Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF)
Introduction: Integrated, simultaneous training of Global South and North trainees offers novel opportunities to enhance equitable collaboration and research capacity in global health. While existing programs often focus on exchange rotations or separate training tracks, simultaneous training of Glo...
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Elsevier
2025-12-01
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| Series: | SSM - Mental Health |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560325001094 |
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| author | Yang Jae Lee Rauben Kazungu Ibrahim Ssekalo Scott Blackwell Kayera Sumaya Nakaziba Emery Monnig Rita Mbabazi Peter Muwereza Faizo Waiswa Haba Ingabire Alesha Cid Vega Adam D. Brown Robert Rohrbaugh Robert Rosenheck Peter Waiswa Brandon A. Kohrt |
| author_facet | Yang Jae Lee Rauben Kazungu Ibrahim Ssekalo Scott Blackwell Kayera Sumaya Nakaziba Emery Monnig Rita Mbabazi Peter Muwereza Faizo Waiswa Haba Ingabire Alesha Cid Vega Adam D. Brown Robert Rohrbaugh Robert Rosenheck Peter Waiswa Brandon A. Kohrt |
| author_sort | Yang Jae Lee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction: Integrated, simultaneous training of Global South and North trainees offers novel opportunities to enhance equitable collaboration and research capacity in global health. While existing programs often focus on exchange rotations or separate training tracks, simultaneous training of Global South and North trainees in the same intensive program remains understudied. We describe the Global Health Experiential Fellowship (GHEF), which combines research training with shared living arrangements and collaborative work in rural Uganda. Program description: GHEF is a five-week research training program for pre-doctoral students from Uganda and the United States. The program addresses power imbalances in North-South partnerships through shared leadership between Ugandan and American co-directors, with Ugandan team leaders supervising daily activities. Fellows work in mixed teams on qualitative mental health projects, while shared living arrangements foster cultural exchange. Since 2021, GHEF has trained 39 Ugandan students from three universities and 102 American students from 12 universities. Ugandan fellows participate without fees, subsidized by American fellows. Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with 10 fellows (5 Ugandan, 5 American). Research skills were assessed using the Assessment of Key Interviewing Factors for Research Assistants (AKIRA) pre- and post-fellowship among 14 fellows (7 Ugandan, 7 American). Results: Ugandan fellows gained formal research training, while American fellows gained perspectives on field-based methodologies. Cultural exchange facilitated intercultural learning. AKIRA scores showed improvement in Ugandan fellows’ skills (pre-fellowship mean = 1.125; post-fellowship mean = 1.536; p = 0.0117). Discussion: GHEF's simultaneous training model offers a promising approach to equitable collaboration and building research capacity in global mental health. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-bddc3fa9f3e44f4cb0b2e1c02ffc3865 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2666-5603 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | SSM - Mental Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-bddc3fa9f3e44f4cb0b2e1c02ffc38652025-08-20T03:32:40ZengElsevierSSM - Mental Health2666-56032025-12-01810049710.1016/j.ssmmh.2025.100497Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF)Yang Jae Lee0Rauben Kazungu1Ibrahim Ssekalo2Scott Blackwell3Kayera Sumaya Nakaziba4Emery Monnig5Rita Mbabazi6Peter Muwereza7Faizo Waiswa8Haba Ingabire9Alesha Cid Vega10Adam D. Brown11Robert Rohrbaugh12Robert Rosenheck13Peter Waiswa14Brandon A. Kohrt15Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Empower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, Uganda; Corresponding author. Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.Empower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, UgandaEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, UgandaEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, Uganda; Department of Psychiatry, University of Alabama Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USAEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, UgandaIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USAEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, UgandaEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, Uganda; Bugweri District Local Government, Bugweri District, UgandaEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, UgandaEmpower Through Health - Uganda, Jinja, UgandaDepartment of Psychology, New School for Social Research, New York, NY, USADepartment of Psychology, New School for Social Research, New York, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USADepartment of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USAMakerere University School of Public Health, Kampala, Uganda; Busoga Health Forum, Jinja, UgandaCenter for Global Mental Health Equity, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington DC, USAIntroduction: Integrated, simultaneous training of Global South and North trainees offers novel opportunities to enhance equitable collaboration and research capacity in global health. While existing programs often focus on exchange rotations or separate training tracks, simultaneous training of Global South and North trainees in the same intensive program remains understudied. We describe the Global Health Experiential Fellowship (GHEF), which combines research training with shared living arrangements and collaborative work in rural Uganda. Program description: GHEF is a five-week research training program for pre-doctoral students from Uganda and the United States. The program addresses power imbalances in North-South partnerships through shared leadership between Ugandan and American co-directors, with Ugandan team leaders supervising daily activities. Fellows work in mixed teams on qualitative mental health projects, while shared living arrangements foster cultural exchange. Since 2021, GHEF has trained 39 Ugandan students from three universities and 102 American students from 12 universities. Ugandan fellows participate without fees, subsidized by American fellows. Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with 10 fellows (5 Ugandan, 5 American). Research skills were assessed using the Assessment of Key Interviewing Factors for Research Assistants (AKIRA) pre- and post-fellowship among 14 fellows (7 Ugandan, 7 American). Results: Ugandan fellows gained formal research training, while American fellows gained perspectives on field-based methodologies. Cultural exchange facilitated intercultural learning. AKIRA scores showed improvement in Ugandan fellows’ skills (pre-fellowship mean = 1.125; post-fellowship mean = 1.536; p = 0.0117). Discussion: GHEF's simultaneous training model offers a promising approach to equitable collaboration and building research capacity in global mental health.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560325001094Research capacity buildingGlobal South-North collaborationUgandaGlobal mental healthExperiential learning |
| spellingShingle | Yang Jae Lee Rauben Kazungu Ibrahim Ssekalo Scott Blackwell Kayera Sumaya Nakaziba Emery Monnig Rita Mbabazi Peter Muwereza Faizo Waiswa Haba Ingabire Alesha Cid Vega Adam D. Brown Robert Rohrbaugh Robert Rosenheck Peter Waiswa Brandon A. Kohrt Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF) SSM - Mental Health Research capacity building Global South-North collaboration Uganda Global mental health Experiential learning |
| title | Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF) |
| title_full | Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF) |
| title_fullStr | Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF) |
| title_short | Mixed-methods evaluation of a Global South-North research fellowship in Uganda: Global health experiential fellowship (GHEF) |
| title_sort | mixed methods evaluation of a global south north research fellowship in uganda global health experiential fellowship ghef |
| topic | Research capacity building Global South-North collaboration Uganda Global mental health Experiential learning |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560325001094 |
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