Saturday, December 21, 2024
12/21/2024
Oluwakemi Odukoya MBBS, MPH, FMCPH, a candidate for the Emerging Global Leader Award (K43), is an academic community health physician, with a strong professional interest in developing interventions to address lifestyle risk factors for non-communicable diseases in faith-based settings in Sub-Saharan Africa, with an initial focus on Nigeria. Dr. Odukoya’s research is focused on adapting research-tested interventions (generated in high income countries), to address physical activity and unhealthy eating in low and middle-income countries where the burden of ill health is greatest. She also seeks to develop and test the effect of introducing faith-based text messages to support the adapted intervention. She will use the K43 award to acquire new skills and structured learning experiences in order to launch a fully independent research career. The goals of this award are to: 1) Build on existing knowledge and acquire new knowledge and skills in Advanced Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Implementation science research, and Community-based participatory research techniques; 2) Continue to foster established mentoring relationships and skills transfer to acquire specific hands on skills to successfully conduct the pilot research project; 3) Use the opportunity afforded by the protected time and research training to design studies, analyze data and draft manuscripts for publications in high-impact journals from the ongoing research projects of her mentors, as well as her proposed K43 research; and 4) Develop and submit competitive research grant applications and ultimately launch into research independence in the design of research-tested interventions, directed at lifestyle risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in low and middle income countries (LMICs). These goals will be achieved under a complimentary group of experienced mentors. Professors Akin Osibogun (Nigeria-based) and Kola Okuyemi (USA-based) will serve as her primary mentors. They both have considerable expertise in mentoring early career investigators and in the development, adaptation and evaluation of community-based interventions for behavioral change. While Professor Sade Ogunsola (Nigeria-based and the current Provost at her home institution) will serve as secondary mentor. Prof Ogunsola was recently awarded a multi-year NIH research capacity building grant (1D43TW010134-01), and will provide specific mentoring on managing R01-level grants in LMICs, leadership and overcoming challenges unique to female faculty in LMICs. The primary objective of the proposed study for this K43 award is to design and pilot-test a cultural adaptation of the effective components of two National Cancer Institute (NCI) research-tested church-based interventions i.e. Body and Soul and the Healthy Body Healthy Spirit to increase physical activity and healthy food consumption among Nigerians. The resulting intervention will thereafter, be known as Body Soul and Spirit (BSS). The secondary objective is to understand if, and how best, faith-based text messages may be used to improve the effect of this intervention. Body Soul and Spirit+Plus will be a combination of the BSS and the inclusion of an additional component, i.e. faith-based text messages (i.e. BSS+PLUS). This three-arm group- randomized controlled pilot trial of: BSS, BSS+PLUS and a control/usual care group, will be carried out among parishioners in 12 churches (4 in each group) in the diocese of Lagos Mainland of the Anglican Church of Nigeria. One hundred participants will be recruited in each group and be required to complete surveys at baseline, 3, & 6-month time points. Primary outcome measures include fruit and vegetable intake and the number of minutes spent on moderate to vigorous activities each week.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).