By Tommy Esau, Research Officer

A two-day Research Capacity Strengthening Workshop was held at Atoifi Adventist Hospital during December, 2015. The Workshop focused on research skills – specifically in-depth interviewing and focus group discussions. The sessions on facilitating individual interviews and focus group discussions were described by Chief John Wakageni RN, Coordinator for the Women and Tuberculosis project, as “important and useful tools to improve our research skills.”

The Workshop was facilitated by Dr David MacLaren and Professor Rick Speare, senior public researchers from Australia. The Workshop sessions were run twice each day, with morning sessions mostly in Pijin and evening sessions mostly in English. Practical sessions were held in the afternoons with a focus on in-depth interviewing using examples from a current Women and TB Project.

Participants of the Workshop included Atoifi Hospital and Pacific Adventist University –Atoifi campus staff and students, community leaders and Kwaio chiefs. Despite many Hospital staff and students being on holiday and community leaders busy with preparation for Christmas, there was still strong attendance at the Workshop sessions.

The Atoifi Health Research Group, led by Dr David MacLaren and Professor Rick Speare, also ran training on research management. The Group reviewed 2015 research projects and planned for 2016 projects. This included plans for a survey of soil-transmitted helminths (STH) to be conducted in January 2016 in Marovo, Western Province, Solomon Islands.

Other WHO TDR-funded Research Workshops and a Symposium were planned for 2016. The Group reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen research capacity by conducting health research in Solomon Islands to enable a Pacific Islands approach to understanding health issues affecting Pacific Islands communities.

For more information about the Atoifi Health Research Group, please visit: www.atoifiresearch.org.sb/group or email humpress.harrington@gmail.com

Photos: Practical and planning sessions with: (L) the Women and TB project team, and (R) the STH research team.