We have had 3 decades of implementing and evaluating basic and applied research projects focusing on HIV prevention and care. We have successfully implemented several mental health initiatives – the latest one being “A Mental Health Survey Among Health Care Workers During the COVIFD-19” Pandemic (conducted in 2020). We have worked in urban and rural communities and in clinics and district hospitals conducting this research.
This already existing infrastructure provides:
• DCM-SEAM: Surveys, Evaluations, Assessments and Monitoring Project, a CDC Zimbabwe funded project to support the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) to implement key priority surveys which provide key information on the HIV Epidemic and treatment programmes
• DCM-ZiCHIRe, an organization that has been operating in Zimbabwe for over a decade, and is housed at the Department of Community Medicine,
• Thirteen applied, theory-based projects conducted in collaboration with Battelle that we can draw from for experiential learning experiences:
o Measurement for the Young Adult Survey (YAS)
o CPOL Intervention Trial,
o Family Health Study Intervention Trial,
o Alcohol Study, describing alcohol’s effects on risky behavior and HIV or STI acquisition,
o Mopani Junction (2 studies), formative research for the design of Mopani Junction, and pilot evaluation of the theory-based radio drama,
o Pamphlet review for MOHCW HIV health education messaging
o STD Etiology pilot study,
o Neuro-cognitive effects of HIV among adults (case control study),
o Male Champions+ evaluation
o Clinical trial of PrePexTM non-surgical medical device for circumcision, including assessing psychosocial aspects (three phase study),
Social Science Research. Over the past decade, our team has conducted thirteen large and small scale studies. In addition to the large Phase III STD/HIV Prevention CPOL Trial (CPOL), ZiCHIRe has implemented a community-based NINR-funded Family Health Study (FHS) (PI Kasprzyk [1 R01 NR009920] Providing Psychosocial Support to HIV/AIDS Affected Children in Zimbabwe), in a Comparative Effectiveness Trial targeting HIV positive parents with their adolescent children and teaching them to cope with parental HIV disease. In addition to these two clinical trials, other studies conducted by our team at ZiCHIRe include: 1) a measurement study, using previously collected data in Zimbabwe to design the behavioral and attitudinal sections of the Young Adult Survey (YAS) in Zimbabwe [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Global AIDS, Zimbabwe Office (CDC-Zim)] (Kasprzyk & Montaño, 2001; MOHCW, 2004); 2) formative research to design a radio drama (MJ) for the CDC-Zim office (Montaño, et al, 2004); 3) a pilot evaluation of the Mopani Junction Radio Drama (CDC-Zim) (Montaño, et al, 2004); 4) a longitudinal study to determine the effects of alcohol on risky sexual behavior and HIV disease progression (ALC) funded by the NIAAA (PI – Cubbins [R21 AA014802] Alcohol, Risky Sexual Behavior, and HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe) (Cubbins, et al., 2005; Cubbins, et al., 2012-forthcoming); 5) a case-control study to assess the impacts of HIV on neuro-cognitive function among adults (NEURO) (Echeverria, et al, 2009); 6) a pilot clinical research study of the Etiology of STD Syndromes in Zimbabwe (STI) (Handsfield, 2009); 7) a review of health education pamphlets for effectiveness in targeting appropriate HIV information (HE) (CDC-Zim); 8) an implementation study using the Integrated Behavioral Model (Montaño & Kasprzyk, 2008) assessing environmental and behavioral factors affecting the uptake of male circumcision (MC) (PI – Montaño [R01MH83594] Environmental/Behavioral Factors Shaping Circumcision Decisions in Zimbabwe); 9) evaluation of the UNICEF Male Champions+ Programme (MCh+P) supporting couples HIV testing if a pregnant woman finds out she is HIV+, to encourage partner’s assistance in the pregnancy; 10) a three phase trial (PI- Tshimanga) examining the PrePexTM non-surgical adult MC device for safety, comparison to surgical MCs, and a field implementation assessing how to integrate PrePexTM into district hospital settings; and including psychosocial components (PP); 11) a study examining the potential among men with MCs of increasing risky sexual behavior (RC) (PI – Montaño [1 R01 MH095558-01] Tracking Risk Compensation Over Time in a National