Strengthening Guyanas Regional Support Network through Partnership with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) under the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1) What is the funding opportunity number and official title of this grant?

The opportunity is CDC RFA GH15-1526. Its title is "Strengthening Guyana's Regional Support Network through Partnership with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)."

2) What type of funding mechanism is being used?

This is a CDC cooperative agreement. That means CDC expects substantial involvement in the project alongside the awardee, rather than a more hands-off relationship typical of some other grant types.

3) What is the overall purpose of this cooperative agreement?

The overall intent is to strengthen Guyana's HIV response by building durable, country-led systems that improve quality and continuity of HIV services, strengthen surveillance and program management, and ultimately reduce HIV-related illness, deaths, and new infections.

4) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is limited to the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA). The opportunity is structured as a partnership model where CARPHA serves as the eligible applicant and technical partner.

5) Who are the main partners expected to work together under this opportunity?

CARPHA is expected to work closely with Guyana's Ministry of Health (MOH) and national programs to implement the work.

6) What major program areas does the opportunity support?

The described work includes: improving Guyana's laboratory systems (especially NPHRL management, operations, and quality systems), strengthening leadership and training pipelines in laboratory management, developing a unified quality assurance approach for service delivery sites, improving clinical capacity and engagement for key populations, strengthening national HIV monitoring and evaluation (including surveillance capacity and confidentiality/security), and supporting national program management through tools like a treatment cascade and evaluation tool across the continuum of care.

7) What is the role of Guyana's National Public Health Reference Laboratory (NPHRL) in this grant?

NPHRL is a central focus. The grant calls for improving NPHRL management and operations through assessment, remediation planning, training plans, and updated or new standard operating procedures (SOPs), including contingency planning for predictable disruptions.

8) What does the opportunity require regarding an assessment of NPHRL?

It calls for a detailed public health assessment of NPHRL management and operational practices to identify gaps affecting laboratory service delivery.

9) What kinds of plans and documents are expected after the NPHRL assessment?

Based on assessment findings, the project is expected to develop a human resources training plan, create a quality improvement remediation plan, and either develop new SOPs or update existing SOPs.

10) Are SOPs required to include contingency planning?

Yes. A key requirement is that SOPs include contingency planning for predictable disruptions such as staff shortages and supply chain issues.

11) What short-, intermediate-, and long-term outcomes are expected for NPHRL improvements?

Short term: increased awareness and availability of updated SOPs and improvement plans across the laboratory, and increased staff knowledge and skills related to updated procedures. Intermediate: more consistent use of SOPs and training plans, improved oversight, and fewer service delivery gaps. Long term: improved laboratory performance and service quality, fewer stockouts, and fewer disruptions caused by staffing gaps.

12) What is meant by "structured technical assistance and leadership development" for laboratories?

The opportunity anticipates regimented technical assistance to laboratory leadership in management and operations, plus recruiting and building a network of qualified laboratory leaders who can train mid-level staff.

13) What is the intended training pipeline for laboratory staff?

The aim is to increase the number of competent trainers, expand availability of management and operations training courses for mid-level staff, and increase practical use of these skills in everyday laboratory operations.

14) How is task shifting expected to improve laboratory operations?

As mid-level staff become more capable, tasks can be shifted appropriately from senior leaders to trained staff. This is expected to improve coordination within labs and reduce operational bottlenecks.

15) What downstream laboratory service improvements are anticipated?

The expected downstream effect includes faster sample processing, more timely delivery of results, and overall improvements in laboratory service performance that support HIV programs and other public health needs.

16) What is the unified quality assurance (QA) approach for service delivery sites?

The project would work with MOH to develop a single quality assurance assessment tool intended to replace or reduce reliance on multiple overlapping tools used by different agencies.

17) How will the unified QA tool be tested?

The grant specifies piloting the tool through a quality assurance evaluation with a small number of sites: four intervention sites and two control sites. It also calls for establishing baseline quality measures for all six sites and assessing feasibility and impact.

18) What outcomes are expected from implementing the unified QA tool?

Short term: increased awareness and use of the unified tool and improved documentation of site-level quality deficiencies. Intermediate: improved efficiency and consistency of quality measurement and increased use of evaluation findings for program improvement. Long term: stronger national QA programming and more reliable strategic information about service quality by site, with reduced fragmentation and parallel systems.

19) How does this opportunity address clinical services for key populations?

It emphasizes improving clinical engagement with key populations at higher risk of HIV infection and onward transmission by coordinating provider trainings aligned with PEPFAR strategies and international HIV care recommendations, and by strengthening collaboration between government clinical facilities and civil society organizations and NGOs.

20) What is the expected impact of provider trainings for key populations?

The intended effect is better provider knowledge of best practices, stronger relationships across clinical and community support systems, and more effective operational strategies for delivering care that key populations can access and trust. Over time, this should improve linkage to care and retention in care for key populations and support sustainable clinical leadership.

21) What assessment and planning activities are included to improve key population services?

The grant describes documenting MOH program manager and senior staff adherence to key population programming requirements and identifying operational implementation issues (such as stockouts, provider recruitment and retention challenges, and difficulty reaching intended groups). It also includes an end-user assessment with HIV-positive members of key populations to identify barriers to accessing and using clinical services and to capture preferred service delivery options.

22) What kinds of end-user preferences might be captured in the key population assessment?

Examples listed include preferred service hours, location, types of providers, and perceived service gaps.

23) How are the key population assessment findings expected to be used?

Results are intended to inform updated or new programming guidance and a provider training agenda grounded in client-reported needs.

24) What outcomes are expected for key population programming over time?

Short term: increased awareness of implementation requirements and barriers. Intermediate: adoption and use of revised guidance at facilities and improved service coverage. Long term: more key population clients on antiretroviral therapy (ART), improved linkage and retention, and reduced disparities in transmission and clinical outcomes between the general population and key populations.

25) What surveillance and data-system improvements are included?

The opportunity includes performing a surveillance capacity assessment to support adding risk and patient monitoring information, with explicit attention to improving security and confidentiality. It also calls for producing a surveillance expansion plan with pilot and implementation timelines and the inputs required to improve the depth, confidentiality, and security of surveillance data.

26) How is confidentiality addressed in the surveillance component?

Confidentiality and security are explicit priorities. The assessment and expansion plan are intended to strengthen confidentiality protections and improve the security of surveillance data as risk and patient monitoring information are added or expanded.

27) What is the expected outcome of adopting the surveillance assessment recommendations and expansion plan?

The expected progression is that recommendations are adopted and used, resulting in stronger confidentiality protections and more reliable data. Over time, the system should better integrate site-level risk and patient monitoring data into the national program and increase practical use of surveillance data for evaluation, reporting, and planning.

28) What is the "national treatment cascade" and how will it be used?

The opportunity calls for collaboration with MOH to prepare a national treatment cascade intended to function as a management framework and a way to identify performance gaps from diagnosis through treatment and viral suppression.

29) Is there an evaluation tool associated with the treatment cascade?

Yes. Alongside the cascade, the project would support a single evaluation tool to assess performance across the continuum of care, encouraging consistency and comparability across facilities.

30) What outcomes are expected from cascade and continuum-of-care management improvements?

Near term: increased recognition of the need for improved cascade management and increased facility-level adoption of the cascade and evaluation tool. Intermediate: better adherence to cascade requirements, expanded ART coverage, improved retention, and clearer identification of gaps through evaluation findings. Long term: improved program quality across the continuum of care, reduced HIV-related morbidity and mortality, and reduced new HIV transmission.

31) What is the CFDA number and program area listed?

The CFDA is 93.067, identified as Global AIDS.

32) What is the estimated funding amount and expected number of awards?

The expected number of awards was one. Estimated total funding was $360,000.

33) What are the award ceiling and award floor?

The award ceiling is listed at $1,080,000 and the award floor is $0.

34) Is cost sharing required?

No. Cost sharing is not required.

35) When was the opportunity posted and when were applications due?

The opportunity was posted December 1, 2014. Applications were due electronically by 11:59 p.m. ET on the listed due date, with the closing date stated as March 20, 2015.

36) What is the current status of the opportunity?

It was archived on April 19, 2015.

37) Does the opportunity specify electronic submission details?

It states that applications were due electronically by 11:59 p.m. ET on the listed due date.

38) What does the partnership model mean in practice for implementation?

Based on the description, CARPHA is the eligible applicant and technical partner and is expected to work closely with Guyana's MOH and national programs. The approach is intended to build durable, country-led systems rather than create stand-alone parallel structures.

39) How does this opportunity aim to reduce fragmentation across tools and systems?

It explicitly calls for a single unified QA assessment tool to replace or reduce multiple overlapping tools, and it supports a single evaluation tool for continuum-of-care performance. Together with surveillance improvements, these components are intended to reduce parallel systems and improve consistency and comparability across sites and facilities.

40) Which public health priorities does the opportunity align with?

The long-term goals align with PEPFAR priorities: improved program quality, reduced HIV-related morbidity and mortality, and reduced new HIV transmission.