Headquartered in Bangkok, Inform Asia: USAID’s Health Research Program offers a great opportunity for health research strengthening and capacity building in Asia through country-to-country collaboration.

Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Health Research Program helps generate and apply strategic, scientifically sound data in health programming in the region. Malaria, tuberculosis, pandemic influenza, HIV and other emerging infectious diseases pose a significant public health threat throughout Asia, and in particular, the Greater Mekong Sub-region. Headquartered in Bangkok, this five-year program addresses these health threats by supporting health research, building sustainable research capacity and creating a platform for researchers and other stakeholders to access and learn from the program’s initiatives.

IDENTIFYING AND RESPONDING TO REGIONAL RESEARCH NEEDS

The program works with health researchers across Asia to set research priorities, identify assets and gaps in resources and support collaboration between researchers and policymakers. Its aim is to continually put forward evidence which can lead to better health outcomes and supportive health policy in Asia.

STRENGTHENING COUNTRY HEALTH ORGANIZATIONS

The program conducts training and mentoring activities with counterpart research organizations and academic institutions to develop skills in investigative, operational and evaluative research. It will also provide opportunities for formal and self-taught courses to researchers across Asia.

DEVELOPING ACCESS ACROSS BORDERS

Housed at the Thai Red Cross-AIDS Research Center, the program’s Center of Excellence provides a physical and online platform for users and generators of health science to join together in learning, designing, conducting and disseminating findings from high-quality and policy-relevant research. By encouraging greater collaboration among colleagues in the health sector, the program strengthens research methods that generate transparent information.

Program staff have expertise in a range of research and disease areas encompassing qualitative, quantitative, clinical and cost-effectiveness research in HIV (including stigma and discrimination), human papilloma virus, malaria, neglected tropical diseases and tuberculosis. Through an expanding network of collaborators and consultants, and in an effort to address country needs, the program will also draw on the knowledge of experts in other disease areas.

PARTNERS

USAID’s Health Research Program partners with RTI International and the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Center. Together they collaborate with: London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine; Thailand Ministry of Public Health; International Health Policy Program; Institute for Population and Social Research, Mahidol University; Research Institute for Health Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Thailand; Center for HIV/AIDS/STI, Laos; International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh; Survey METER, Indonesia; Health Research and Social Development Forum, Nepal; University of San Carlos, Office of Population Studies, Philippines; National Institute of Health Sciences, Sri Lanka.

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