What We Do

Infectious Disease (ID)/ Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

GHI has continued Henry Ford’s reputation as a global leader in antimicrobial stewardship, drawing on expertise from Henry Ford’s Division of Infectious Disease. Since 2014, GHI has conducted successful international antimicrobial stewardship projects in over 20 different countries across Central and South America, the Middle East/North Africa region, Sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia. Our program has published over 40 manuscripts, commentaries, and articles and raised over $2 million USD in funds to support this work. Projects have included AMR stewardship programs in hospitals and communities, engagement with Ministries of Health and national policy committees, community-, health facility-, and laboratory-based research, and training workshops and capacity building for healthcare providers including physicians, nurses, midwives, and pharmacists.

GHI’s projects have included:

• Adaptation, implementation, and evaluation of a post-prescription review and feedback program at Christian Medical College in Vellore, India, Kathmandu Valley and Pokhara, Nepal.
• Ongoing development/adaptation of antibiotic guidelines based on Nepali national guidelines, antibiograms, current hospital-based prescribing practices, and availability of specific antibiotics within hospital pharmacies.
• Cross-sectional surveys with hospital-based physicians and pharmacists to assess knowledge and perceptions of AMR and barriers to implementation of stewardship programs within Nepali hospitals.
• Development and implementation of AMR, antimicrobial stewardship (AMS), and infection prevention and control education programs for Nepali community-based pharmacists, nurses, and midwives.
• A feasibility study conducted with the World Health Organization toolkit for health facility-based AMR stewardship in LMIC in Nepal, Bhutan, Micronesia, and Malawi.
• A seven-country introduction of AMS hospital-based programs in Latin America.
• A formative and feasibility assessment of an introduction to antimicrobial stewardship program in Karachi, Pakistan.
• A randomized control trial of a phone application education program on antibiotic use in children for parents in 40 wards in Kathmandu Valley.
• Training at HFH in infectious disease and AMR laboratory procedures.

Future directions include the development of new tools to support healthcare providers in implementing AMR stewardship within their health facilities, expansion of the use of the WHO AMR toolkit, expansion of bidirectional training programs in the field, and further integration of antimicrobial stewardship and infection prevention and control activities through partner institutions.

Oncology

GHI has collaborated with the Henry Ford Cancer Institute (HFCI) since 2020 on various projects. Projects include education and training programs such as the Oncology Preceptorship Program, which afforded early career oncologists from partner institutions in Colombia a two-week rotation in Breast and Lung Oncology at Henry Ford. GHI also worked with HFCI on community health programs to address health disparities. The Participatory Action for Access to Clinical Trials project focuses on increasing Black/African Americans' participation in cancer clinical trials, and the Your Prostate, Your Health project aims to increase prostate cancer screening among Black/African American men. Most recently, GHI worked with HFCI on Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs) and plans for research on Patient Reported Outcomes Measures (PROMs) in underserved populations in Detroit, Michigan, and implementation globally, starting in Colombia. GHI is also collaborating with HFCI to establish a cancer registry at the King Hussein Cancer Center in Amman, Jordan.

Mental Health

In collaboration with the Henry Ford Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research and Henry Ford Behavioral Health Services, GHI has expanded its outreach to mental health activities with the objective to extend Henry Ford’s Zero Suicide initiative at a global level. Zero Suicide’s guiding principle is that suicide among people receiving medical and/or behavioral care is preventable. The Zero Suicide program has successfully decreased suicide deaths at HFH and in hospital systems throughout the United States and globally.

In 2022-2023, grant funding from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund enabled partnerships with multiple community organizations serving refugees and asylum seekers to identify mental health service barriers, suicide risk, and feasibility and need for an adapted Zero Suicide program within these community-based organizations. In 2023-2024, Zero Suicide pilot programs will be implemented in three community-based organizations serving Afghan, Ukrainian, and other refugees and asylum seekers in Michigan.

Henry Ford collaborated with the Ministry of Health and Population in October 2022 to co-host the Nepal Suicide Prevention Symposium in Nepal. Over 50 stakeholders from Nepal, including national-level government officials, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, hospitals, health care clinics, police, community organizations, schools, and community leaders were in attendance. Upcoming opportunities to expand Zero Suicide guidelines and initiatives in Nepal and other low- and middle-income countries resulted from the collaboration.

Clinical Trials

In collaboration with the Henry Ford Division of Infectious Disease, GHI conducted a Phase 3 COVID-19 clinical trials for Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. Combined, the two studies enrolled more than 1,100 participants, with 34.4% (Moderna) and 41.8% (Johnson & Johnson) minority enrollment. Moderna formally recognized Henry Ford Health as a national standard for best practices in minority recruitment.

Although the primary goal was to evaluate vaccine safety and efficacy, GHI was keenly aware that community trust would lay the foundation for future vaccination campaigns. Thus, community engagement efforts were built into every step of the program.

GHI continues to conduct vaccine and prophylaxis clinical trials. Learn more about our current clinical trials.