# Expanding HIV testing among Ugandan adults who utilize traditional healers

> **NIH NIH K23** · WEILL MEDICAL COLL OF CORNELL UNIV · 2021 · $44,898

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The purpose of the proposed Mentored Patient-Oriented Career Development Award (K23) is to provide the
candidate with training and research experiences that will promote her development to independent researcher
as an HIV interventionist, specializing in expanding HIV care to communities who utilize Traditional Healers
rather than biomedical facilities. The proposed training will provide her with the opportunity to develop
knowledge and skills in: 1) quantitative methods needed to analyze cross-sectional, longitudinal and cohort
data; 2) mixed-methods approaches to studying HIV and modeling HIV-related health behavior; and 3) theory,
design and implementation of socio-structural interventions. Training activities will include didactic coursework
and specific workshops, directed readings and one-on-one tutorials with mentors, and instruction in the
responsible conduct of research. The candidate will receive mentorship from a Training Team comprised of
globally renowned experts in the fields of HIV epidemiology, mixed methods research, and socio-structural
intervention implementation in low-resource settings. Her applied research training will take place in Mbarara,
Uganda in collaboration with Mbarara University of Science and Technology. Mbarara District is a rural region,
approximately 275 kilometers southwest of the capital city of Kampala, with an HIV prevalence of nearly twice
the national average (12%). Prior research in Mbarara has demonstrated the importance of Traditional Healers
in providing healthcare for communities in this area, but little is known about Traditional Healer practices or
rates of HIV testing (or HIV infection) among their clients. Specific aims of this study are to: 1) identify key
socio-structural factors that frame HIV testing behaviors among Ugandan adults who utilize Traditional
Healers; 2) investigate acceptability of providing point-of-care HIV testing at Traditional Healer practice
locations; and 3) develop and pilot a prospective HIV testing intervention among Traditional Healer patients to
promote earlier diagnosis. Results will generate effect estimates for parameters needed to inform power
calculations for a subsequent, large-scale cluster-randomized HIV testing intervention at Traditional Healer
practice locations, and will position the candidate to develop an R01 application for submission to NIMH at the
end of the award period. The proposed work represents a high priority research topic designated by the NIH
Office of AIDS Research to “reduce incidence of HIV/AIDS … [by] developing, testing, and implementing
strategies to improve HIV testing and entry into prevention services”.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10401073
- **Project number:** 3K23MH111409-05S1
- **Recipient organization:** WEILL MEDICAL COLL OF CORNELL UNIV
- **Principal Investigator:** Radhika Lu Sundararajan
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $44,898
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2018-07-03 → 2021-10-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10401073

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10401073, Expanding HIV testing among Ugandan adults who utilize traditional healers (3K23MH111409-05S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10401073. Licensed CC0.

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