Background: Prevention through behavior change is the only way to control the spread of HIV infection in the developing world. Success in prevention requires consistent and persistent intervention over time, a clear understanding of the realities of target populations and involvement of members of these populations in prevention efforts. Applied local research is urgently needed, especially in the developing world, to design interventions that meet these criteria and to test their effectiveness.
Center for aids prevention studies (caps) model of international collaborative research: Each year, eight to 10 scientists from developing countries visit CAPS in San Francisco for 10 weeks of intensive learning and collaboration. The main emphasis is on designing a protocol for a research project related to AIDS prevention in the visiting scientist's home country. CAPS provides pilot study funding and technical assistance to implement the project.
Results: The quality of the resulting collaborative research is represented by the articles published in this volume and by the many alumni of the program who have undertaken additional research projects and/or assumed leadership positions in AIDS control efforts in their countries.
PIP: Prevention through behavior change is the only way to control the spread of HIV infection in the developing world. Success in prevention requires consistent and persistent intervention over time, a clear understanding of the realities of target populations, and involvement of members of these populations in prevention efforts. Applied local research is urgently needed, especially in the developing world, to design interventions that meet these criteria and to test their effectiveness. The Center for AIDS Prevention Studies (CAPS) model of international collaborative research has been used at the University of California, San Francisco, for the past eight years. The model involves an intensive period for protocol development and another one for data analysis. Each year, 8-10 scientists from developing countries visit CAPS in San Francisco for 10 weeks of intensive learning and collaboration. They are immersed in HIV epidemiology, research design, computer skills, data management, and psychosocial aspect of the AIDS epidemic. The main emphasis is on designing a protocol for a research project related to AIDS prevention in the visiting scientist's home country. The greatest impediment to intervention trials in developing countries is lack of funding. CAPS provides pilot study funding and technical assistance to implement the project in the home country. In the summer of 1995 eight alumni worked intensively with the CAPS faculty on data analysis and manuscript preparation. The quality of the resulting collaborative research is represented by the articles published and by the many alumni of the program who have undertaken additional research projects and/or assumed leadership positions in AIDS control efforts in their countries. These studies cover a wide range of risk groups, including sexually transmitted disease patients in Zambia; adolescents in the Philippines and Russia; wives of HIV-infected men in Uganda; female sex workers in Brazil, India, and Thailand; and HIV-infected women of childbearing age in Rwanda.