Global health research

The Community and Primary Care Research Group team at the University of Plymouth has been working extensively on lung health research projects in low-resource settings since 2012, starting with an observational prevalence study, an implementation study for co-developing education materials for healthcare workers, and feasibility and acceptability of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR), all in rural Uganda.

Subsequent funding was obtained for several packages of work in Uganda, Crete, Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam (FRESH AIR: Horizon 2020), including a midwife-led education programme to reduce smoke exposure for women and children (The Midwife Project), implementation of smoking cessation, and feasibility and acceptability of PR.

Further work is continuing on The Midwife Project to assess long-term impact and feasibility for widespread roll-out in other areas of rural Uganda and beyond. We are also working on Kupumua, which has involved cultural adaptation of dance, music and singing into PR sessions.

We have worked with University of Plymouth Illustration students on our projects to design teaching resources for children and communities in Uganda.

Global health projects are supported by the National Institute for Health Research Applied Research Collaboration South West Peninsula (PenARC).

Please see below for links to all projects.

Who is involved?

The University of Plymouth, UK
(Faculty of Health)

• Honorary Associate Professor Rupert Jones
• Dr Lynne Callaghan
• Lucy Cartwright 
• Debra Westlake
  

Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands

• Dr Sanne van Kampen

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, UK

• Prof Sally Singh

Makerere University, Uganda

• Dr Bruce Kirenga and team
  

University of Groningen, Holland

• Dr Frederik van Gemert 
  
• Professor Niels Chavannes.