NYU/University of Ghana Cardiovascular Research Training eCapacity Initiative

 描述（由申请人提供）：心血管疾病（CVD）是非洲的主要死亡原因，估计占死亡率和发病率的80%。如果这种流行病不加遏制，加纳和其他撒哈拉以南非洲国家的医疗资源将因心血管相关并发症造成的残疾而耗尽。为了解决这个问题，美国国立卫生研究院福格蒂国际中心（FIC）资助我们的纽约大学/加纳大学心血管研究培训（CaRT）研究所培训当地研究人员进行方法和科学严谨的研究，最终目标是改善加纳和撒哈拉以南非洲的心血管健康。我们有意在加纳而不是美国提供培训的战略，是为了减轻人才外流的风险，而这种风险往往是将非洲学者派往国外接受培训所固有的。我们的长期目标是建立一个可持续的个人网络，这些人在心血管研究的各个方面都受到过非常好的训练，并准备在学术心血管医学中担任领导角色。虽然CaRT课程向学者介绍了信息和通信技术（ICT）资源的基础知识，以协助研究教育和项目，但它不是培训的重点。为了响应FIC要求为中低收入国家的研究人员建立健康研究ICT培训，我们建议利用我们的CaRT计划建立的研究能力，开发一个创新的课程，以扩大ICT的使用，并在加纳建立研究eCapacity。我们提出的CaRT ICT培训和eCapacity计划将完成这些目标：1）建立一个课程，以增加CaRT学员将ICT工具纳入心血管研究所需的知识和技能; 2）为CaRT学员提供持续的面对面和在线ICT支持; 3）评估CaRT ICT课程和eCapacity建设的有效性。我们建议的强化课程包括教学课程，向学员介绍信息和通信技术术语词典、教育通信和技术理论，以及开展卫生研究的免费信息和通信技术资源范例。将与CaRT学员和导师合作，根据易用性和进行高保真研究的先进功能选择ICT工具。学员还将通过研究学徒制学习，在自己的研究中使用ICT资源。我们将为研究设计和数据收集提供iPad mini设备，学员将获得当地培训的ICT专家的技术支持，并通过远程学习技术访问纽约大学的呼叫中心。通过进一步发展我们的课程，强调研究信息和通信技术，我们将建立三个群体的研究信息和通信技术，谁分享他们的技能与当地合作者，从而提高加纳的研究eCapacity进行心血管健康研究。

 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in Africa, accounting for an estimated 80% of the mortality and morbidity. If this epidemic is left unabated, the scant medical resources in Ghana and other Sub- Saharan African (SSA) countries would be depleted by the disability from cardiovascular-related complications. To address this issue, the NIH Fogarty International Center (FIC) funded our NYU/University of Ghana Cardiovascular Research Training (CaRT) Institute to train local researchers in skills to conduct methodologically and scientifically rigorous research with the ultimate goal of improving cardiovascular health in Ghana and SSA. Our deliberate strategy of providing training in Ghana rather than the United States is to mitigate the risk of brain drain that is often inherent in sending African scholars abroad for training. Our long- term goal is to produce a sustainable network of individuals who are exceedingly well trained in various aspects of cardiovascular research and poised to assume leadership roles in academic cardiovascular medicine. Although the CaRT curriculum introduces scholars to the basics of information and communication technology (ICT) resources available to assist with research education and projects, it is not a focus of training. In response to the FIC request to establish health research ICT training for researchers in low and middle income countries, we propose to leverage the research capacity established by our CaRT program to develop an innovative curriculum for expanding the use of ICT and for building research eCapacity in Ghana. Our proposed CaRT ICT training and eCapacity initiative will complete these aims: 1) Establish a curriculum for increasing CaRT trainees knowledge and skills necessary for incorporating ICT tools into their cardiovascular research; 2) Provide continuous in person and online ICT support for CaRT trainees; 3) Evaluate the effectiveness of the CaRT ICT curriculum and eCapacity building. Our proposed enhanced curriculum includes didactic courses to introduce trainees to the ICT lexicon of terminology, educational communications and technology theory, and exemplars of freely available ICT resources for conducting health research. ICT tools will be selected in partnership with CaRT trainees and mentors based on ease of use and advanced features for conducting high fidelity research. Trainees will also learn through research apprenticeships, using ICT resources in their own research. We will provide iPad mini devices for research design and data collection, and trainees will have access to technical support from locally trained ICT experts and a NYU based call center accessible via distance learning technology. By further developing our curriculum to emphasize research ICT, we will establish three cohorts of ten adaptable users of research ICT, who share their skills with local collaborators, thereby increasing Ghana's research eCapacity for conducting cardiovascular health research.