Marseille 2007
| Abstract #100 - HIV&AIDS/STI/TB NORTH/SOUTH ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM: LESSONS LEARNT | ||||
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Session: 26.20: Posters B (Poster) on Tuesday in Chaired by Authors: Presenting Author: Dr Peter Delobelle - Vrije Universiteit Brussels, Belgium |
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| Additional Authors: Dr Rika Decock, Prof AnneMarie Depoorter, | ||||
| Aim: This North/South academic collaboration between three universities was based on an existing partnership originating from the North, and aimed at improving HIV&AIDS/STI/TB care and referral systems across levels of care in a pilot project area of the Limpopo Province, South Africa. | ||||
| Method / Issue: The project was preceded by a stakeholder workshop, where objectives were identified and mutual responsibilities assigned by representatives from government and academia, resulting in the development of a logical framework and the signing of a co-operation agreement between North/South academic partners. The project plan comprised developmental and academic objectives, based on action research at different levels of care, coupled with assessment workshops, and complemented by hands-on training of PHC workers through a new postgraduate training course at the Southern university. Research activities included situation analysis and implementation of several surveys in the project area. The project was supervised by a Project Management & Monitoring Team and guided by a timeframe from the North. Outcomes were discussed at various forums and feedback was given through dissemination of reports among participating stakeholders. The project was formally supported by a Letter of Intent from local health authorities and granted funding by the Flemish Interuniversity Council for a period of three years. | ||||
| Results / Comments: Although stakeholder commitment was initially present, the agreed objectives soon appeared to be too ambitious and the project plan not adapted to local capacity. Implementation of activities was impeded by conflicting institutional and personal aspirations, and by problems of chronic understaffing coupled with the lack of a stable counterpart. Interdisciplinary collaboration soon collapsed and the Project Teams dismantled, furthered by shifting department leadership and high turnover at both academic and government level. Collaboration hence became oriented towards individuals and the envisaged capacity-building was reduced to offering ad hoc technical support. Contextual dynamics and lack of political engagement furthermore interfered with the objective of integrating research findings with services delivery, due to the fact that PHC nurses from the project area were not included in the training course. Although the effort of bringing together academics and public health officials was at times appreciated, the overall objective was not achieved, and sustainable exit strategies were, although elaborated and formally presented, not further explored. | ||||
| Discussion: Short-term North/South academic partnership programs with widespread objectives in the field of HIV&AIDS, which are based on interdisciplinary collaboration, need to thoroughly assess local capacity and commitment at the outset in order to meet the assumptions of the implementation plan. Contextual dynamics should equally be taken into account, especially when working in a complex and highly politicized environment with multiple stakeholders and different agendas. Ongoing dialogue with shared decision-making should therefore be stressed at all times in order to improve transparency and accountability. Agendas from the North should furthermore be aligned with Southern priorities and preferably integrated in existing structures, in order to increase local ownership and maintain initial stakeholder commitment. | ||||
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