The CRIBS Global team of doctors and midwives from Sierra Leone, Zambia, India, Brazil and the UK congregated in Cape Town during October to attend the FIGO Conference taking place there. CRIBS Global is a consortium coordinated by Kings that includes several ongoing and new projects. They include the current Papagaio NIHR global research group, based in India, Brazil, Zambia, South Africa and Sierra Leone, which also incorporates the Gates-funded Papagaio biobank. Currently, CRIBS Global also involves the Papaya, CARES and Empowered projects, based in Sierra Leone and Zambia.
Cradle-B and NIHR-funded Right programme has recently begun in Zambia, Kenya and Sierra Leone. Cradle Smart is also being set up. This FCDO-funded project related to Femtech and is based in South Africa, Zambia, Sierra Leone and Kenya. Gates has also funded Cradle Spark – the development of a new point-of-care biomarker test.
The team used the Cape Town gathering as an opportunity to have meetings about their various projects and to chart the way forward with the work they are doing. CRIBS Global also incorporates the PrAKI team, which does work related to acute kidney injury in pregnancy.
The PrAKI team and helpers hosted a stand at the conference where visitors to the stand participated in a survey and made pledges to promote and raise awareness about pregnancy acute kidney injury.
There were formal meetings related to the Papagaio project concerning the point-of-care angiogenic markers. Another meeting was held relating to Cradle B, which evaluated interventions to improve long-term cardiovascular disease in pregnancy. A further meeting was able to plan Cradle Smart programmes of work around introducing new point-of-care technology in most of our CRIBS Global countries.
This work reflects groundbreaking and collaborative approaches to addressing issues of maternal health through innovative approaches.
Some of the presentations at the FIGO conference included:
- Pregnancy Passport workshop;
- Cerclage Workshop;
- Masterclass in Secondary Stage Skills
- Cradle 5 presentation
A number of our Sierra Leone investigators were able to present their work for the first time.
The teams were able to spend time building relationships and bonding – this included a team hike up Lion’s Head and our Zambian and Sierra Leone team particularly enjoyed the Sky-High Ride – a free-fall experience that takes riders up to the top of the 28th floor of a hotel for panoramic city views before dropping them at a speed of up to 100 km/h. 