Funders:
The study is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Synergy Grant as part of the STARFISH project (APP 2010716)
 
Collaborators:
Aims:
To co-design an approach to studying Strep A burden and transmission in a remote community that is acceptable to community members, builds in reciprocal benefit and is scientifically valid.
 
Objectives: 
  1. Share knowledge about Strep A to develop an agreed management approach that incorporates clinical best practice and traditional knowledge.
  2. Document Strep A recovery rates from different swab types and cough samples obtained during cross-sectional community-based activities (‘Check4Strep’ days).
  3. Build capacity and community development 
    a. at community and individual level through employment of Community-based researchers, and through two-way knowledge-sharing 
    b. with Menzies-based First Nations trainees to culture and identify Strep A in collected samples
  4. Feed back results iteratively to co-design next stages of the project including the options of regular, repeated microbiological sampling. 
  5. Foster two-way learning including upskilling STARFISH scientists and the project team in cultural protocols and appropriate ways of working.
Summary:
Streptococcus pyogenes (Strep A) is a human specific pathogen with the ability to cause a range of outcomes from asymptomatic carriage to life threatening invasive disease and immunogenic reactions affecting the kidneys and heart. In at-risk individuals, Strep A infection triggers a multisystem inflammatory response, known as acute rheumatic fever (ARF), with children aged 5 to 14 being at greatest risk. Severe or recurrent ARF can lead to rheumatic heart disease (RHD), and potentially permanent cardiac damage and premature death. 

This study seeks to co-design a community-based project to demonstrate where the Strep A is and how it’s likely being spread. Obtaining and sharing local data, and developing a local (place-based) response, will be defining features of the study to foster engagement and motivation, and ensure responses are locally relevant. 

The centrepiece of Check4Strep is a series of community Strep A engagement days in which the target population will be invited to participate in conversations about Strep A, and get tested for Strep A. The study will collect swab samples for point-of-care testing (in Milikapiti), and swab and cough samples for culture and Strep A identification at the Menzies laboratory. 
 
Implications for policy and practice: 
By developing a co-designed approach to studying Strep A, we can better understand the sociocultural context around Strep A transmission. This will provide a strong basis for implementing environmental health initiatives to stop the spread of Strep A and its associated illnesses. 
 
Chief Investigator:
 
Co-Investigators:
 
Associate Investigators:
  • Dr Pasqualina Coffey 
  • Ms Stephanie Enkel 
  • Ms Bernadette Wong 
  • Dr Rebecca Chisolm 
  • Dr Timothy Barnett 
  • Dr Janessa Pickering 
     
For more information about the project contact the Project Manager Olivia Walsh via email
 
Project dates:
September 2024 – March 2026