Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Partnership (SHARP) for Mental Health Capacity Building - Capacity-Building

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CAPACITY BUILDING CORE – ABSTRACT The Capacity Building Core (CBC) for the sub-Saharan Africa Regional Partnership for Mental Health Capacity Building (SHARP) responds to the large mental health treatment gap in sub-Saharan Africa by targeting both researchers and policy makers through capacity building initiatives. These initiatives include developing implementation research and research application skillsets, providing opportunities for applying newly acquired skills, and creating a platform for outcome driven dialogue between researchers and policymakers. CBC activities will benefit from UNC’s demonstrated expertise in the fields of implementation science and mental health and the institution’s strong existing partnerships with the Malawi Ministry of Health, University of Malawi College of Medicine, Partners in Health, Tanzania Ministry of Health, and Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences. The CBC proposes to (1) provide a short course program for key skills to ensure participants can design and conduct implementation research on contextually appropriate, evidence-based mental health interventions and translate that research into routine practice; (2) develop a multi-faceted platform to facilitate dialogue between researchers and policymakers in governmental, academic, and non-governmental institutions; (3) provide opportunities to engage in applied implementation science research and apply for pilot grants involving research and policy teams; and (4) create a Mentor the Mentors program to develop researcher and policymakers trainees who can serve as independent mentors to medical and public health students. Our proposed program ensures that researchers and policymakers will have both the skills and infrastructure needed to meaningfully appraise and efficiently apply evidence-based care and treatment models to mental health disorders such as depression, which are prevalent in LMIC settings and associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Our approach reflects an appreciation of the LMIC context and an understanding that sustained capacity rests on engaging trainees with a breadth of perspectives and providing them with a depth of knowledge and structured opportunities to practice and share that knowledge. Our multi- pronged approach has been designed by a dedicated cohort of local and international experts with a proven record of mentorship and meaningful collaboration and holds the promise of bringing transformative and transferable change to LMICs burdened by high mental health care treatment gaps.