库马尔·玛纳西

I am a research scientist with strong health systems strengthening and policy training background cross-cutting adolescent health, perinatal and maternal mental health, prevention, and implementation science, and social determinants of mental health. I am also an affiliate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Nairobi, Kenya with a record of over 13 years of research and teaching experience in African institutions. I am currently PI/ MPI on 2 FIC/ NIH and 1 UK NIHR grants, and Co-investigator on 3 active NIH grants. I am a reviewer for UK’s MRC global mental health grants, MQ and Grand Challenges Canada’s global mental health grant applications and very involved in shaping global mental health research priorities through my engagement with various UN agencies. The following areas have been the core focus of my work: 1) development of policy relevant and National health and development framework guided strategies around community, maternal, adolescent and child mental health. I am a member of the technical working groups of UNICEF and WHO on perinatal, adolescent, maternal mental health and human rights. The work around human rights include development of mental health policy 2) political economy of adolescent and maternal mental health in LMICs to unpack policy and development associated challenges that present before mental health systems and services to strengthen research-policy and-practice partnerships, improve findings outreach 3) toolkit of evidence based interventions that range from system strengthening ones building capacity of health workers to providing competency based mhGAP training to testing low to medium intensity psychotherapy interventions like WHO’s problem management plus and WHO’s Group Interpersonal Psychotherapy. These interventions have been tested on young people, key and vulnerable populations such as pregnant and parenting adolescents, individuals living with HIV and mental illness. Development of policy strategies with mental health system leaders, testing implementation strategies and frameworks that focus on mental health system strengthening.