Mekota, AM;
Gillespie, SH;
Hoelscher, M;
Diacon, AH;
Dawson, R;
Churchyard, G;
Sanne, I;
... Boeree, MJ; + view all
(2023)
Building sustainable clinical trial sites in Sub-Saharan Africa through networking, infrastructure improvement, training and conducting clinical studies: The PanACEA approach.
Acta Tropica
, 238
, Article 106776. 10.1016/j.actatropica.2022.106776.
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Abstract
Introduction: The Pan-African Consortium for the Evaluation of Anti-Tuberculosis Antibiotics (PanACEA) was designed to build tuberculosis (TB) trial capacity whilst conducting clinical trials on novel and existing agents to shorten and simplify TB treatment. PanACEA has now established a dynamic network of 11 sub-Saharan clinical trial sites and four European research institutions. Objectives: In 2011, a capacity development program, funded by the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), was launched with four objectives, aiming at strengthening collaborating TB research sites to reach the ultimate goal of becoming self-sustainable institutions: networking; training; conducting clinical trials; and infrastructure scaling-up of sites. Methods: Assessment in six sub-Saharan TB-endemic countries (Gabon, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia) were performed through a structured questionnaire, site visits, discussion with the PanACEA consortium, setting of milestones and identification of priorities and followed-up with evaluations of each site. The results of this needs-based assessment was then translated into capacity development measures. Results: In the initial phase, over a four-year period (March 2011 – June 2014), the programme scaled-up six sites; conducted a monitoring training program for 11 participants; funded five MSc and four PhD students, fostering gender balance; conducted four epidemiological studies; supported sites to conduct five Phase II studies and formed a sustainable platform for TB research (panacea-tb.net). Conclusion: Our experience of conducting TB clinical trials within the PanACEA programme environment of mentoring, networking and training has provided a sound platform for establishing future sustainable research centres. Our goal of facilitating emergent clinical TB trial sites to better initiate and lead research activities has been mostly successful.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Building sustainable clinical trial sites in Sub-Saharan Africa through networking, infrastructure improvement, training and conducting clinical studies: The PanACEA approach |
| Location: | Netherlands |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.actatropica.2022.106776 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2022.106776 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Parasitology, Tropical Medicine, Capacity development, Infrastructure upgrade, Networking, Sub-Saharan Africa, Sustainability, Training, TUBERCULOSIS-CONTROL, HEALTH RESEARCH, LAMBARENE, CAPACITY, GABON |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Infection and Immunity |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10165156 |
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