A Novel Approach to Improving Implementation Science Capacity
Since 2019, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have funded 260 projects through the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the United States (EHE) initiative with the aim of identifying best practices for delivering evidence-based HIV interventions. To coordinate EHE projects and accelerate implementation research and findings, NIH funded eight regional consultation Implementation Science Hubs, including RAISE, and the HIV Implementation Science Coordination Initiative (ISCI), as a national coordinating center.
As ISCI and the Implementation Science Hubs have collaboratively piloted and refined ways to support projects, they have become known as the Capacity-building Hubs to Enhance the Science of HIV Implementation REsearch (CHESHIRE) network. Through its unique capacity-building model, the CHESHIRE network supports rigorous implementation science by providing projects with support services such as technical assistance and cross-project information sharing, measure harmonization, and data synthesis. The CHESHIRE network model is a novel, system-wide approach for rapidly improving implementation science capacity.
To learn more about the incredible progress made through CHESHIRE and the EHE initiative in its first five years, read the 2025 JAIDS Supplemental Issue article, “Building the Road to End the HIV Epidemic Through Coordinating and Capacity-Building Hubs to Enhance the Science of HIV Implementation REsearch (CHESHIRE): Reflections and Directions.” More information is also available through the 2025 hybrid seminar, “Taking Stock of HIV Implementation Research: EHE Findings and CHESHIRE Network Services,” which was co-organized by CHESHIRE and NIH.