Post-Graduate Courses and Workshops - The Union Conference 2023

Post-Graduate Courses

TB modelling and analysis consortium: an introduction to tuberculosis modelling

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 14:00 CEST

This course is designed for individuals interested in modelling TB and the impact of TB care and prevention programmes. It will introduce participants to the basic structure, assumptions, principles, and concepts of TB modelling, including key aspects of the natural history of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and the impact and cost-effectiveness of TB care and prevention programmes. Participants will gain hands-on experience of using a TB model and how to appraise TB modelling papers. The role of modelling in policy and decision-making will be highlighted and participants will be informed of the resources available from the TB Modelling and Analysis Consortium (www.tb-mac.org).

Session organiser: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and University of Cape Town

Chairs: Sandip Mandal, Indian Council of Medical Research and Katherine Horton, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Coordinators: Finn McQuaid, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Leigh Johnson, University of Cape Town

Target audience: TB & HIV researchers, Heads of National TB Programmes, Clinicians, Decision-makers, and Epidemiologists.

Price: The registration fee is 150€ until 15 October and will increase to 180€ after this date. Please book your seat during your registration process.

Planning and implementing social protection programmes for people affected by TB: an introduction

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 14:00 CEST

Social protection is a non-negotiable component of the End TB strategy and a critical area of investment to strengthening the multisectoral engagement and accountability that is needed to address the social determinants of TB. Nonetheless, most high TB burden countries still lack the required ‘know how’ to ensure that social protection is effectively included in their programmatic response to TB. In summer 2023, WHO will release the first guidance on social protection for people affected by TB to address this gap and support the establishment of strong and sustainable synergies with the social protection sector.

This course builds upon the content of this guidance and aims to promote its uptake by providing participants with an introduction to:

The key concepts and definitions used in social protection and the role of social protection in the context of the End TB strategy.
The planning of social protection programmes for people affected by TB.
The implementation of TB-sensitive and TB-specific social protection programmes and the relative role of TB programmes in both approaches.
A preliminary list of indicators and approaches for systematic monitoring and evaluation of the implementation and effectiveness of social protection programmes.
Models of multisectoral collaboration between social protection, TB, and other services.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Have a more solid theoretical and practical understanding of how to effectively implement, monitor, and evaluate social protection programmes for people affected by TB.

Session organizer: World Health Organization

Coordinators: Delia Boccia, WHO and Ernesto Jaramillo, WHO

Target audience: TB programme managers, staff from ministries of health, consultants, researchers, staff from technical agencies.

Price: The registration fee is 150€ until 15 October and will increase to 180€ after this date. Please book your seat during your registration process.

TBData4Action in one day – using routine data for quality improvement of TB prevention, case finding and case holding

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 14:00 CEST

The objective of this course is to introduce a simple and user-friendly approach how health staff and managers at facility, district and other sub-national levels can analyse their own routine TB data. Key indicators covering the main components of TB programmes are compared with expected values to identify strengths and challenges of TB services and to agree on action points targeting these challenges. The approach is implemented through strengthened supportive supervision which is data-driven, using check lists with summary tables and through quarterly performance review meetings. The approach was developed by the NTP and The Union in Zimbabwe, is described in Union’s Orange guide and taught in Union’s international TB courses. Several sub-Saharan African countries will present experiences from country level implementation. Participants will acquire skills in tabulation, analysis and use of routine data for strengthening clinical and programme management through practical examples and exercises.

The approach strengthens implementation of the End TB Strategy by focusing on the facility level where persons with TB are increasingly being diagnosed and treated and district level which monitors the network of facilities, identifying both “hot” and “cold” spots where early TB case detection should be strengthened. The approach makes local staff motivated, empowered and owners of their data, strengthening data quality, content of supervision, follow-up of training, supplies, usefulness of new tools and ultimately contributes to quality patient care.

The approach is well aligned with the conference theme of Transforming evidence into practice as it contributes to understanding of ‘evidence’ that is routine TB data in programmatic registers and strengthens local level use of these data translating them into practices to improve TB services.

Session organizers: The Union and Norwegian Health Association

Chairs: Kobto Koura, The Union and Sithabiso Dube, The Union Zimbabwe Trust

Coordinators: Riita Dlodlo, The Union and Einar Heldal, Norwegian Health Association

Target audience: TB program staff at all levels, HIV program staff at all levels, Technical consultants, and Health policy decision-makers

Price: The registration fee is 150€ until 15 October and will increase to 180€ after this date. Please book your seat during your registration process.

Essentials of nutritional assessment for tuberculosis researchers

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 14:30 to 17:30 CEST

Globally, approximately 800 million people suffer from chronic undernourishment. Undernutrition is the leading risk factor for TB worldwide, with impacts on TB incidence and treatment outcomes.

The objectives of this post-graduate course are:

To understand the association between undernutrition and tuberculosis and its potential consequences.
To understand biochemical, anthropometric, and survey-based measures of nutritional assessment and how to utilize them.
To undertake hands-on training in anthropometry.

Specific skills

Appropriate usage of laboratory testing and interpretation for undernutrition
Hands-on anthropometric skills and techniques
Best practices for conducting undernutrition assessments

Knowledge to be gained

Undernutrition is the leading TB risk factor worldwide. The relationship between undernutrition and TB is bi-directional. Accounting for nutritional status in epidemiological and translational studies of TB is critical to avoid the effects of unmeasured confounding. Whether we are assessing the effect of a new drug, a new vaccine, or new adherence technology, undernutrition is a key variable to consider. This course is designed to help TB researchers understand the various avenues for nutritional assessment including anthropometry, biochemical assessments, and surveys and then incorporate these tools into their study design.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Understand the association between undernutrition and tuberculosis and its potential consequences.
Understand biochemical, anthropometric, and survey-based measures of nutritional assessment and how to utilize them.
Have hands-on training in anthropometry.
Have tools for collecting high-quality, reliable nutritional data in the field and integrating nutritional status into their existing or future studies.

Session organizers: Boston Medical Centre

Chairs: Pranay Sinha, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine and Madhavi Bhargava, Yenepoya Medical College.

Coordinators: Madolyn Dauphinais, Boston Medical Centre

Target Audience: TB & HIV researchers, Clinicians, Advocates, Epidemiologists.

Price: The registration fee is 150€ until 15 October and will increase to 180€ after this date. Please book your seat during your registration process.

Workshops

Lessons learned from the multi-country BPaL introduction and ways forward to the programmatic scale-up

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 11:00 CEST

The objective of this workshop is to educate participants on lessons learned from the multi-country introduction of BPaL under operational research conditions and efforts for programmatic scale-up. The session will present a roadmap for programmatic management aspects, the monitoring and evaluation framework, and tools and resources as part of a “knowledge package” developed by the LIFT-TB project for the BPaL/M programmatic rollout.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Assess readiness, identify milestones, and create a tentative timeline for BPaL/M programmatic scale-up.
Adapt the existing monitoring and evaluation framework and TB surveillance system, create a technical assistance plan, and find local and international partners for support.

Session sponsor: KNCV Tuberculosefonds and TB Alliance

Chairs: Agnes Gabhard, KNCV Tuberculosefonds and Sandeep Juneja, TB Alliance

Coordinators: Veriko Mirtskhulava, KNCV Tuberculosefonds and Maria Diachenko, TB Alliance

Target audience: TB Program managers, Reference laboratory managers, Cliicians, Researchers, Tuberculosis experts.

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

Eliminating transmission of TB and other airborne pathogens

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 11:00 CEST

TB transmission in health care and congregate settings, especially where drug-resistant TB and/or HIV are highly prevalent, continues to drive the TB epidemic. COVID-19 pandemic made airborne transmission prevention even more critical. Despite increasingly available resources for TB and other airborne infections control interventions, lack of updated knowledge and skills makes implementation of effective and sustainable risk reduction programmes challenging.

The objetive of this workshop is to address a priority based approach to TB infection prevention and control programme development and maintaining airborne pandemic preparedness.

Session sponsor: End TB Transmission Initiative and Stop TB Partnership

Chairs: Carrie Tudor, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and Paul Jensen, Final Approach Inc & Engineers in Public Health

Coordinators: Grigory Volchenkov, Independent consultant and Matsie Mphahlele, The Aurum Institute

Target audience: IPC officers, Clinicians, Nurses, TB laboratory managers, National TB/HIV Program staff

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

A Holistic Approach to Planning for a Digital Adherence Technology Intervention

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 11:00 CEST

Digital adherence technologies (DAT) are an important support tool for people on TB treatment, yet for its success and ultimate relevance for the healthcare system and the people using the technology, it is vital to plan the intervention according to the needs of the people on TB treatment; healthcare providers who support the intervention; the context where the intervention will be rolled out; and the healthcare system as a whole.

With a current focus on adherence support for people on TB treatment, particularly in the era of new TB regimens being rolled-out, adequate planning for a DAT intervention is imperative to ensure sustainability, and to effectively support people, while avoiding the emergence of drug resistance.

The workshop will focus on the planning for a holistic implementation approach, through discussion and exercises, that is context specific and person centered within the framework of real country context experience and research presentations. This workshop is particularly relevant for national TB programmes, ministries of health, Global Fund principal recipients and civil society organizations with funding allocated to the implementation of DATs as an adherence support tool for people on TB treatment.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Plan for DAT implementation by ensuring the intervention is relevant to the context and target group;
Plan for implementation within the framework of intentionally ensuring the end-users and healthcare system needs are kept at the forefront to provide optimal adherence support;
Plan for the utilization of adherence data to support the person on treatment and the healthcare facilities, as well as to strengthen data-driven decision making to build on and improve program activities.
Implement a sustainable, relevant and person centered intervention, that both supports the needs of the person on treatment, and those of the healthcare system.

Session sponsor: B KNCV TB Plus

Chairs: Giorgi Kuchukhidze, WHO Regional Office for Europe

Coordinators: Cristina Celan, Center for Health Policies and Studies and Inez de Kruijf – Carter, KNCV TB Plus

Target audience: National TB Programmes, Global Fund principal recipients, Civil Society Organizations, Ministries of Health, Global Fund Country Coordinating Mechanisms

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

Programmatic implementation of new screening, diagnostic and digital technologies to decentralise and strengthen TB detection

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 08:00 to 14:00 CEST

The objectives of this workshop is to share country experiences on the use of new innovative tools for decentralised TB screening and diagnosis, with a focus on ultraportable digital X-ray systems with artificial intelligence-powered software for the computer-aided detection (CAD) of TB, rapid molecular testing systems for detection of TB and rifampicin resistance at near point-of-care and in community settings, and diagnostics connectivity systems that allow for rapid sending of results and remote monitoring of the performance of instrument fleets.

Participants will learn from the best practices and challenges shared by early implementers of technologies, including as part of the Stop TB Partnership/USAID introducing New Tools Project (iNTP) and other initiatives. Furthermore, through panel discussions and interactive sessions, participants will have the opportunity to identify persisting challenges in the effective programmatic use of new tools for TB detection and collectively develop asks to manufacturers, technical partners and donors to address the identified gaps and challenges, with the goal of facilitating further scale-up in countries.

Session sponsor: Stop TB Partnership, hosted by UNOPS

Chairs: Ya Diul Mukadi, USAID – Infectious Disease Office/Tuberculosis Division, Global Health Bureau and Suvanand Sahu, Stop TB Partnership

Coordinators: Lucy Mupfumi, Stop TB Partnership, Sarah Zaidi, Stop TB Partnership

Target audience: TB program managers, TB reference laboratory managers and professionals, Clinicians and healthcare providers including radiologists, Technical partners, Donors.

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

Introduction and scale up of stool-based testing– sharing country results and practical lessons learned

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 14:30 to 17:30 CEST

The objectives of this workshop is to share lessons learned and practical experiences gained from introduction and scale up of stool-based testing. During the workshop countries will become familiar with required resources needed to support introduction of stool-based testing and the stepwise process for piloting and scaling this intervention. Participants will be oriented on key resources such as the Simple One Step (SOS) standardized training package, Global Laboratory Initiative (GLI) practical manual, generic protocols for pilot design and implementation, standard operation procedures (SOPs), videos in multiple languages, standardized data collection forms, bench aids and other materials. Participants will be introduced to the existing community of practice for countries conducting stool-based testing to exchange challenges and lessons learned. Detailed insights will be provided on the robustness of the SOS stool processing method and stool storage conditions. Countries already implementing stool-based testing will actively share practical experiences during planning, introduction and scale up of routine of stool-based testing with ample time for discussion. Participating countries will be asked to describe the status is of stool-based testing and share plans for scale up. Messages from clinicians will be shared on the role of stool-based testing in the TB diagnostic algorithm and the importance of improving clinical TB diagnosis in children and what can be done to increase access to a bacteriological confirmation. Furthermore, new innovations on the horizon will be presented such as use of stool on the Truenat platform, use of stool swabs, new generation LAM assays, and sequencing of stool specimens.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Start the introduction of stool-based testing or plan to scale up to routine if testing has been commenced in a pilot phase.

Session sponsor: KNCV TB plus

Chairs: Petra de Haas, KNCV TB plus and Amy Piatek, USAID

Coordinators: Eveline Klinkenberg, TB-Connect and Charlotte Colvin, USAID

Target audience: Healthcare providers, National TB Program officers, Implementers, Laboratory personnel, policy makers

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

Arts-based participatory approaches to TB research promoting community empowerment and social change: the photovoice methodology

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 14:30 to 17:30 CEST

Photovoice is a participatory visual research methodology engaging with the lived experiences of people to stimulate dialogue and lead social change within their communities. Photovoice matches ethical photography and community participation to provide platforms for people to document and reflect on their lived experiences and to determine the issues they want to bring to the forefront as they tell their stories. Within global health, photovoice has been applied to engage with the voice of marginalised communities or people who have been marginalised on account of their health issues.

When maintaining fidelity to its foundations rooted in feminist emancipatory work, photovoice has the potential to disrupt the usual research-participant dynamic; to capture through images stories that remain elusive in text or conversation; and to drive community, rights, and gender-based approaches to tuberculosis (TB) prevention and care. Photovoice produces evidence that grabs the attention of the public, practitioners, and policymakers alike.

The objetive of this workshop is to provide an introduction to photovoice methodology instilling ethical photography, authentic engagement, and community leadership in research. It draws on projects in India, Kenya, Malawi, and Nigeria conducted by the ‘Leaving no-one behInd: transforming Gendered pathways to Health for TB’ (LIGHT) Consortium and Social Science & Health Innovation for Tuberculosis (SSHIFTB).

Participants will learn the principles and components of photovoice research as they take part in a mini-photovoice project looking at positionality and power in TB research. The workshop will guide participants in ways to let go of traditional research dynamics and processes in support of the authentic participation of the other.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Understand the participatory and action-oriented paradigm, design, and implementation characterising photovoice research.
Acquire proficiency in photovoice steps and experience in collective analysis using visual and textual data.
Understand ethical dilemmas in photovoice studies and ways of enhancing integrity, participation, and positive impact.

Session sponsor: the LIGHT Consortium

Chairs: Kerry Millington, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

Coordinators: Beate Ringwald, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and Leyla Abdullahi, African Institute for Policy Development

Target audience: Researchers, Policy makers, People affected by TB, TB advocates, Community-based organisations

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

Joint GLI-GDI Workshop: using BPaL/M, diagnostic and treatment aspects

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 14:30 to 17:30 CEST

TB detection, treatment, and care of individuals with TB continue to be a challenge, particularly in settings with a high burden of disease and weakened healthcare infrastructure. WHO has revised its recommendations on treatment regimens impacting what drug susceptibility testing is necessary to administer a correct combination of anti-TB medicines. Testing of susceptibility can be done with both molecular and culture technologies and combining the two and interpreting the results can be challenging. Translating drug susceptibility results into correct regimens is also a barrier to correctly implementing the new drugs available for TB treatment.
The Global Laboratory Initiative (GLI) and the Global Drug-Resistant TB Initiative (GDI) are working towards strengthening laboratory and clinical management capacity for the programmatic management of TB including drug-resistant TB.

The objective of this workshop is to explore the challenges encountered in countries in performing molecular resistance detection as well as phenotypic drug susceptibility testing to ensure patients are placed on effective treatment as early as possible. The workshop will focus on Bedaquiline, the central drug in the novel BPaL and BPaLM regimens both for susceptibility testing and for implementation and scaling up the use of the drug.

This workshop will implement a participatory learning approach through which attendees will partake in a plenary session and, through the use of breakout rooms, discuss case studies outlining countries’ examples related to existing gaps and solutions to accelerate impact.

Session sponsor: World Health Organization

Chairs: Marguerite Massinga Loembé, African society for laboratory medicine and Sarabjit Chadha, The Foundation For Innovative New Diagnostics

Coordinators: Carl-Michael Nathanson, WHO and Medea Gegia, WHO

Target audience: National TB programme staff, TB laboratory network staff, Clinicians and other health staff, Community health care workers, Implementing partners.

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

An economic model that shows the saving potential and budget impact for countries when using BPaLM/BPaL instead of standard regimens

Date: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Time: 14:30 to 17:30 CEST

Usually cost-effectiveness, budget impact, and patient cost analyses are expensive studies, taking several months to conduct. Swiss TPH has developed a versatile model that is flexible to incorporate cost data from any country and provide estimates for a variety of health economic parameters. Workshop participants will apply their own country data to the model and see outputs, including sensitivity of outputs to inputs.

The objectives of this Workshop are:
1. Get familiar with the cost savings that using BPaLM/BPaL brings
2. Get familiar with the recently developed economic model on the use of BPaLM/BPaL
3. Learn to use the economic model for individual countries
4. To have an economic and clinical basis for planning treatment of drug-resistant TB in their country over the next years.

Relevance of the topic:
WHO has recently recommended BPaLM/BPaL as standard of care for DR-TB treatment. Due to improved patient outcomes, simplified treatment and savings, the new treatments have been called pathbreaking. Countries need to understand how to estimate cost-effectiveness, budget impact and savings due to BPaLM/BPaL in their settings.

The two main results of the application of Swiss TPH’s model in a country are: (i) an estimate of potential cost savings deriving from the health service providers and patients/families; and (ii) an estimate of lives saved when using the BPaLM/BPaL regimens compared to using other regimens. The model shows cost-effectiveness and budget impact.

After introductory presentations on cost drivers for BPaLM/BPaL and results of recent studies, participants will use of the model, using their own country data to get the results for their countries. Workshop facilitators will guide the countries in applying the model.

After attending this workshop participants will be able to:

Understand the value of implementing the BPaLM/BPaL regimens in their country
Use the economic model and train others on how to use the model.

Session sponsor: TB Alliance

Chairs: Sandeep Juneja, TB Alliance and Askar Yedilbayev, WHO Regional office Europe

Coordinators: Patrick Hanlon, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) and Christian Auer, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)

Target audience: TB programme managers and officers, Health economists, Researchers, Clinicians.

Price: Free. Note that booking your seat is mandatory. Please book it during your registration process.

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