According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the principal cause of death globally. Estimates suggest 3 of all CVD-related deaths occur in low- to middle-income countries (LMIC), translating into 13 million deaths annually. Jamaica, like almost all countries in the Caribbean, has an evolving epidemic of obesity and cardiovascular disease. Jamaica is experiencing an increased burden of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), in addition to existing infectious diseases. The Capacity Building in NCD Research Training (CBNRT) Program in the Caribbean will be modeled after the successful NIH-funded PRIDE Institute that Dr. Jean-Louis led for over 10 years. PRIDE provides mentored learning experience to junior scientists to attain career independence. Once enrolled, scholars participate in a 2- week didactic program (Part I), followed by on-going mentoring and monthly webinars, a mid-year meeting, and a 1-week follow-up program (Part II). Part I focuses on methodology, biostatistics, ethics in research, cardiovascular health, and grant-writing workshops. Part II focuses on participation in NIH Mock Study Section. Scholars are trained to initiate, develop and implement a research project targeted at CVD risk reduction. During their tenure, scholars are required to attend mentoring sessions and advanced seminars during which they share the designs of their projects with their colleagues and mentors for feedback. In November 2017, researchers from the University of West Indies-UWI (led by Dr. Forester, PI) and New York University-NYU (led by Dr. Jean-Louis, MPI) formed a partnership to develop a training program in Jamaica to address this pressing CVD burden of vulnerable Jamaicans. The partnership will address the following Specific Aims: 1) Identify pressing research needs of the population and develop a plan for recruiting and involving interested faculty in implementation of the final training/mentoring curriculum using the PRIDE curriculum as a successful model; 2) Design a plan to create, extend and/or enhance research activity currently available for training professionals on CVD risk reduction and application of recommended lifestyle strategies; 3) Develop a strategy for collaborative, multidisciplinary partnership to support proposed capacity building plan to adapt the PRIDE training/mentoring curriculum that will be implemented in Phase II (D43); 4) Conceive of a plan for wide-scale, timely access to announcements for training opportunities, recruiting eligible research faculty and collaborators, disseminating evidence-based guidelines, and increasing networking capacity among all partnering entities (e.g., Universities, Hospitals, and Centers); and 5) Develop a plan for evaluating effectiveness of the training program using the adapted PRIDE curriculum during Phase I (D71).
The Capacity Building in NCD Research Training (CBNRT) Program will train, mentor, and sustain a network of Jamaican scientists committed to developing independent academic careers in translational cardiovascular health research. This will have a strong impact in achieving WHO goal to increase academic workforce, thus expanding capacity to implement translational models to reduce the NCD burden in LMICs.
