July 2007 Report
Summary:
The month of July was characterized by steady work in the molecular biology lab, and continuing field work on the Epidemiology Pilot study.
The lab benefited from several students, including one post-graduate from the University of Zambia working on her master's degree under Dr. Mharakurwa's supervision.
Data entry on the Epidemiology study began on site at MIAM, and after a few small glitches, has proceeded smoothly.
The USAID-funded building projected continued to make good progress, though faced a constant challenge of finding enough cement supply to keep the three buildings moving forward. The strengthening of the Zambian Kwacha to the US dollar also made costs of building supplies higher than expected.
I - General Site Development and Maintenance
The MIAM campus was wind-blown and dusty during the cold month of July, with general upkeep and maintenance of buildings being carried out daily. A short that developed in an electrical switch in one of the guest flats gave some visitors a "shocking experience" when they tried to take a shower or wash dishes, but the problem was found and fixed rapidly by the MIAM maintenance department.
Construction of a brick walkway was begun between the molecular biology lab and the office block and clinical research lab. This will prove helpful in the rainy season, decreasing the tracking of mud into the buildings.
The back-up generator was used intermittently due to national electrical grid outages, but not as frequently as was the case in June.
Late in the month a well-driller rig from Choma was contracted to come and drill a second borehole for the campus. Unfortunately, the first attempt was a dry hole. Not only was there disappointment on the dry hole, but to make things worse, as the driver of the rig was moving the truck (without consulting with any MIAM people on where to drive), the truck went over a large concrete cover for a sewage system behind the office/library, and caused a cave-in. The company has agreed to repair the damages caused, and the rig was scheduled to return the first week of August for another attempt at finding a second well for the campus water system.
II - Construction of Buildings
The new Staff House "C", now renamed "Mosquito House", was occupied in July. Three single male MIAM employees were assigned to live there.
The last three-bed-roomed staff house to be built under the USAID-funded project (House "D") continued to make slow progress, with brick laying completed to above window frame level for most of the house by month's end. There was some delay due to lack of door frames and one window frame needed for the house.
Concrete work in the kitchen/dining room moved well during July, with all walls plastered and most of the floors poured. Carpentry, electrical, plumbing and painting work continued. The country as a whole has been experiencing a significant cement shortage, but the Maintenance Manager has always managed to find more just before the stocks ran out.
The dormitory had walls about 70% plastered by month's end, with preparations being made for pouring of the concrete floors. Steel security doors were fabricated and welded locally at the MIAM workshop, and mounted on the two large doors on the north end of the building. Electrical work is approximately 50% done, with plumbing and carpentry work begun.
III - Information Technology
The internet system was reliable throughout the month, although there were some slow downs due to the VSAT provider's earth stations needing to be serviced at times.
MIAM and LinkNet have still not entered into a formal agreement for LinkNet to act as the Internet Service Provider (ISP), but now that LinkNet is a separate legal entity in Zambia with its own bank account, we expect this process to move forward.
IV - Vehicles/Transport
The original FUSO lorry was heavily used during July, hauling sand and stones for the construction work. As soon as all the sand and stone needed to complete the USAID-funded project has been hauled, the plan is to sell this truck.
The other MIAM vehicles were well maintained and kept running throughout the month, though the Pajero was still being repaired in Lusaka at the end of the month. The fault has finally been found in the fuel line, and the mechanic assured us that as soon as the computer chip was re-programmed at the Mitsubishi dealership, the Pajero should be back on the road.
V - Research Activities
Entomology: Field entomology work was low during July, with some spray catches still being done in houses under the Epidemiology Pilot study. Efforts continue to maintain a viable anopheline colony in the insectary. The automatic timer/dimmer switch for the insectary has still not been acquired from a supplier in South Africa.
Epidemiology and GIS: Data gathered over the past several years from the Geographical Reconnaissance project continued to be analyzed and prepared for inclusion in a manuscript being authored by Prof Shiff at Hopkins. The members of the Epidemiology Pilot study team continued to work in the field three days a week in the area west of Macha, with some resistance met by some of the households randomly selected. This required additional meetings with local headmen and health centre/health post workers, to try and understand the causes of the reluctance to participate.
Molecular Biology: The lab remained a busy place, with at times nine people working in it, including some short term volunteers and students. Under Dr. Mharakurwa's leadership, the Fitness study continued to generate the most work. A post grad student from the Masters in Parasitology program at UNZA, spent several weeks at MIAM working on PCRs to look for putative drug resistance markers in samples she had earlier collected in Lusaka.
The second thermal block from the ThermoElectron PCR system remained in the US undergoing repairs.
Tuberculosis Studies: The newly equipped Clinical Research Lab successfully completed the initial TB culture pilot study, in preparation for an up-coming TB drug trial to be carried out at Macha.
Schistosomiasis Studies: The new snail colony continued to propagate, with snails laying eggs almost daily. Infection experiments and subsequent collections of cercariae were scheduled to begin in early August.
VI - Personnel
No new employees were hired by MIAM during July. The Accounts office continues to be managed by the Office Manager and the Admin Director, in the absence of the regular accounting staff. This has allowed us to keep operating, though under a fair amount of heavy work burden, and not all book-keeping is up to date. Several applications have been received from people interested in assuming the accounts assistant role. (This position was left open when the previous accounts assistant resigned rather abruptly to return to school.) A decision was made to delay hiring new staff until cash flow problems have been sorted out with the current core funding stream from JHBSPH-MRI.
Dr. Thuma and Dr. Mharakurwa attended the quarterly meeting of the Roll Back Malaria Research Working Group at the National Malaria Control Centre in Lusaka in late July, giving a presentation on the various research projects being conducted at Macha.