September 2007 Report
Summary:
The month of September went by quickly, as work continued on several projects, and final arrangements were made to start two new studies in early October.
New staff members joined MIAM, while others were being recruited to fill vital areas.
Visitors to MIAM included a renowned TB lab expert from the national TB reference lab in Netherlands.
Building activities continued, with final touches completed on the dining room/kitchen facility, and good progress made on the electrical and plumbing work for the dormitory.
I - General Site Development and Maintenance
The grounds remained very dry with no rain since May, with water carefully used on a few selected flower beds to keep the campus attractive to visitors.
The final installation and test pumping of the new borehole was completed, with pipes laid to the current water tank and connected into the automatic system that keeps the tank full. This will hopefully allow both deep-well pumps to keep up with the increasing water needs of the expanding campus.
Gravel was hauled in to improve the roadway in certain parts of the campus.
We experienced frequent electrical outages from the national electricity supplier in September, necessitating frequent and sometimes long use of the MIAM back up generator, adding significantly to the operating cost of the institute.
II - Construction of Buildings
The dining room/kitchen facility was completed, with installation of appliances and final fixtures being done in early October.
The dormitory had electrical work completed, plumbing about 80% complete and painting of base coat completed for the most part. Outside sewer and soak-away earth works was completed (with the extensive digging all done by hand), and plumbing was being connected by months end.
House D continued to move slowly, with brick-laying getting to gable level by months end.
III - Information Technology
The big event for September was that MIAM and LinkNet finally signed a Service Level Agreement (SLA) that formalizes the relationship between the two entities. Under the agreement, LinkNet will become the Internet Service Provider (ISP) for the Macha area, including MIAM, and will also maintain and manage the wired and wireless network for MIAM. It is hoped that this arrangement will free MIAM to concentrate on science, and leave the technological aspects of internet service provision to this new legal entity. Costs of internet provision still remain high for rural Africa, and the SLA will not bring about any cost savings for MIAM over the short run, but it is hoped that over several years there may be some cost savings appreciated. Some of the VSAT equipment that is used to provide internet connections will be transferred to LinkNet under a lease/purchase agreement over the next two years.
Two new desktop computers were purchased by MIAM for the employees recently hired, and a laser printer was bought for the molecular biology lab. This expands the total number of MIAM computers to 19 desktop computers and 6 printers, plus three laptops held by senior scientists for use at home and when traveling.
IV - Vehicles/Transport
Vehicles continued to work with no major breakdowns throughout September - just the usual minor repairs necessary to keep them all going on the bad roads.
The new Toyota Hilux ordered from Toyota Gibraltar is now scheduled for delivery in late December and the used Toyota Hilux SURF was due in the country in early October. These two additional vehicles, added to the current two double-cab Toyota pickups, should be ample for the increased level of field work anticipated for early 2008.
The old lorry was still not sold by months end, but several leads are being followed up.
V - Research Activities
Entomology: Over-night field trips continue to Namwala on a regular basis, to obtain mosquito larvae and document the existence and locality of the anopheline mosquito species during the long dry season. Our local entomologist, Mr. Mulenga Musapa, plans to attend the ASTMH meeting in Nov to present a poster on some of his work on the Anophelines.
Epidemiology and GIS: After taking a break in August to catch up on data entry, the Epidemiology study field team under the local coordination of Mr. Harry Hamapumbu, resumed visits to the field in September for the on-going Epi study, which is directed by Dr. Bill Moss and Dr. Snehal Shah. The blood smears collected in previous months continue to be read as fast as possible by Mr. Jay Sikalima, our lab technologist, with the delay in final results due to the need for a second independent reading. Despite several attempts to hire another lab technologist with microscopy training, it appears that this level of lab tech in Zambia is in very high demand, with few of them being available and willing to work in the rural area at a salary level that MIAM can offer.
Molecular Biology: The daily work in this area continued throughout September, primarily by lab scientist Mr. Mtawa Mkulama working with the scientific director Dr. Sungano Mharakurwa, with some problems being experienced due to the frequent voltage fluctuations and outages. Despite having two UPS's to use for the PCR equipment, it appears that they do not fully isolate the electrical output from the input, as advertised, causing certain PCR machines to not work properly. One PCR machine was in the process of being shipped back from the US after repairs, and another proved to be too unreliable to use during this month of frequent voltage fluctuations and outages.
Pharmacokinetic Study: Final approvals were received late in the month from the Zambian Ethics Committee for this study, which will look at the pharmacokinetics of sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine (Fansidar) in 25 pregnant mothers. Plans were finalized by Dr. Janneke van Dijk to begin this study in early October, after Dr Myaing Nyunt arrives from Baltimore to carry out training and help with the study initiation process.
Tuberculosis Studies: September saw good progress in determining that the best way to prove whether the isolates cultured were Mycobacterium tuberculosis or not, was by using the HAIN method introduced and demonstrated to us by Dr. Dick van Soolingen from the Netherlands. His expertise and experience, with more than 180 peer-reviewed publications in this field, was evident in his work and in his lectures. The TB culture facility at MIAM under Dr Sue Penno's direction has now documented its effectiveness and accuracy, and we await final clearance from the University of London, St Georges, as to when the multi-site TB drug study will begin.
Schistosomiasis Studies: This work, being directed by Dr. Clive Shiff, with local lab scientist Miss Sandra Chishimba, continues to keep snail colonies going. Snails were infected with schistosoma haematobium miracidia this month, obtained from children screened in the Namwala district and found to have schistosomiasis in their urine.
HIV/AIDS Studies: The CDC/JHPIEGO funded Pediatric Anti Retroviral Treatment (PART) study, a collaborative research project involving Dr. Janneke van Dijk and Dr. Bill Moss, began enrolling patients in September. The aim is to enroll 150 pediatric patients with HIV/AIDS, and follow them over several years to determine contributing factors to the various outcomes.
VI - Personnel
A newly hired Human Resources and Purchasing Officer, Mr. Fidelis Chanda, began working in the MIAM offices in September. He has been able to bring most employee files up to date, and has been learning the current purchasing system used by MIAM.
An Accounts Assistant, Miss Patricia Haadinke was also hired in September, to work in the accounts office and replace the accounts assistant who had resigned some months ago. An additional Accounts Officer will join MIAM in October, giving us the capacity needed to process the invoices and keep accurate financial records of the increasing number of projects now under MIAM's jurisdiction.
One new grounds keeper/gardener was hired in September to begin preparing the garden behind the new kitchen/dining room, and also help with upkeep around the new buildings on the expanding campus. Two additional housekeeping staff will be hired on a temporary basis in October for the new kitchen/dining room and dormitory facility, since it is planned that these buildings will begin to be used on a regular basis by early 2008.
Dr. Thuma traveled to Nairobi, Kenya during September, to participate in a National Malaria Control Program Best Practices Workshop, attended by representatives from 20 African countries.
Mr. Jay Sikalima attended a training workshop for lab technologists on HIV/AIDS and TB, held in Lusaka in late September.
VII - Other
In a publication by the George Institute, Australia, MIAM was listed as one of 23 sites in Africa that had the capacity to carry out malaria research studies at an international level standard. See page 44, Figure 19 of the following report: The Malaria Product Pipeline - Planning for the Future.
For pictures associated with this month's report, see: September Pictures