Skills Capacity Building For Health Care Services and Research Through the Sickle Pan African Research Consortium

Abstract

Skills development, the building of human capacity, is key to any sustainable capacity building effort, however, such undertakings require adaptable and tailored strategies. The Sickle Pan-African Research Consortium (SPARCo) is building capacity in sickle cell disease (SCD) management and research in sub-Saharan Africa, including a multi-national SCD patient registry, this is underpinned by skills development activities in data, research, and SCD management.Method: The SPARCo Skills Working Group was set up with the mandate of coordinating skills development activities across the three SPARCo sites in Ghana, Nigeria and Tanzania. To tailor activities to the requirements of the consortium, a needs assessment was conducted at the start of the project which identified skills required for SCD management and research and catalogued existing external and internal training programmes. The needs assessment highlighted differences in skill levels between the sites and different organisational structures which required tailored skills development activities at individual, site and consortium levels.Strategy: Based on the needs and the resources available, different types of training activities were implemented: these included online, blended and face to face activities. In order to create a sustainable skills development programme, existing short, medium, long-term, on-job training activities were used wherever possible. World Sickle Cell Day (19th June) was leveraged for training and health education activities.Results: SPARCo has recorded 1,726 participants in skills development activities across the three sites. Skills have been enhanced in data management, SCD and research to underpin the core deliverables of SPARCo.Conclusion and Lessons Learned: The baseline needs assessments and continual review and adjustment were critical for development of an effective skill development strategy for the consortium. This adaptability was particularly valuable during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sustainability plan leveraged existing programmes and activities and has created a pool of people with required skills for health care and research in SCD. To be effective, skills development programmes need to take into account existing capacity, training opportunities and local conditions. The model was applied to SCD and is adaptable to other skills development in healthcare and research in low and middle- income countries.

Bridging the gaps in newborn screening programmes: Challenges and opportunities to detect haemoglobinopathies in Africa

“… 41 A potential solution to this challenge is using affordable diagnostic tools, such as rapid diagnostic tests, that are simple and easy to use. 42 Sickle cell analysis (BioMedomics Incorporated, Morrisville, North Carolina, United States), 43 lateral flow immunoassays, 44 and HemoType SC (Silver Lake Research Corporation, Azusa, California, United States) 45 , 46 are affordable, user-friendly, quick diagnostic tests that can successfully be used in resource-limited settings. Investing in affordable point-of-care diagnostic tools can help improve the diagnosis and management of haemoglobinopathies in Africa.…”

The Consortium on Newborn Screening in Africa for sickle cell disease: study rationale and methodology

“…Future challenges to impact may include reluctance of community and family engagement, competing public health priorities, and resource limitations for program sustainability. 38 , 39 …”

“…Future challenges to impact may include reluctance of community and family engagement, competing public health priorities, and resource limitations for program sustainability. 38,39 The impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, starting in 2020, generated additional challenges 15 and imposed burdens on already strained local and/or national health resources and socioeconomic well-being. This shifted attention away from SCD and toward pandemic-related health care, reducing mobility and access because of population lockdowns as containment strategies to limit pandemic contagion, as well as reduced access to standard required pediatric vaccines owing to disruption of supply chains.…”

“…As needed, assistance will be provided by CONSA, potentially in concert with other regional SCD networks, for example, Sickle Cell Pan-African Research Consortium. 27 , 38 …”

Pushing the Boundaries for Evidenced-Based Practice: Can Online Training Enhance Andrology Research Capacity Worldwide? An Exploration of the Barriers and Enablers - The Global Andrology Forum

“…Many fewer examples exist of RCB online delivery models aimed at regional audiences. An online blended skills capacity building was conducted for health care services and research via a consortium for capacity building in sickle disease management/research in sub-Saharan Africa [ 23 ]. Similarly, virtual interactive training sessions were undertaken for improving the capacity for implementation and dissemination of research in the Eastern Mediterranean region [ 24 ].…”