of the trainees (the SJCH nursing supervisor) attended the 8th EDCTP Forum in Lusaka, Zambia, and was able to network with other researchers from African institutions (such as the ISGlobal-supported Health Research Center in Manhiça, Mozambique) and abroad. In addition, we have established networks with the Saint John of God Hospital of Koforidua (Ghana), the University of Ghana, and INSERM (Guinea Conakry), with the aim to help the SJCH trainees enhance their capacities as facilitators in Good Clinical Practice courses and to further their capacity as researchers in infectious diseases. To sustain the effort and acquired capacities, it is vital to develop and obtain funding for new joint research programs (we have already submitted a grant application building upon needs and priorities expressed by all parties involved in SELeCT), and to strengthen and expand collaborations with other Liberian and West African health institutions. Expected Impact The activities carried out in the frame of SELeCT will have an impact on three main areas: capacity building of laboratory, administrative and clinical staff at the SJCH; networking with other institutions involved in Research & Development of investigational medicines and vaccines; and community education and engagement. Beyond its direct impact on the SJCH, we expect that SELeCT will contribute to restore health care, management and research capacities in a country that has suffered enormously from the recent Ebola outbreak. Importantly, we hope it will contribute to help the neighbouring communities regain confidence in the health system and engage in clinical trials that will aim at finding vaccines and/or treatments for emerging infectious diseases that pose a threat to the region, such as Ebola, Marburg or Lassa fever and other highly prevalent infectious diseases such as malaria, HIV and tuberculosis. For more information about the project see website.
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Project Results
(after finalisation)
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•Capacity development (Human resources): Delivery of a six-month training programme on Good Laboratory and Clinical Practice for staff of the St. Joseph’s Catholic Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia, and the Liberian Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority (LMHRA).
•Capacity development (Systems and infrastructure): Upgrading of a laboratory infrastructure and systems at St Joseph’s Catholic Hospital: purchasing a biosafety cabinet and a biochemistry analyser for the laboratory, development of standard operating procedures and quality assurance and internal audit monitoring tools.
•Capacity developmeny (Enabling environment): Establishment of a Community Advisory Board involving 10 traditional leaders to advise on the design of future health research at the St. Joseph’s Catholic Hospital in Monrovia and help ensure the acceptability of the malaria study among communities.
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