# Zambia Education Network for Implementation Science Training in Health (ZENITH)

> **NIH NIH D43** · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · 2024 · $295,116

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The nation of Zambia has a generalized HIV epidemic with adult prevalence of 11.0%, but now stands on cusp
of reaching HIV epidemic control. As the HIV epidemic evolves, Zambia needs to develop local implementation
science capacity to address key and vulnerable populations for the last mile epidemic control. To train this
cadre of implementation scientists, we propose the Zambia Education Network for Implementation Science
Training in Health (ZENITH), a partnership between University Teaching Hospital, the premier medical training
site in Zambia, and the University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB), an implementation partner with nearly 20
years of HIV capacity building and medical/technical assistance in Zambia.
The goal of ZENITH is to develop Zambian short, medium, and long-term implementation science capacity at
UTH to address the unmet need of key and vulnerable populations towards attaining sustainable epidemic
control.
 Aim1 : We will build short-term, immediate research capacity by having 25 students (5 per year)
 participate in a new Implementation Science Institute (ISI) in Lusaka to learn basic approaches to
 implementation science research, including methods, biostatistics, qualitative methods, and introduction
 to grant & manuscript writing. This will be a one-month intensive course taught at UTH in January.
 Aim 2: We will build medium-term research capacity by supporting 8 students (2 per year) via the two-
 year Master in Health Sciences (MHS) in Implementation & Dissemination Science at UMB. Virtual
 courses done online in Zambia.
 Aim 3: We will build long-term independent research capacity by supporting 2 students for PhD studies at
UMB, including Epidemiology at UMB Graduate School, and qualitative social science. It is expected that
PhD mentees will take over the ISI by end of the project.
All trainees will be supported by one-on-one mentor meetings, using a twinned mentor model whereby senior
and junior mentors co-supervise the mentee, which will also build mentorship capacity in local junior mentors.
Building on Zambia's deep experience with using ECHO platform to build clinical capacity in HIV, ZENITH
students will participate in a monthly research ECHO seminar to share research progress, journal clubs, and
mentorship.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10807044
- **Project number:** 5D43TW012493-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE
- **Principal Investigator:** Cassidy W. Claassen
- **Activity code:** D43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $295,116
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-04-01 → 2028-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10807044

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10807044, Zambia Education Network for Implementation Science Training in Health (ZENITH) (5D43TW012493-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10807044. Licensed CC0.

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