Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo Mpox (ECOPOX) Vaccine Acceptance Initiative
Project overview
The ECOPOX project aims to assess mpox knowledge, risk perception, and vaccine acceptability among at-risk populations in DRC to guide community-specific vaccine deployment and sensitisation campaigns.
Project solution
This project offers [specific solution or intervention] to tackle [challenge]. By implementing [strategies, tools, or innovations], the project aims to achieve [desired outcomes]. The approach is designed to [specific actions or methods] to bring about meaningful change in [community, region, or issue area].
Expected outcomes
This project aims to achieve [specific outcomes], such as [measurable results, improvements, or changes]. The expected impact includes [benefits to the target community, advancements in research or innovation, or long-term effects]. By the end of the project, we anticipate [specific changes or milestones] that will contribute to [broader goals or objectives].
Principal Investigators: Jason Kindrachuk, University of Manitoba; Anne W Rimoin, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA); Placide Mbala-Kingebeni, National Institute of Biomedical Research (INRB), Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
Purpose
The public health burden of mpox has been steadily increasing in the DRC since the cessation of the smallpox vaccine and represents a growing burden of morbidity among the population. Simultaneously, vaccine coverage rates in the DRC are consistently below required thresholds. This is in large part due to the underfunding of public health, the lack of necessary health infrastructure, and the logistically challenge terrain. Long-term mpox response will rely on vaccination as a primary intervention, yet there exists a dearth of information about how best to disseminate a vaccine when a targeted rollout strategy is required logistically. ECOPOX will estimate mpox risk among key populations and record key attitudes and uptake behaviours that will be essential to successful vaccination campaigns in the future.
Expected outcomes
This ECOPOX investigation includes three primary outcomes:
- Design community-specific and respectful assessment tool through focused community engagement and collaboration with peer leaders.
- Assess community knowledge, sentiment, risk perception and stigmas around mpox infection and prevention.
- Analyse vaccine acceptability across among at-risk populations in rural and urban communities to guide vaccine deployment and sensitisation campaigns.
Through long-term partnerships and collaborations between our team members, stakeholders and decisionmakers, we aim to engage in truly translational research that supports improved identification of cases and improved vaccination coverage among at-risk populations.
Project delivery & updates
Stay up to date with the latest developments from this project. Here, you will find details on what has been delivered, resources created, and regular updates as the project progresses. Access key documents, reports, and other materials to see how the project is making an impact.
