Home > Programs > Forum for International Health > Summary - November 14, 2008

Summary of the NIH International Representatives Meeting

November 14, 2008

 

Dr. James Herrington, Director, Division of International Relations (DIR), NIH Fogarty International Center (FIC), welcomed the NIH IC representatives to Conference Room 7 in Building 31-6C. Dr. Herrington noted that FIC/DIR would be circulating a list of the representatives and alternates to the committee for any needed revisions. He also noted that copies of the 2009 meeting schedule is available at this meeting but that it would also be circulated along with the Summary Notes of today's meeting. Dr. Herrington also noted that the mostly recently completed FIC-produced report on NIH international activities has been forwarded to all IC Directors and IC International Representatives.

CDC International Experience in Technical Assistance (IETA) Program: Dr. Herrington introduced Mr. Kevin Bialy, FIC/DIR Acting Program Officer for the Western Hemisphere, who provided an overview of the CDC IETA Program and his service in Nigeria and Uganda as part of that program. Mr. Bialy noted that the IETA Program was established in 1997 to increase the number of CDC staff with international training and experience. Some 25 slots are made available for CDC and HHS staff each year, according to the following ratio: 20 CDC staffers and 5 HHS staffers. The program combines classroom training with field experience offering public health professionals the opportunity to enhance their skills and apply them in an international public health setting. After Mr. Bialy was accepted into the program, he chose Africa's most populated country, Nigeria, for his assignment which involved work related to implementation of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). As part of this assignment, Mr. Bialy was also sent to Uganda to participate in the annual PEPFAR Implementer's meeting.

Mr. Bialy noted that the HIV prevalence rate is about 3.0-4.4% (depending on various estimates in Nigeria) and the approximately 250,000 Nigerians are on antiretroviral therapy (ART) while over 1 million Nigerians are "in care." He noted that an estimated 80 percent of Nigerians infected with HIV/AIDS are not receiving care or treatment. In his assignment, Mr. Bialy was responsible for assessing the feasibility of establishing a West Africa Infectious Diseases Institute (WAIDI) at the University of Abuja that would be a center of excellence in building leadership in Nigeria and the region for the prevention, care and treatment of HIV/AIDS and related diseases, through training and research. This issue was also the subject of discussion at PEPFAR-related meetings in Uganda that Mr. Bialy attended on behalf of CDC IETA and the NIH Fogarty International Center.

Mr. Bialy encouraged IC reps to make their institutes/centers aware of the IETA program and to encourage applications to the program by younger NIH professionals who wish to gain international experience and foster international interest on global health issues. Except for the salary of the successfully chosen applicant, all other expenses associated with IETA assignment are paid by CDC.

Scientists Without Borders: Dr. Herrington introduced Dr. Evelyn Strauss, Executive Director of "Scientists Without Borders," who made a presentation about her organization and its goals and agenda. Dr. Strauss explained that Scientists Without Borders aims to mobilize and coordinate science-based activities that improve quality of life in the developing world. The research community is already promoting global health, agricultural progress, environmental well-being but current communication gaps limit its reach and effectiveness. The Scientists Without Borders database, unveiled in May 2008, will seek to provide a way for organizations, projects, and individuals with complementary needs and resources to find one another. This tool will eventually create a database record for a student, scientist, research, or faculty member or institution that highlights the individual/institution's accomplishments and specific interests or programs in a global health research area or disease condition. The database then allows users to match up with other users to address a common area of research or disease interest. She noted that the initiative is a global partnership led by the New York Academy of Sciences and has numerous partners and benefactors which can be found at: http://scientistswithoutborders.nyas.org.

Dr. Strauss conducted an online review of the database to demonstrate its potential and noted that on the web site researchers can:

• Find like-minded people and projects that are geographically close or are similar to goals the researchers are pursuing
• Locate and learn about project collaborators, financial support, grantees, and experts
• Connect with public and private organizations and funding agencies that are addressing the UN Millennium Development Goals through science-based activities
• Find individual academic and industry scientists working on global health, environmental challenges, and other vital issues in the developing world
• Find organizations with strengths and assets to advance research work
• Align capacity-building efforts with those of others to foster innovative connection and activities.

Dr. Strauss may be reached at estrauss@nyas.org.

Next Meeting: Set for early January 2009, with a specific date and location to be identified later.

Attendance:
Dr. James Herrington, Acting Chair, Mr. George Herrfurth, Executive Secretary;
NIBIB: Dr. John Haller;
NIAID: Dr. Karl Western, Mr. DaRel Barkesdale, Ms. Judith Hedje;
NCRR: Dr. Alisa Schaefer, Dr. Andrea Sanczuk;
NCI: Dr. Makeda Williams;
CSI: Dr. Dan Gerendasy;
NIA: Ms. Charlene Wiggins;
NIH/OD: Dr. Stafano Bertuzzi;
NINDS: Ms. Stacy Chambers;
ORF: Ms. Jessica Hancock;
NEI: Dr. Mary Frances Cotch;
NIDCD: Dr. Lana Shekim;
Scientists Without Borders: Dr. Evelyn Strauss;
FIC: Dr. Michael Johnson, Dr. Karen Hofman, Ms. Tina Chung, Mr. Thomas Mampilly, Mr. Jeff Gray, Mr. Kevin Bialy, Ms. Kripa Raghavan, Dr. Barbara Sina

Meeting Schedule for 2009

Directory of Representatives

Archives of Past IC Reps Meetings