Orphan Social Networks to Improve Health
Lynne Messer, assistant research professor of global health and a faculty member of the Duke Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research, was awarded a two-year $245,269 grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development for a study on the social networks of orphaned and abandoned youth as a means to understand their health well-being. Little is known about the social and sexual networks of orphans, but according to preliminary research, Messer and her team believe differences in social networks may contribute to low education, inappropriate employment, high-risk sexual behavior and perhaps HIV infection. The long-term goal of this research is to determine key factors for disadvantage or resilience among orphans in order to build viable interventions for promoting their health. The study will analyze data collected from the positive outcomes for orphans (POFO) study, led by CHPIR Director Kathryn Whetten.
Enhancing Pharmaceutical Innovation
Anthony So, professor of the practice of public policy and global health, has been named a recipient of a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Investigator Award in health policy research. The award will allow So to tackle critical health problems and policy issues, think creatively and across disciplinary boundaries, and seek innovative solutions. So’s project, “Reengineering the Value Chain of Pharmaceutical Innovation,” will analyze the 3Rs of pharmaceutical innovation - sharing resources, risks and rewards. He and his research team will study the extent that these factors reengineer the value chain of pharmaceutical innovation. Building upon current research of the Program on Global Health and Technology Access at the Sanford School of Public Policy, this work aims to identify and evaluate promising crossover approaches among neglected tropical diseases, rare diseases, antibiotics, and other therapeutic areas of public health significance that might enhance US pharmaceutical innovation.
Awareness of State Laws on HIV
Kimberly Walker, associate director of the Duke Center of Health Policy and Inequalities Research, received a three-year $65,715 grant from the Medical College of Wisconsin for a two-year study on HIV laws in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee. Each state has a different version of an HIV exposure law, while NC has none other than a public health law/violation. Walker and her team will gather data on the criminalization of undisclosed exposure to HIV. As part of the study, people with HIV and others who are at risk of contracting the disease will complete an anonymous survey and then hear a presentation on HIV disclosure and confidentiality laws in a small group setting. The study can reach as many as 1,200 individuals across all four states.
MSc-GH Students Awarded Funding
*The awards complement field research funding from the Duke Global Health Institute that is provided to students in the MSc-GH graduate program.
Occupation as a Function of Malaria Transmission
Master of Science in Global Health student Justin Lana has been awarded a $1,500 Tinker Field Research Grant from the Duke Center of Latin American and Caribbean Studies for his thesis research on malaria risk in Peru this summer. Nested within DGHI faculty member William Pan’s larger study to develop an early warning system for malaria in the Amazon Basin, Lana seeks to better understand the malarial risk and protective behaviors of male, migratory farm workers living along the Napo River, which is a tributary of the Amazon River. Existing research shows adult males are more often bit by mosquitoes in the Loretto region of Peru and prevalence of malaria-carrying mosquitoes is greatest in recently-cleared forest areas. This suggests occupation may be an important risk factor for malaria transmission in the region.
Improving Public Health Supply Chains
Master of Science in Global Health student Madeline Boccuzzi was awarded $2,235 from the Duke University Center for International Studies for her thesis research in Lao People’s Democratic Republic, which faces a unique set of supply chain challenges for HIV/AIDS and malaria. Laos struggles to maintain adequate stocks of rapid HIV tests, antiretroviral drugs, bed nets and other related commodities. There is, however, a dearth of research about supply chains in Laos, and exact causes of supply chain breakdown have not been researched. In the capital city of Vientiane and surrounding areas, Boccuzzi will identify barriers and weaknesses in the supply chains of HIV rapid diagnostic tests and insecticide-treated bed nets, with the aim of illuminating areas for improving the management of Laos’ public health supply chains.
