Request for Letters of Intent from Ghana and Tanzania

Background: The Center for Integration Science in Global Health Equity (CIS) is seeking a leading health systems research institution to execute a study entitled “Defining and integrating essential NCD interventions in national health systems.” This study is being conducted in partnership with the University of Bergen and will build upon efforts to define national priorities for noncommunicable disease (NCD) care.

Objective: CIS is seeking in-country research partners in Ghana and Tanzania to develop study tools, conduct data collection at approximately 25 facilities, analyze data, and formulate recommendations. Selected partners will lead an 18-month study project for the development and implementation of facility-based time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) data collection and develop recommendations on expansion of existing NCD services.

Scope of Work

1. Study Preparation: The in-country research partner will be responsible to recruit and train staff, adapt the study protocol, develop survey instruments, and obtain all relevant national and institutional approvals in coordination with national stakeholders and CIS. Data will be structured to serve as an input to the FairChoices decision support tool. Expected activities and an indicative timeline are below:

2. Data Collection: The in-country research partner will oversee all aspects of data collection and ensure data quality. Expected activities and an indicative timeline are below:

3. Analysis and Recommendations: The selected partner will be responsible for the timely delivery of a final cleaned dataset in a pre-determined statistical format and package (e.g., R/Stata). Collaboratively with CIS, the selected research partners will develop a final report with recommendations on the integrated delivery of the services, including opportunities for co-delivery of services for more efficient and effective care. It is also expected that research partners will lead in the development of a manuscript on the survey for peer review. Finally, the research partner is expected to contribute to a broader manuscript (led by CIS) that brings together experience in designing integrated delivery models across four countries: Ethiopia, Ghana, Nepal and Tanzania.

Timeline: 18 months to begin October 2023

Total Budget: 160,000 USD

How to Apply: Please send an email with the subject title “Costing in Ghana: LOI” or “Costing in Tanzania: LOI” to vmbhambhani@bwh.harvard.edu by 16 June 2023. Please provide a brief Letter of Interest (maximum 2 pages) that includes:

  • An overview of your team and organizational structure, including principal investigator (PI);

  • Details related to relevant research and implementation experience, particularly in health facility-based data collection and data collection related to healthcare financing and cost analysis; and

  • An overview of ongoing and past partnerships that may be relevant to this work Selected applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal that details their project plan, a line-item budget and budget justification.

Directed by Dr. Gene Bukhman, the Center for Integration Science in Global Health Equity focuses on developing, implementing, and evaluating integrated care delivery models to address severe conditions such as type 1 diabetes, sickle cell, and rheumatic heart disease in highly constrained health systems. The Center for Integration Science is a center within the Division of Global Health Equity in the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and is a collaboration with the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Partners In Health (PIH). The center also serves as the Boston co-secretariat for the NCDI Poverty Network (www.ncdipoverty.org).

Download the LOI Request here.