CFPs: President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) for Caribbean Countries

Access to high-quality laboratory diagnostic services is key to the success of public health programs designed to address HIV, TB, and related testing. Over the years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has provided targeted technical assistance to laboratories in the Caribbean region. This work strengthened laboratory systems and services, including capacity building of laboratory staff and the accreditation of twelve public health laboratories.

Despite these achievements, there is still work to achieve efficient and sustainable laboratory systems. Increased support is needed to build and sustain laboratory capacity and improve timely diagnostics, monitoring services, and scale-up of care and treatment programs for HIV, TB, STIs, and related diseases.

Focus Areas

• This NOFO builds on CDC’s previous work and lessons learned from their work with Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago’s ministries of health (MOHs), with a focus on:
  • Supporting and achieving accreditation of public health laboratories in the region
  • Strengthening the laboratory workforce through in-service training
  • Supporting laboratory information system expansion and integration with health information systems
  • Strengthening HIV/TB-related testing and diagnostic capacity for opportunistic infections
  • Building efficient laboratory programs to support HIV-related diagnostic and monitoring services in PEPFAR-supported countries in the region.

Funding Information

• Expected total NOFO funding for Year 1: $1,500,000
• Expected number of awards: 1. The number of awards is subject to available funds and program priorities
• Duration: They plan to award projects for five 12-month budget periods for a five-year period of performance.

Expected Outcomes

• They expect the following outcomes by the end of the project period:
• Increased implementation of QMS supported by executing the updated Strengthening Laboratory Management toward Accreditation (SLMTA) program
• Increased use of continuous quality improvement (CQI) tools, such as:
  • External Quality Assessment (EQA)
  • Stepwise Laboratory Improvement Process toward Accreditation (SLIPTA)
  • Rapid Test Continuous Quality Improvement Initiative (RTCQI)
• Expanded implementation of quality assurance (QA) initiatives that lead to:
  • Increased accuracy and reliability of diagnostic test results
  • Enhanced use of test data for clinical decision-making
  • Improved outcomes for patients with HIV and HIV/AIDS-related infections
• Increased access to quality-assured laboratory services, laboratory information systems, and data dashboards
• Strengthened organizational capacity to support testing across the HIV continuum of care and to provide data for surveillance
• Improved capacity to identify and confirm the status of HIV-infected individuals, conduct recency testing, and facilitate training and certification of testers
• Optimized and efficient national HIV laboratory networks that provide access to timely and reliable diagnostics to improve test quality monitoring, clinical decision-making, and data management
• Increased access to quality-assured diagnostics and uninterrupted testing services through efficient networks, implemented throughout the clinical and diagnostic system.

Eligible Activities

• Expand mentoring and technical assistance to establish efficient laboratory workflow and implement QMS in selected public health/clinical laboratories
• Increase bio-risk management implementation in selected public health/clinical laboratories
• Develop and implement tools and processes to strengthen and optimize integrated laboratory networks
• Strengthen workforce development and build capacity in public health and clinical laboratories.

Eligible Countries

• While any type of organization may apply, you must conduct the project in the Caribbean (Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago).

Eligibility Criteria

• This is a fully competitive NOFO, and eligibility is unrestricted. Any and all types of organizations are eligible and encouraged to apply, including but not limited to those listed below:
  • State governments
  • County governments
  • City or township governments
  • Special district governments
  • Independent school districts
  • Public and state-controlled institutions of higher education
  • Native American tribal governments (federally recognized)
  • Public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities
  • Native American tribal organizations, other than federally recognized tribal governments
  • Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status, other than institutions of higher education
  • Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status, other than institutions of higher education
  • Private institutions of higher education
  • For-profit organizations other than small businesses
  • Small businesses
  • Foreign or non-U.S. based entities.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.