Implementation research projects in lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the government policy to lockdown and limit mobility in all of the project sites. This has affected community engagement at both primary health care and community organisation levels. Also, researchers could not visit the project sites to interact with healthcare workers and community members. As these were essential aspects of the implementation research project, adapted ways of working were needed. These included the development of new tools, new/increased use of digital communication and approaches to coordination.

This webinar is organised by the Scaling up Non-Communicable Disease Interventions in Southeast Asia (SUNI-SEA) project, an implementation research project conducted in Indonesia, Myanmar, and Vietnam, which is funded by the EU Horizon 2020.

The aim of this webinar is for researchers from selected implementation research projects in various regions, to share their experiences continuing research projects during the pandemic. Then together with public health experts discuss key lessons learnt from managing the challenges, including the adaptation of research methods, the disruption of essential health services and emerging issues created by COVID-19 for people living with NCDs. Finally, the webinar participants will consider the implications for future implementation research, particularly about how we can build resilient NCD research in the future?

Duration: 1.5 hours (10:00-11:30 am CEST / 3:00-4:30 pm ICT)

Platform: Zoom Webinar

Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QfrAdaIVSP6BEMQgMGSn_A