Online Program

281009
Indo-US initiatives to mentor mental health professionals to conduct ethical behavioral research


Wednesday, November 6, 2013 : 9:10 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.

Linda Cottler, PhD, MPH, Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health and Health Professions, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Krishna Vaddiparti, PhD, MPE, MSW, Department of Epidemiology/Colleges of Public Health and Health Professions and Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Catherine Striley, PhD, MSW, MPE, Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health and Health Professions, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Sanjeev Jain, MD, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, India
Issues: Behavioral disorders across the lifespan receive little attention, though they contribute to the disease burden in developing and low and middle income countries. There is immense need for training in these regions to enhance research capacity. Description: We have developed an Indo-US training program with the support of the Fogarty International Center collaborating with institutions in Bangalore, India. Our multidisciplinary program includes the expertise needed to understand the complex etiology of mental and behavioral disorders. Training follows an individualized apprenticeship-mentoring model with paired mentors from India and the US. Trainees are offered didactic and individual tutorials and after the fellowship, returning trainees continue their association with mentors in the US and India. Annual workshops conducted in India with trainees and mentors include training in the responsible conduct of research, “elevator talk” preparation, paper reviews, and specific aims development. Lessons Learned: The Indo-US team has made considerable progress building research capacity in India. As of 2012, the training cohort includes 16 trainees devoting from 4 to 36 months of training. Outcomes include: 10 skill building workshops with 1047 participants, 100 speakers from India and the US, 250+ publications in top tier journals; 36 academic awards; and 26 research grants from NIH as well as the Government of India. Recommendations: Our mentoring model proved to be successful in bridging the training gap in India. Based on this experience, our future steps include efforts to build research capacity in the NorthEast Region (Assam and Sikkim) where the need for mentoring is great.

Learning Areas:

Diversity and culture
Ethics, professional and legal requirements
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Discuss elements of mentor-based research training that promote ethical and successful research conduct Identify examples of how to understand and bridge cultural differences in research training

Keyword(s): Research, Collaboration

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been the principal investigator on multiple NIH-funded grants focusing on drug and alcohol use and dependence in vulnerable populations like out-of-treatment drug users, criminal offenders, women and African-Americans.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.