Thursday, May 2, 2024
5/2/2024
We propose to create a Tropical Island Training Center (TITC) for vector-borne disease management. The US islands of the Caribbean and Pacific have many serious problems in common related to vector-borne diseases (VBD) but have received less attention than they deserve; especially considering that they are important invasion routes for VBDs into the mainland US. The TITC would have its headquarters in San Juan, Puerto Rico, near the existing CDC Dengue Branch and the PR Department of Health. It would be housed at the headquarters of the Puerto Rico Vector Control Unit. A second campus would be in Guam and operated through the Pacific Island Health Officers’ Association and the Guam Department of Health. A third site, at the Navy Entomology Center of Excellence in Jacksonville, FL, would offer advanced training in specialized and emerging technologies not currently available on tropical islands. Examples of this type of training would include genomics of insecticide resistance, next generation sequencing for vector management, surveillance and monitoring of important disease vectors and creating location-specific mosquito lines containing control agents such as Wolbachia. The TITC would be managed by a steering committee comprising one representative from each US territory and affiliated island countries in the Pacific and Caribbean. The directors of each of the three training center sites would serve as a non-voting ex officio member of the committee. Finally, a Technical Advisory Committee would advise the Steering Committee on scientific and technical issues, particularly with respect to evaluating new tools and techniques in VBD. The TITC’s primary mission will be to train vector management personnel and paraprofessionals. Most trainees would come from vector management staff on the islands, vector management staff from off-island, and graduate students/post-doctoral scholars/early career professionals either on- or off-island. In support of graduate training, the TITC would provide initial support needed to establish a tenure-track faculty member in the field of Public Health Entomology at the University of Puerto Rico, Department of Biology and School of Medicine. This position would be an extension/teaching position and would be the first academic position in the US islands in this field. This faculty member would continue to produce new island-based public health entomologists and further vector management on the islands for decades to come. An additional mission will be to evaluate technologies, techniques, and products which are nearing implementation and, where applicable, regulatory approval. Finally, the TITC would establish a large network of partnerships in government, academia, industry, military, and non-profit organizations. This network would synergize future directions for the TITC. The TITC would serve as a training resource for the CDC Centers of Excellence (COEs) in Vector Borne Disease. The current COEs have a clientele that could benefit from training on these islands but the COEs themselves have not budgeted for training on tropical islands. The TITC will enact a travel grant program that would enable COE trainees to receive training in a tropical environment. This proposal contains a two-part training evaluation component. In one component, evaluations will target knowledge gained through training, identify how training can be improved, and have follow-up assessments in subsequent years to document how well training lessons have been retained. In another component, new tools and techniques for VBD will be evaluated for adoption in VBD programs. Finally, the TITC will come with an extensive network of partnerships in government, industry, military, academia, and NGO’s. Through this training center, this network will be reinforced and extended to make the TITC a major training destination for anyone needing exposure to VBD management in the tropics.
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).
