AMPATH Researcher Presents to NIH Leaders
Jepchirchir (Chiri) Kiplagat, PhD, presented to leaders of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) about her research into improving care for people aging with HIV during a recent meeting highlighting the impact of global health research opportunities such as the Fogarty International Center’s Global Health Fellowship Program (formerly Fogarty Fellowship).
Dr. Kiplagat, a faculty member at Moi University in Kenya and former leader within the AMPATH Research Program Office, shared her experience and insights with NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, MD, and Fogarty Center Deputy Director Peter Kilmarx, MD, at the annual training for incoming Fogarty Fellows in Washington, DC, this summer.
“My research focuses on aging populations living with HIV, people who are older than 50 years specifically,” explained Dr. Kiplagat. “This is a population that is not only growing in LMICs (low- and middle-income countries), but also growing here in the US. It's estimated that in the next five years, 70% of people living with HIV in the US will be aged 50 years and older.”
She further explained that this population is at elevated risk of developing chronic conditions and healthcare systems around the world are grappling on how to deliver age-sensitive, integrated care. Dr. Kiplagat was selected by the Northern Pacific Global Health (NPGH) Research Fellows Training Consortium for the prestigious fellowship in 2021-22 and her project evaluated integrating services for noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension into the HIV care platform.
Key findings of her study included:
About 50% of older adults living with HIV in the study cohort are also living with hypertension
Less than half of this population have controlled hypertension
Healthcare workers are motivated to provide person-centered care
There is a need for capacity building - training for care providers
Following completion of the fellowship, she was awarded a K43 grant from the NIH to continue her research evaluating community care models using trained community health promoters to support older people who live with HIV and other conditions in managing medication adherence. She also has a grant from Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI) and Gilead Global Public Health Research Scholars Program to work with Indiana University colleagues to evaluate integration of comprehensive geriatric assessment within HIV care clinics.
“What stood out for me was the strong motivation among clinicians to address aging-related needs. However, there was a lack of training and systems support to do so effectively,” explained Dr. Kiplagat.
Her work is leading to a future NIH R01 proposal to test implementation strategies for integrated care. “I believe this is work that is not just relevant to LMICs, but also to high-income countries as we all try to optimize care for older people living with HIV,” she concluded.
Following Dr. Kiplagat’s presentation, Dr. Bhattacharya asked if there were ways to use the experience of older people living with HIV, who presumably have good medication adherence, to teach younger people how to navigate the healthcare system.
Dr. Kiplagat said that despite a 98% HIV suppression rate in the people she works with, as they age challenges with conditions such as vision and hearing impairment or cognitive decline are experienced, leading to struggles with access to care outside of the HIV clinics. This is a problem in both Kenya and the U.S.
“Thank you for your work,” Dr. Bhattacharya responded.
Applications are currently being accepted for the 2026-27 Fogarty Global Health Fellowship Program.