The 3rd KRTC Scientific Retreat at the Mnarani Club on January 20th, 2018 was kicked off with a warm welcome from Ruth Nduati and Peter Cherutich, followed by a KRTC Overview presentation by Carey Farquhar.
Some highlights from the event include the Research Priorities and Future Directions discussions, led by Grace John-Stewart and Nelly Mugo, in which facilitators held small and large group discussions to identify key research successes and upcoming important topics of research. These topics included:
- Basic Science and Research – Walter Jaoko and Julie Overbaugh
- Cardiovascular Disease and Noncommunicable Diseases – Carey Farquhar and Tecla Temu
- Reproductive Health and Family Planning – Nelly Mugo and Alison Roxby
- Pediatric HIV and Coinfections – Sylvia LaCourse and Dalton Wamalwa
Another area of interest was the Education and Training segment, a brief overview of current training opportunities, led by Carey Farquhar and John Kinuthia, followed by small group discussions answering the questions: How are we doing? What is working? What are we missing? in the following areas:
-
- Mentoring – Kenneth Ngure and Jared Baeten
- Distance Learning and Short-Courses – Brandon Guthrie and Dalton Wamalwa
- Non-HIV Research Training – Anne Njoroge and Judy Wasserheit
- Lab Training – Bhavna Chohan and Jenn Maroa Mabuka
- Clinical Training and Exchanges – Susan Graham and Alfred Osoti
- Professional Development – Beatrice Wamuti and Aliza Monroe-Wise
- Staff Development –Margaret Ndegwa, Tony Odhiambo, and Julia Dettinger
Finally, the day was capped off with Strengthening Partnerships and Supporting the Next Generation of Investigators, a discussion led by Ruth Nduati and Alison Roxby, on how to strengthen and expand KRTC partnerships, and how to better support current and future investigators.
Thank you to everyone whose hard work made this event such a wonderful success!