Kathryn Church PhD

Research Fellow

My PhD was on the integration of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and HIV services in Swaziland. This included research on both SRH behaviours among people living with HIV, as well as health service responses to address client needs. Prior to joining LSHTM I worked for the World Health Organization in Geneva, with a focus on the development and dissemination of evidence-based guidelines and provider tools in SRH. I have also worked as a consultant on various SRH projects, including work on a community-based maternal and newborn health project in El Salvador, on the Iraq Family Health Survey, and on a research toolkit for maternal health. My first degree was in Geography and Italian from the University of St Andrews, graduating in 2000. I then went on to obtain a Masters in Population and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2001.

Affiliation

Teaching

I co-organise the Family Planning Programmes module. I teach on Statistics for Epidemiology and Population Health (STEPH), 'Research Design and Analysis' (RDA), Family Planning Programmes (FPP) and 'Current Issues in Safe Motherhood and Perinatal Health' (CISM) modules. I am a course tutor for the MSc in Reproductive and Sexual Health Research. 

Research

I currently conduct research for the Integra project, a multi-country study investigating the integration of SRH and HIV services. This study is a partnership between LSHTM, Population Council and the International Planned Parenthood Federation, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. My PhD, which formed one sub-study within this research programme, was an in-depth case study comparing healthcare processes and outcomes across four different models of HIV care and treatment (two stand-alone HIV services, two integrated with SRH care) in Swaziland. Areas of focus were contraceptive needs and practices among people living with HIV, use of integrated services, satisfaction with care, and perceptions of HIV-related stigma. The study utilised mixed quantitative and qualitative methodologies.

My current research with Integra involves support to community surveys on health service utilisation patterns (in HIV and SRH); support to qualitative studies with users and non users of health services, and with health care providers; support to health facility assessments focused on service quality and use of integrated care; and support to cohort studies with SRH clients; all in Kenya and Swaziland. I am also interested in approaches to defining and mesauring integrated care. 

Research areas

  • Evaluation
  • Health services research
  • Maternal health
  • Mixed methods
  • Organisational research
  • Primary care
  • Reproductive health
  • Sexual health

Disciplines

  • Demography
  • Epidemiology
  • Operational research
  • Policy analysis
  • Social Sciences

Disease and Health Conditions

  • HIV/AIDS
  • Sexually transmitted disease

Regions

  • Sub-Saharan Africa (all income levels)

Countries

  • El Salvador
  • Kenya
  • South Africa
  • Swaziland
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