Gavin George is a Master’s graduate of the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Economics and Management Division and is currently a Research Fellow at the Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, which he joined in 2000.

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He has worked on projects with both large private companies and micro enterprises regarding the impact of HIV/AIDS on their operations. He has headed and completed a study which examined the form and content of ART programmes amongst a sample of Southern African companies. Specifically, the study examined the nature of partnerships between pharmaceutical suppliers and recipient companies, the cost of ART programmes and the experiences of supplier and recipient companies. He has also formed part of an international research team looking at the market impact of a large multi-national company.

Gavin has served on the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) project advisory committee looking at the impact of HIV/AIDS on the Informal Sector. Gavin is currently working on a MSD funded project. The Workplace VCT/ART uptake study is a longitudinal, comparative study of a private sector workplace ART programme which sets out to provide new knowledge on reasons for generally low and slow uptake of VCT and ART amongst employees. The purpose, through an empirically based study, is to illustrate how to increase uptake of VCT and ART thereby providing ‘lessons learned’ for future company treatment strategies.

He is also currently involved in WVUP, KHIS, WSAR and HW SALARIES. RESEARCH EXPERIENCE 2006 - 2007:- Lead Researcher: KwaZulu-Natal HIV Surveillance and Impact Study (KHIS) This is a collaborative study between HEARD and The Centre for AIDS Development, Research and Evaluation (CADRE). The overall objectives of the KwaZulu-Natal HIV Surveillance and Impact Study (KHIS) are:

1. To determine the prevalence and distribution of HIV/AIDS in four business sectors in KwaZulu-Natal;To conduct KAP surveys in companies within these sectors linked to HIV results;

2. To investigate the relationship between HIV infection and selected demographic and KAP variables; 3. To produce a report to the Department of Health and the Durban Chamber Foundation (DCF) on the results and to make recommendations for interventions and ongoing M&E;

4. To provide HIV VCT services for employees wishing to know their status;

5. To establish the economic impact of HIV and AIDS for the four sectors at provincial level and implications for the province.

HEARD is seeking:

1. To establish the economic impact of HIV and AIDS for the four sectors (Manufacturing, Agriculture, Tourism and Transport) at provincial level and implications for the province. This study is expected to be completed by April 2007. 2006 - 2007: Lead Researcher: Whole Systems Assessment and Response (WSAR) The study was commissioned as part of the Whole Systems Assessment and Response (WSAR) project of the UK DFID Knowledge for Action in HIV/AIDS and STIs Programme. WSAR was developed in response to contemporary approaches to HIV/AIDS control which have been criticised for being fragmented and limited in scope, and is designed to promote a more holistic and joined up approach to the assessment and control of HIV/AIDS epidemics.

It uses a conceptual model that not only links situational assessments to response development but explores the impacts that intervention programmes and the wider environmental context have on each other. The concept is being operationalised through a series of mixed-methods, rapid assessment studies of the selected HIV/AIDS intervention programmes and health systems in developing and transitional economies in Africa. The current country sites selected for field work are Ghana and South Africa. The aim of the study in South Africa was to investigate the impacts of anti-retroviral (ART) scale-up on the health system focusing specifically on 3 key areas: health financing and expenditure, service provision and utilisation, and human resources for health. The study focused on health care providers. It was preceded by a scoping exercise in November 2005 to establish the feasibility of the study, identify local resources and determine the study parameters and timescale. The Pilot Study is expected to be completed in October 2006. Funding is being sought for an up scaled version of the project. 2006 - Present: Project Lead: Workplace VCT Uptake Study (WVUP)

The project has a scientific aim and a practical aim which are, respectively:

1. To provide new knowledge on reasons for low uptake of VCT and ART services in workplace settings and estimate the associated economic costs.

2. To show how to increase VCT and ARV uptake in workplace settings on the basis of improved practical interventions and estimate the associated economic costs and benefits. The scientific and practical aims dictate two sets of objectives.

The scientific aim entails three objectives:

1. To conduct a study to develop a comparative understanding of the individual and contextual influences informing participation rates, and estimate the economic costs of low up take of the VCT/ART services offered across two different sites within one multinational corporation;

2. To develop a VCT/ART intervention that is informed by the strengths and weaknesses of the existing services;

3. To implement the intervention as a pilot program to test its efficacy in relation to proximal outcomes at the level of attitudes towards VCT/ART, stigmatizing attitudes towards people infected with HIV, HIV prevention knowledge, motivation to engage in behaviors to prevent HIV infection and transmission and HIV risk and preventive behavior and to estimate the net economic benefit of the program.

The practical aim entails three objectives:

1. To develop a ‘toolkit’ for VCT/ART service assessment and design, and implement it at other selected sites of different companies;

2. To develop and implement academic and professional training courses to improve capacity for health management and pharmaceutical knowledge in Africa;

3. To actively disseminate lessons learned to inform health management policies and strategies. We are at the stage of the project where we are evaluating potential project sites. This study is expected to finish in 2009.

Gavin has published and presented extensively on HIV/AIDS and the likely impact it will have within the Private Sector. Title: Research on Health Worker Salaries and Benefits in Low and Middle Income Countries (Health Worker Salaries – HWS) Research aim: To indicate the determinants of salary packages of health workers within southern Africa and between this region, sub-Saharan Africa and ‘developed’ countries. Researchers: Gavin George (Senior Researcher, Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division of UKZN) & Prof. Jeff Gow (Research Associate, Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division of UKZN) Project Duration: Six (6) Months Study Summary: Relatively poor salaries in the health sector in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are reasons for the migration of health workers to better paid jobs elsewhere. This study will analyse a wide range of data to provide an assessment of determinants of salary packages. The purpose is to provide baseline empirical information for strategic review of the problem. Research Settings: The study will be conducted in South Africa and Zambia to cover the range of issues and challenges in Africa. Simply put, Zambia represents one extreme - very limited capacity and means; South Africa represents the other extreme - abundant capacity and means. South Africa has drawn health professionals but its public and private health services are a source of health professionals for posts in the USA, Canada, UK and Australia.

Research Objectives:

1. To describe the Health worker ‘salaries and benefits’ across cadres in the two designated countries 2. To describe the macro-economic and fiscal determinants of health worker salaries and benefits (taking into account political factors; public sector reforms and policies affecting the civil service; government decisions about budget allocations; the pattern of health care financing) in the three designated countries The critical questions to be answered are as follows: a) What are the salaries and benefits across the public, non-government and private health sectors; across different cadres of worker against the income of other comparable professions and employees in other sectors (to locate health worker salaries within the broader labour market); and in relation to the cost of living and a basic package of goods? b) What factors have influenced the patterns and trends in health worker incomes? c) What are the links between ‘salary and benefits’ with morale; career choices; recruitment and retention; absenteeism, moonlighting; and ‘under the counter charges’?