|
Susan Kaai is research officer for the Population Council’s Nairobi office. She initiates, designs, implements, monitors, and disseminates HIV and AIDS Horizons operations research studies, including studies on antiretroviral treatment (ART), prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT), and stigma reduction.
Since 2003, Kaai has provided technical guidance and monitoring for an ongoing, longitudinal, randomized, controlled two-arm study on adult adherence and ART in Kenya. She took part in a nationwide study assessing the HIV-testing competence and practices of Kenyan health workers and is currently writing a report on a study that evaluated the effect of stigma-reduction programs on health workers' attitudes and behaviors toward people living with HIV. She is writing a report as well on a study that tested three community-based approaches to PMTCT. Kaai is assisting in developing an intervention that focuses on the specialized prevention concerns of HIV-positive individuals in Mombasa, Kenya, with an emphasis on partner testing, disclosure, and consistent condom use.
Before joining the Population Council, Kaai worked for Population Services International (PSI/Kenya) as a monitoring and evaluation officer. Kaai received her master's of science from the University of Nairobi in 1996. She also has extensive experience in program design, implementation, management, report writing, monitoring, and evaluation of reproductive health, child, and maternal nutrition programs.
A partial list of publications includes:
Kaai, Susan, Carolyn Baek, Scott Geibel, Peter McOdida, Benson Ulo, Grace Muthumbi, Carol N’Katha-Matiko, and Naomi Rutenberg. 2005. "HIV serostatus and infant feeding counseling and practice: Findings from a baseline study among the urban poor in Kenya," Horizons Research Update. Washington, DC: Population Council. (PDF)
Kaai, Susan, Avina Sarna, Johannes van Dam, and Mark Hawken. 2005. "Operations research," in Robert Ritzenthaler, Delivering Antiretroviral Therapy in Resource-constrained Settings: Lessons from Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda. Arlington, VA: Family Health International, pp. 105 112. (offsite full text)
Horizons/Population Council, International Centre for Reproductive Health, and Coast Province General Hospital, Mombasa, Kenya. 2004. Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy in Adults: A Guide for Trainers. Nairobi: Population Council. (PDF)
A partial list of presentations includes:
Kaai, Susan, Avina Sarna, Johannes van am, and Mark Hawken. 2006. Self-stigmatization and HAART: Documenting changes in stigma faced by people living with HIV/AIDS on HAART, Kenya," poster presentation at the XVI International AIDS Conference, Toronto, 13 18 August.
Kaai, Susan, Scott Geibel, Carolyn Baek, Peter McOdida, Benson Ula, Carol N'Katha-Matiko, and Naomi Rutenberg. 2005. "Serostatus disclosure and partner violence: Experiences in postpartum urban poor HIV-positive women in a slum area in Nairobi, Kenya," oral presentation at the 14th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa, Abuja, 4 9 December. |
