KEY PROGRAM ELEMENTS

The Global Health Scholars (GHS) pilot project was launched in January 2008 and will conclude in 2013. Through this project, the Foundation connected Dr. Conrad Muzoora, a promising young medical researcher from Uganda, with Dr. David Bangsberg, an international leader in HIV treatment strategies based at Harvard Medical School/ Massachusetts General Hospital. The goals of the project are for the protégé to become a:

1. Successful researcher whose work helps provide necessary treatment options for patients who have HIV/AIDS, in addition to another infectious disease, like TB.

2. Positive change agent by cultivating the next generation of doctors and researchers, who will remain in Uganda to help fight life-threatening infectious diseases.

Relevance

The greatest burden of the global health crisis lies in the poorest countries while the highest concentration of global health leadership still resides in regions with the lowest burden of disease. Beyond clinics or medications, expansion of human resource capacity is essential for effective public health delivery in poor regions of the world. The World Health Organization estimates that there are currently 57 countries facing critical shortages of health care workers, and a total global deficit of some 2.4 million doctors, nurses and midwives. Africa in particular bears 24% of the global burden of disease, carries only 3% of the global health workforce, and commands less than 1% of world health expenditure. The GHS project aims to develop leadership that better reflects the global burden of disease. Drawing on the global health expertise of Harvard University, and the resources of Harvard and the Maybach Foundation, the Global Health Scholars Project works to establish the next generation of global health leadership in regions that need it the most. Balanced leadership will create more enduring, efficient, and sustainable partnerships to solve the world’s greatest global health challenges.

The Protégé

Dr. Muzoora (30) is a promising young doctor and researcher from Mbarara, Uganda. He received his medical degree in Medicine and Surgery as well as a Masters in Medicine in Internal Medicine from Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) and a double Bachelor’s Degree in Medicine and Surgery. Dr. Muzoora is now a Lecturer in the Department of Internal Medicine at MUST. He is married and has three children.

Dr. Muzoora is exceptionally dedicated to fighting infectious diseases. He is particularly concerned with the difficulty Uganda faces in retaining its most promising healthcare workers and is committed to improving the community where he was raised and educated. He will do so by teaching new generation of medical researchers and practitioners by offering best available clinical services and treatment to local patients, and by conducting important medical research. The Maybach Foundation believes that Dr. Muzoora is a force behind his community, a leader and role model who is able to produce results and empower others.

The Mentor

Dr. David Bangsberg (45) is Associate Professor at the Harvard School of Medicine and the Director of the International Programs for the Harvard University Center for AIDS Research and Partners AIDS Research Center. He is the Director of the Harvard Global Health Scholars Program at the Harvard Initiative for Global Health. He was the second highest RO-I investigator in HIV/AIDS in 2007 and has over 120 peer reviewed publications. Dr. Bangsberg leads the HIV research program at MUST, which focuses on structural, economic and social barriers to treatment access and adherence, including transportation and food insecurity.

Project Components

As part of the AHS project the Foundation provides:

• Medical research mentorship
• Statistical analysis and methodology courses
• Access to high-level sector specific conferences
• Public speaking and writing training
• Training on solicitation of opportunities for publication and funding
• Networking opportunities at high-level sector-specific conferences
• Coaching on the development of concrete objectives that will enable protégé to achieve his personal goal of contributing to the development of a strong core of global health leaders in his country

 

Positive Change (Multiplier Effect)

There is a critical shortage of health care professionals living and working in Africa, due to lack of educational opportunity, economic and political instability, and high attrition rates. This phenomenon has also been described as ‘brain drain’. Through the Foundation’s support, Dr. Muzoora receives training from leading healthcare professionals who work with him to ensure that he is able to receive funding for his research by writing successful proposals, getting published in professional journals, and presenting his findings at international conferences. In turn, Dr. Muzoora mentors undergraduate and graduate students locally to raise the level of professional opportunity and growth in Uganda.

Expansion of the Project

Dr. Muzoora's success provided the inspiration and critical proof-of-concept for Harvard’s decision to expand the program to additional countries including Tanzania, South Africa and China. Harvard University and the Maybach Foundation are planning to continue their cooperation in the context of the Global Health Scholars Program.

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