Dr. Joconiah Chirenda

Qualifications:

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Molecular Biology, Stellenbosch University, 2020 Masters in Business Administration, (MBA), Eastern and Southern Management Institute, 2008 Masters of Medicine in Public Health, University of Zimbabwe, 1999 Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degrees, University of Zimbabwe, 1994

Academic Appointments:

Lecturer and Clinical Deputy Dean

Research Interests:

Malaria epidemiology
Tuberculosis epidemiology, immunology of TB and case management
HIV epidemiology
Workplace health and safety

Faculty: Medicine And Health Sciences

Department: Department of Surgical Sciences

Research Category: Health and Medicine

Biography:

Dr. Joconiah Chirenda has been with the University of Zimbabwe since 2002 when he joined as an Assistant Coordinator, Field Epidemiology Training -Master of Public Health (FETP-MPH) program. In 2008, He joined the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) as a full-time academic staff member until today. His main areas of research are malaria, tuberculosis, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemiology and case management, occupational medicine, and zoonotic diseases. Currently, he is the Deputy Dean, Clinical Sciences in addition to being a lecturer.

Email: jchirenda@medsch.uz.ac.zw

Phone: +263 242 791631 Ext 2216

Publications:

1. Gwitira, I., Karumazondo, N., Shekede, M. D., Sandy, C., Siziba, N., & Chirenda, J. (2021). Spatial patterns of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) cases in Zimbabwe from 2015 to 2018. Plos one, 16(4), e0249523.

2. Chirenda, J., Simwaka, B. N., Sandy, C., Bodnar, K., Corbin, S., Desai, P., ... & Kaplan, R. (2021). A feasibility study using time-driven activity-based costing as a management tool for provider cost estimation: lessons from the national TB control program in Zimbabwe in 2018. BMC health services research, 21(1), 1-16.

3. Gwitira, I., Mukonoweshuro, M., Mapako, G., Shekede, M. D., Chirenda, J., & Mberikunashe, J. (2020). Spatial and spatio-temporal analysis of malaria cases in Zimbabwe. Infectious Diseases of Poverty, 9(1), 1-14.

4. DesJardin, Clayton P., Joconiah Chirenda, Wen Ye, Hilda Angela Mujuru, and Zhenhua Yang., (2020) "Factors associated with unfavorable treatment outcomes among pediatric tuberculosis cases in Harare, Zimbabwe during 2013–2017." International Journal of Infectious Diseases 101: 403-408.

5. Martino, R. J., Chirenda, J., Mujuru, H. A., Ye, W., & Yang, Z. (2020). Characteristics Indicative of Tuberculosis/HIV Coinfection in a High-Burden Setting: Lessons from 13,802 Incident Tuberculosis Cases in Harare, Zimbabwe. The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 103(1), 214-220.

6. Tadyanemhandu, C., Chirenda, J., Garvey, C., & Metcalfe, J. (2020). Treatment success, but living with the consequences of post-tuberculosis sequelae. The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease: the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 24(7), 657-658. DOI: 10.5588/ijtld.20.0143

7. Kuguyo, O., Muhaso, C., Nyandoro, S., Chirenda, J., Chikwasha, V., Mageza, A. C., ... & Matimba, A. (2020). Perspectives of healthcare workers on factors influencing diabetes management and diabetic foot problems in Zimbabwe. Journal of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Diabetes of South Africa, 25(3), 57-62. DOI: 10.1080/16089677.2020.181728

8. Chirenda, J., Gwitira, I., Warren, R. M., Sampson, S. L., Murwira, A., Masimirembwa, C., ... & Streicher, E. M. (2020). Spatial distribution of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis in metropolitan Harare, Zimbabwe. PloS one, 15(4), e0231637.

9. Timire, C., Metcalfe, J. Z., Chirenda, J., Scholten, J. N., Manyame-Murwira, B., Ngwenya, M., ... & Sandy, C. (2019). Prevalence of drug-resistant tuberculosis in Zimbabwe: A health facility-based cross-sectional survey. International Journal of Infectious Diseases, 87, 119-125.

10. Chirenda, J., Chipinduro, M., de Kock, M., Spies, C., Sakubani, C. T., Warren, R. M., ... & Streicher, E. M. (2019). Recovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis from positive mycobacterium growth indicator tubes stored at room temperature for up to 6 years in low-income and High-Tuberculosis-Burden Country. International journal of mycobacteriology, 8(2), 185.

11. Gwitira, I., Murwira, A., Masocha, M., Zengeya, F. M., Shekede, M. D., Chirenda, J., ... & Masendu, R. (2019). GIS-based stratification of malaria risk zones for Zimbabwe. Geocarto International, 34(11), 1163-1176.

12. Earley, M., Chirenda, J., Highet, A., Mujuru, H. A., & Yang, Z. (2018). Characterizing pediatric tuberculosis with and without human immunodeficiency virus coinfection in Harare, Zimbabwe. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 99(3), 601-607.

13. Mawera, G., Taruvona, J. T., & Chirenda, J. (2017). Clinical and radiological characteristics of adult black Zimbabweans with low back pain attending a specialist neurosurgery clinic. Central African Journal of Medicine, 63(4-6), 59-63.

14. Noppert, G., Yang, Z., Sandy, C., & Chirenda, J. (2015). Trends of sputum-smear positive tuberculosis in Zimbabwe: 2008–2011. BMC research notes, 8(1), 1-7.

15. Tendai, M., Mugurungi O., Chirenda, J., Mungati, M., Bangure, D., Gombe, T. N., and Mufuta, T. (2015)"Analysis of the national early infant diagnosis dataset, Zimbabwe: 2007 to 2010." Journal of AIDS and HIV Research 7, no. 6: 61-67.

Patented Work:

Grants & Funding (current and Past projects):

1. Nets for Africa, Efficacy of Clothianidin insecticide in high malaria-endemic areas, 2021
2. The Global Fund, Estimating provider cost of TB services in Zimbabwe, 2018-2019

Awards & Achievements:

1. Fogarty Clayton Dedonder Fellow, Mentor the mentee project, 2019
2. Fogarty Fellow, Occupational Health and Safety and modeling infectious diseases, University of Michigan, 2012
3. Leadership award, Eastern and Southern Management Institute (ESAMI), MBA, 2008

Consultancy and advisory work (current and past):

1. WHO ESA /IST Consultant, Assess feasibility and capacity to introduce an all-oral drug-resistant TB treatment regimen in Ethiopia as part of the regional Green Light Committee capacity building exercise, 2020.
2. WHO ESA /IST Consultant, Assess the feasibility of multidrug-resistant TB treatment expansion in Lesotho under the Global Fund-supported treatment programme, Lesotho, 2019.
3. UNDP Local Team Leader, Zimbabwe National Health Strategy Mid-term review, August - December 2019.
4. Global Fund Team Leader, Activity-based costing of provider TB Services in Zimbabwe, January - February 2019.
5. WHO, ESA Consultant, GLC Technical support to Federal Ministry of Health, Ethiopia, December 2018.
6. UNICEF Consultant, Review and Finalize the Nutrition, HIV and TB integration Guidelines and Job Aids, Zimbabwe June 2018
7. WHO, ESA Consultant, Assess the feasibility of introducing a short term regimen for MDR-TB treatment and finalize MDR-TB guidelines for the Federal Ministry of Health, Ethiopia, December 2017.
8. Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), in collaboration and WHO Team Leader Development of the Healthy Ageing Strategy for Zimbabwe. Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), Centre for Community Development Solutions (CCDS) in collaboration and World Health Organization, Africa regional office, February - March 2017.

Supervision information (MPhil, DPhil, etc.):

1. Martha Chipinduro, Molecular and Clinical Characterization of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria in Zimbabwe and South Africa, Stellenbosch
University, 2020, DPhil, ongoing.
2. Kudakwashe Chari, Evaluating the impact of Xpert MTB/RIF assay decentralization on TB diagnosis, treatment and patient outcomes in Zimbabwe,
Australia National University, 2020, DPhil, ongoing.
3. Hamufari Mugauri, Targeted HIV Testing modalities: Enhancing Uptake and Effectiveness to Control the Epidemic in Zimbabwe, University of
Zimbabwe, 2021, DPhil, ongoing.

Professional membership, Committees, Boards:

1. Member of Council, Medical and Dental Practitioner’s Council of Zimbabwe (MDPCZ), 2020 to date
2. Chairperson of the Research and Development Committee for MDPCZ
3. Member of the Zimbabwe College of Public Health Physicians (ZCPHP)
4. Member of the Zimbabwe Medical Association (ZIMA