RESEARCH AND PROJECT WORK

On the following pages we report on the research and project activities conducted in the SOPH in 2019 and 2020. We introduce several focus areas in some detail, before providing a complete list of all our projects.

The HPSR work intersects with the School’s other research foci in a number of ways. We report on two exciting international projects – the first of which focuses on monitoring the health of women, children and adolescents (Countdown 2030). The other, a UKRI-funded multi-year hub for Accelerating Achievement for Africa’s Adolescents, aims to determine which combination of ‘accelerator’ services or interventions (from across the health, education, social and economic sectors) can most efficiently help adolescents achieve their potential across multiple life domains and SDG targets. Other projects in the School also explore public health challenges faced by adolescents, from the impact of violence to access to health services.

WHAT WE DO: Teaching, Research, Advocacy, Policy work that inform each oth er THEMES: Social determinants

* Equity

Gender * Governance * Health systems and policy

HOW WE WORK: In partnership and community-based Locally and internationally Non-communicable diseases * Food security Pharm public health * Mental public health HIV * Maternal and child health * Men’s health * Sexual & reproductive health Inter-disciplinary, inter-sectorally Supporting open access & open source

The School’s research is characterised by its collaborative nature. The list of partners in this report reflects the extensive network of links we have with local and international academic institutions, health sector partners, local community organisations and international development organisations. This work is supported by a wide range of funders, both large and small, which include, among others, the EU, NIH, IDRC, NRF, SAMRC and the Belgian government. Health Policy and Systems Research (HPSR) remains a cornerstone of our work, clustered around, and supported by, two SARChI Chairs in Health Systems and an Extra-Mural SAMRC Research Unit (Health Services to Systems). The resources generated by the chairs and the extra-mural research unit provide us with invaluable opportunities to shape and advance HIV/AIDS remains an research agendas of important programmatic importance to the Global area of work, with South and to invest projects exploring in nurturing the next the acceptability generation of academics and feasibility of a in HPSR through doctoral family intervention to bursaries and post- improve ART adherence doctoral fellowships. (Sinako); and interventions to improve adherence Over the past two years and retention in care for we worked closely with the adolescents on anti-retroviral Western Cape Government as therapy in the Western Cape. they explored inter-sectoral collaboration in the Whole of Society Food security, food choices and Approach to governing. Collaborative their interaction with non-communicable governance has also been the focus of the diseases, as well as pharmaceutical public health, Mphatlalatsane Project, a multi-partner and have continued to feature strongly in our research comprehensive maternal and newborn care portfolio. We report on a collaboration with the strengthening initiative in three provinces. University of Rwanda, lending our expertise in curriculum and materials development to support The interface between formal health systems and their development of a Regional Centre of Excellence community systems runs as a thread through much for Vaccines, Immunization and Health Supply Chain of our HPSR, sometimes more, sometimes less Management, a project funded by Health Research for explicitly. In this report we highlight the development Action (HERA), Belgium. of an Action Learning Fellowship programme for the Community Action Networks (CANs) during the Besides the articles highlighting specific projects, our COVID-19 pandemic, which allowed eight community summary of projects (from page 38) gives an overview organisers/activists from a number of different CANs of the full breadth and depth of the SOPH’s research to work together throughout the course of 2020 to endeavours. facilitate a range of cross-CAN activities.