Centre Programmes
Centre Programmes

 

Some of the large multi-disciplinary studies successfully conducted in the Centre include;

Past Events and Programmes

Mass de-worming for the year 2006 in Mwea Division, ESACIPAC model project site the mass deworming teacher training is going to be organized on the 21st and 22nd, February 2006.

Note:

In 2005, 144 teachers and 18 health staff trained and 43,959 children  dewormed

In 2004,  174 teachers and 30 health personnel trained, and 43,929 children dewormed

ESACIPAC Joint  Coordinating Committee (JCC) Meeting

ESACIPAC JCC meeting is going to be held on February  15, 2006 when the final evaluation team will be visiting ESACIPAC. It is  expected to have minutes of understanding signed between the evaluation mission  team and KEMRI. The second ESACIPAC International Symposium 1st and 2nd October 2004

A two-day ESACIPAC International symposium  on parasite control  was organized between 1st and 2nd October 2004 in Nairobi, by inviting 18 policymakers of MOH and MOE from 6 countries and stakeholders from Japan and other international organizations. In total, about 100 stakeholders participated in this symposium. Participants from member counties explained the situation of school health and the progress of the parasitic diseases control in their own countries.

The first ESACIPAC International Symposium 6-8th August 2002

The International Symposium on Parasitic Diseases Control Programme in Eastern and Southern Africa was held in Nairobi, Kenya from 6th to 8th August 2002. It was jointly organized by the Ministry of Health, Kenya, the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), the World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office, Kenya and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The main purpose of the Symposium was to bring together policymakers from the Ministries of Health in the Eastern and Southern African Region (ESAR) to deliberate on the burden of parasitic diseases in the region and, together with stakeholders, international agencies and organizations involved with health matters, chart the way forward in their control.
In addition to that, participating delegates were introduced to the establishment of the Eastern and Southern African International Centre of Parasite Control (ESACIPAC). ESACIPAC, currently housed in KEMRI was established following the choice of KEMRI as one of the three global centres for parasite control by the Japanese government alongside Noguchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research in Ghana and Mahidol University in Thailand.

 

 

 

Ongoing Studies

  • A demographic surveillance system (DSS) in the previous bed net study area aimed at establishing a high quality surveillance system in a population of 135,000 and provide an infrastructure that will yield reliable demographic data and serve as a platform to evaluate the impact of public health interventions on morbidity and mortality.
  • Population genetics of malaria vectors.
  • The effects of climate change on human health.
  • The epidemiology and immunology of malaria epidemics in the highlands.
  • Immunology of malaria during pregnancy.
  • The genetic basis of severe malarial anemia in young children.
  • A study to assess the impact of co-trimoxazole prophylaxis on development of anti-folate resistance in pathogens
    of public health importance including P. falciparum, S. pneumoniae, and enteric bacteria.
  • A study on the In-vivo response of P. falciparum to antimalarial treatment in HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected individuals.
  • A study on the In-vivo response of P. falciparum to antimalarial treatment in HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected individuals.
  • The effect of folic acid supplementation on efficacy of sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine in pregnant women in western Kenya
  • Surveillance for severe diarrhea in western Kenya.
  • Etiology of diarrhea among HIV-infected adults in western Kenya.
  • Evaluation of studies that examine the genetic and immunological determinants of resistance to schistosomiasis in
    children in Western Kenya.
  • A prospective cohort study to assess HIV and STD incidence in rural high-risk adolescents, teenagers, and adults
  • Descriptive cross-sectional studies of HIV/AIDS/STI prevalence, risk behaviors, and an assessment of parental
    attitudes toward adolescent sexuality, in rural western Kenya, Nyanza Province.
  • Efficacy of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) beginning late in pregnancy and continuing for 6 months
    post-partum and rapid we aning in reducing the risk of peri- and post-natal HIV transmission

 

 

ESACIPAC hosts a regional short course on school-based parasite control, 7 €“ 18 February 2011

Introduction

Several studies have shown that presence of parasites in school children negatively affects educational performance. The Eastern and Southern Africa Centre of International Parasite Control (ESACIPAC) based at Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) in collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have over the years jointly conducted training courses on school-based parasite control aimed at building the capacity of countries in the region to combat parasitic diseases. After a series of training courses targeting district level managers of health conducted from 2007 to 2009, a follow-up course was organized in February 2011 with the objective of equipping participants with skills that will enable them to organize cascading courses in their respective countries. Facilitators were selected from various organizations including ESACIPAC, JICA, African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF), Kenyan Division of Child and Adolescent Health (DCAH), Kenyan Ministry of Education, and Deworm the World (DtW). All expenses related to this course were fully funded by JICA and KEMRI.

Major outcomes of the short course

The following are selected major outcomes of the course;

  1. Updates on current initiatives to control parasitic infections
  2. Acquisition of skills for proposal development
  3. How to conduct monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of parasite control programmes
  4. Application of 5S Kaizen principles for continuous improvement of performance
  5. How to conduct advocacy for support of school health and nutrition programmes
  6. Action planning for parasite control and school health
  7. Practical experience by visiting comprehensive school health pilot project in Kilifi district
  8. Establishment of networking for school health and nutrition in the region

Participants

The participants of the training course were national level health managers from ministries of health and education from southern and eastern Africa countries including Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania (including Zanzibar), Uganda, and Kenya.

Selected pictures

tctp

Participants of a short course on Third Country Training Programme (TCTP) on school-based parasite control held from 7th to 18th February 2011 during a group discussion while on a tour of comprehensive school health pilot project in Kilifi district, Coast Province
 

Vision

"To be a leading centre of excellence in human health research."

Mission

"To improve human health and quality of life through research, capacity building and service delivery."

Motto

"In Search of Better Health"
towards the realization of our Vision