Goal
To improve health and strengthen regional health systems in sub-Saharan Africa.
Strategy:
The Medical Research Program seeks to accomplish its African health research goal by supporting implementation research and building research capacity through the following initiatives and programs:
- African Health Initiative – Supports partnerships to design, implement and evaluate large-scale models of care that link implementation research and workforce training directly to the delivery of integrated primary health care for underserved populations.
- Operations Research on AIDS Care and Treatment in Africa Program – Supports operations research to help improve the care and treatment of AIDS patients in resource-limited settings, inform antiretroviral therapy (ART) policy and practice, and improve outcomes of the roll-out and scale-up of ART in Africa.
- Past AIDS Research Grants - From 2000-2006, the foundation awarded a small portfolio of grants to support clinical research and related capacity-building projects focused on AIDS research in sub-Saharan Africa. These grants included individual, one-time grants to support clinical research, training and infrastructure; competitive grants to support the development of low-cost clinical diagnostics to improve the medical management of antiretroviral therapy; and competitive grants for young African investigators.
Definition of Implementation Research
Implementation Research is defined very broadly to include all aspects of monitoring, evaluation, and operations research that enhance the efficient delivery of health services and expand the knowledge-base about delivering healthcare to resource-constrained populations under real-world conditions.