Centre for Schistosomiasis and Parasitology (CSP)

This proof of concept study will take place over a 10-month period. They aim to compare the feasibility and acceptability of mobile gynecological clinics versus traditional, static health posts. The primary research question, Where urogenital schistosomiasis is endemic, can a static health outpost versus a mobile clinic deliver better diagnosis and treatmnet of FGS, HIV, HPV, and cervical cancer in an acceptable and cost-effective manner to women (14-30 years), will be answered through the following activities:

1. Development of a consortium on FGS bringing together high-profile researchers, policy makers, program implementers, and health professionals
2. Training of health professionals (nurses, physicians, community health workers) with follow up sessions to raise awareness and diagnostic capabilities through colposcopic imagery. Health workers in remote areas will utilize telehealth to transmit images for quality checks by a specialist. The team will measure the % correlation between field results and telemedicine results to determine feasibility.
3. Precision mapping in select districts to determine areas with the highest schistosomiasis prevalence through parasitological surveys
4. Pilot test mobile service delivery for FGS, HIV, HPV, and other common gynecological issues in two of the four districts. This will include a cost analysis to make a business case for scalability.

To determine if the circulating cathodic antigen (CCA) rapid diagnostic test is as effective as the Kato-Katz (KK) test in diagnosing S. guinensis