Undertaking high-quality research and translating its findings into policy and practice requires effective development of the capacity of people, institutions and systems. The Capacity Research Unit (CRU) aids the design and evaluation of such initiatives by generating evidence-based processes and indicators which can indicate that capacity building is likely to be sustainable, and can be adapted to suit a variety of health and non-health contexts.
CRU currently co-ordinates and supports training and networks for blood transfusion research through T-REC. PhD candidates and in-service professionals were able to present their findings alongside our team at a conference in August to stakeholders who can influence national and regional policies.
With the Royal Society and DFID, collaborative consortia between African universities and UK partners are producing sustainable research networks to enable the development, implementation, and monitoring of locally-owned strategies for improving doctoral programmes.
Supporting the Neglected Tropical Disease theme on the design, monitoring and evaluation of capacity development initiatives, CRU is helping laboratories worldwide become regional centres of excellence for lymphatic filariasis.
