We are thrilled to announce the incorporation of three PhD students with medical backgrounds into the ECHiLiBRiST project. The three PhD students will lead the implementation of two different Clinical Trials in the projects’ sites. The Clinical Trial 1 (in outpatient) aims to provide evidence that introducing novel biomarkers evaluation at the first clinical assessment will enhance rapid and accurate identification of febrile children (aged 2 months to <60 months) in sub-Saharan Africa at increased risk of life-threatening infections, and enhance decisions of admission/referral vs discharge. The Clinical Trial 2 (in inpatients) aims to provide evidence that daily oral supplementation with L-citrulline for 28 days is a viable strategy to reduce short and long-term disease adverse outcomes among high-risk sick children (aged 1 month to <60 months) admitted to the hospital, and identified as such through the measurement of sTREM-1 levels at baseline.
Based locally in Ethiopia, Gabon and Mozambique they will develop their skills and work on their PhD project within EChiLiBRiST to become the leaders of upcoming research in a near future.

What This Means for the Project:

  • Research of quality through enhanced clinical expertise: Our new team members bring valuable clinical experience, which will be key in the implementation of our clinical trials. They will coordinate the health workers and investigators of each study site and implement the standard operating procedures to achieve excellent data quality. Their advanced research and clinical skills will ensure that the trial is conducted with rigor and accuracy, as well as ensure the safety of the participants in the study.
    The three PhD students will play a central role in the coordinating team, as well as collecting and analyzing data, helping us draw evidence-based research on the strategies proposed for improve the risk stratification of sick children and reduce severity outcomes for this vulnerable population.
  • Collaboration Across Countries: As part of a multi-country trial, their involvement will help streamline operations across different clinical sites, ensuring consistency and quality in how data is gathered and reported.
  • Capacity building: One of our main objectives is to accompany researchers at the early stages of their career (e.g. Master’s, PhD or post-doctoral level) so for them to develop their own scientific career in sub-Saharan Africa and establish themselves as scientific leaders in sub-Saharan Africa. We will equip these clinicans with the right combination of research-related and transferable competences and provide them with enhanced career combined with an innovation-oriented mind-set and will have the capacity to develop and design large-scale studies.

Through their University programme and the work undertaken in EChiLiBRiST, the three new members of our team will improve their skills as researchers, publish scientific content, and advance in their careers, so they can develop their own projects in the future and be independent researchers.

We are confident that these talented researchers will make a significant contribution to the success of the ECHiLiBRiST project, helping us push the boundaries of pediatric care and improve outcomes for children with fever in sub-Saharan Africa.

Stay tuned for updates as the trials progress!

Áuria Solange Justa de Jesus (Mozambique)                   Rhode Matsanga (Gabon)                                Haleluya Leulseged (Ethiopia)