CBEC-KEMRI BIOETHICS TRAINING INITIATIVE

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Abstract An exponential increase in human subjects research in low and middle income countries (LMIC's) in the last two decades has not been accompanied by a commensurate increase in trained bioethicists, resulting in a critical gap for research regulation. Kenya has 22 accredited Institutional Research Ethics Committees (IREC) each with 10-15 members. To address this, the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) in partnership with the Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Culture (CBEC) in Karachi, Pakistan, seek to strengthen capacity for bioethics training in the two countries through the establishment of the CBEC-KEMRI Bioethics Training Initiative (CK-BTI), that offers a Masters in Bioethics (MBE), Post- Graduate Diploma (PGD) and Certificate Courses in Bioethics. Specifically, this collaborative training initiative will train core faculty for Kenya (Aim 1), To train core faculty for Kenya: building initial bioethics capacity for a sustainable program, (Aim 2) To build an innovative and collaborative curriculum in bioethics for Kenya (Aim 3) To offer locally available Post Graduate Diploma and Masters in Ethics degree courses (Aim 4) To rapidly build capacity for review for REC by offering certificate courses and to design a practicum which includes hands on experience on how to manage an REC secretariat for REC members for both Kenya and Pakistan. Under the CK-BTI, a total of 350 Kenyan participants will be trained as follows: 8 MBE students, 22 PGD students and 320 certificate participants. In addition, 30 Pakistani scholars comprising 10 MBE candidates and 20 CBEC-linked participants will undertake a practicum at KEMRI to enrich their practical understanding of ethical issues using a culturally-diverse research environment, as well as enhance their hands-on skills in the running of a busy IRB office. CK-BTI will offer three unique and innovative features: modular training which encompasses a distance learning component suitable for a diverse applicant base, practical experience at the KEMRI Scientific and Ethics Review unit (SERU) designed to impact the function of committees and IRB secretariats, and lastly to provide a rich cross-cultural bioethics experience. This initiative will target participants from the medical research field, health care professionals, members of RECs and trainees from diverse backgrounds, which will ensure that a wide range of Institutions of higher learning, and RECs in Kenya and Pakistan benefit from the training. We plan to develop a critical mass of well-trained professionals, academics, research scientists, and other health professionals in Kenya and Pakistan with in-depth and practical knowledge of ethical considerations, concepts and applications in social, biomedical, clinical and public health research areas and who will impact their institutions and be leaders of bioethics in their respective countries.