Congratulations to Dr. Manasi Kumar, SMART Africa-Kenya Co-Investigator and Senior Lecturer and Clinical Psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Nairobi, whose impactful work was recently featured in the NIH’s Fogarty International Center’s monthly newsletter. Since the pandemic began, Dr. Kumar has shifted the focus of her research to examine how COVID-19 has affected pregnant teens in Kenya. The results were sobering with a reported increase in food insecurity and gender-based violence as well as increased unemployment and lack of transportation, making it difficult to access health services. As a result of these findings, Dr. Kumar is working with local officials to set up a mental health hotline. You can find the full publication here.
