PAMAfrica trainings

Impact of WP 4

Capacity-building activities within PAMAfrica will strengthen the research capacity and capability of each clinical trial site to operate to the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) standards, to deliver clinical trials on time and within budget, and to defined quality and ethical standards. Workshops such as Quality Management System (QMS), grant writing and scientific research management will assist sites to be self-sustaining and continue to deliver high-quality trials in the future.

In 2020, WP 4 activities were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic – travel bans and local shutdowns made face-to-face training impossible. As a result, these training workshops were replaced with virtual and digital learning to ensure that planned training could be delivered to support the Work Packages and develop capacity at PAMAfrica-supported trial sites.

PAMAfrica is now is in its third year; during the first 2 years the following training activities were performed:

  • Introductory Good Clinical Practice/Good Clinical Laboratory Practice (GCP/GCLP): courses were attended by a total of 133 participants (38 women, 95 men) Introductory courses were delivered by Fundaçao Manhiça.
  • Full GCP and GCLP courses were offered online on an accredited platform delivering certificates: 68 participants (22 women; 46 men) have completed the GCP course, 53 participants have successfully completed the GCLP course (17 women; 36 men).
  • Introductory QMS courses delivered by Sandjaw Clinical Research Ltd (SCRL) were conducted across 20 sites: 199 participants (67 women, 132 men).
  • Full digital QMS course was developed by SCRL: 35 participants (16 women, 19 men) have completed the course and obtained certificates so far.
  • Specific microscopy training was provided by Swiss TPH on behalf of Novartis for Work Package 3 clinical trial – 16 microscopists were trained (9 women, 7 men).
  • The participants of these courses were mainly Principal Investigators (PIs) and Co-PIs, medical doctors, data managers, pharmacists, lab technicians, nurses, microscopists, data entry clerks or biologists.
  • Health research ethics trainings were provided by the ISGlobal team for Ethics Committee members; two sessions were held with a total of 56 participants (14 women, 42 men).