Despite remarkable success in preventing HIV infection and treating AIDS, Uganda still faces formidable challenges to control HIV in the country. Over the past 20 years, the AIDS International Training and Research Program at Case Western Reserve University has made substantive contributions to Uganda's efforts by training future leaders in the field and by contributing to the body of knowledge about HIV and its complications. The goal of this training program is to meet the public health and scientific challenges of the evolving HIV epidemic in Africa by developing scientific leadership in the field of HIV prevention and treatment. This goal will be achieved through a longstanding collaboration between Case, Makerere University, Mbarara University for Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Health in Uganda. The specific training objectives of this proposal are to: 1) Build long-term, sustainable research capacity by educating and promoting independent health scientists who can lead Uganda in its HIV prevention and treatment activities;2) Advance knowledge in HIV prevention, treatment, and care through mentored research projects responsive to the needs of Uganda;3) Promote graduate education at Ugandan universities by supporting Masters level training in Public Health, Clinical Research, and Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics;4) Establish regional expertise on HIV and tuberculosis by building on the infrastructure and the unique aspects of the Uganda-Case Research Collaboration;5) Develop a culture of mentoring of young and developing scientists through the Uganda Society of Health Scientists. To address the specific aims of this proposal, we propose a coherent, multi-disciplinary program of education and training in degree and non-degree experiences, based both at Case and in Uganda. The mainstay of the training will continue to be the graduate training with advanced degrees offered in disciplines relevant to HIV prevention and treatment. The proposed program will offer Masters level training in Uganda and Ph.D. training at Case. Non-degree training will include a mix of short and long-term training experiences both in the U.S. and in Uganda. As the cadre of young, trained scientists grows and with the shift of Masters training to Uganda, there will be a greater demand for mentors. To this end, we intend to develop a monthly seminar that explores the role of mentoring in the Ugandan context. In collaboration with other AITRPs in Africa, we propose to establish regional training in HIV and tuberculosis by launching the East African Consortium for Research and Care of HIV and TB. Finally, to meet the new research training needs outside of Kampala, the AITRP at Case will open a formal training post in western Uganda at Mbarara University for Science and Technology.
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