Guy Harling

• My subject areas of interest include Sexually Transmitted Infections (particularly HIV) and tuberculosis.
• My methodologic interests are in structured data, including but not limited to:
• Organizationally structured information, using hierarchical models
• Spatially structured information, using spatial random effects models
• Temporally structured information, using dynamic differential equation models
• Connectivity structured information, using social network models

I have experience working with:

• Stata, R, SAS
• Python
• Win/OpenBUGS, MLwiN
• ArcMap, GeoDa
• Berkeley Madonna
• Open Data Kit, REDCap, Network Canvas
• My theoretical interests are built around understanding how the social, and especially the socioeconomic, environment affects individuals' actions and health outcomes through stratification processes.

Past research topics

• » Relationship age-disparities and HIV in rural KwaZulu-Natal
  
  As part of my Doctoral dissertation, I completed three analyses relating to age-disparities in relationships and their association with HIV incidence. Two papers studied how women aged under 30 and between 30 and 50 years old were placed at risk for HIV acquisition. The third paper provided evidence on the accuracy with which women and men were able to report their partners ages - a crucial assumption of the preceding analyses. This research was overseen by Drs. Till Bärnighausen and Frank Tanser.
  
  
• » Socioeconomic context, socioeconomic status and sexually transmitted infections
  
  As part of my Doctoral dissertation, I analysed how race/ethnicity, family income and community inequality affected risk of bacterial STIs in the US, using the Add Health dataset. This work was overseen by my doctoral committee, comprised Drs. Ichiro Kawachi, SV Subramanian and Till Bärnighausen.
  
  
• » Socioeconomic factors and tuberculosis
  
  During my Doctoral degree I analysed tuberculosis case report data from 2002-09 in Brazil using spatial autoregressive models, highlighting how spatial correlation confounds associations between social and socioeconomic factors and tuberculosis. This research was conducted with Dr. Marcia Castro.
  
  For my Masters degree in Public Health I analysed tuberculosis data from the 2003 South African Demographic and Health Survey using hierarchical regression, focusing on its relationship with both absolute income and income inequality. The study highlighted the effect of both socioeconomic factors, over and above traditional behavioural risk factors such as tobacco and alcohol consumption, and occupational factors such as mine work. This research was overseen by Dr. Landon Myer.
  
  For my Masters degree in Economics I analysed the country-level association between tuberculosis and per-capita income growth between 1981 and 2000 in an augmented Solow-type panel regression model. Allowing for baseline income, tuberculosis incidence was associated with lower income growth. This research was overseen by Dr/ Franque Grimard.


• » The cost and cost-effectiveness of interventions for prevention, treatment and care of HIV
  
  I conducted two literature reviews, one of studies on the cost-effectiveness of prevention, treatment and care from 1994 to 2004, and the second of studies on the cost of treatment and care only between 1999 and 2008. This work was supervised by Dr Eduard Beck. I also worked with Professor Lee Soderstrom to write a book chapter on the cost-effectiveness of HIV-related interventions.
  
  I designed, conducted and wrote up a utilization, cost, and cost-effectiveness analysis of the first 212 patients enrolled at the Hanaan Crusaid Antiretroviral Treatment (ART) Centre in Gugulethu - the second ART provision site in the Western Cape province of South Africa. This included hospital care at secondary, tertiary and specialist hospitals. Cost values from this work have also been used in subsequent cost-effectiveness studies. This work was completed with the guidance of Dr Robin Wood at the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre in Cape Town.
  
  On behalf of UNAIDS, I helped to write a manual for the collection of HIV-related cost information at the facility level based on unit costing methods. This work was overseen by Dr Eduard Beck.


• » Intimate Partner Violence and HIV
  
  We studied the association between Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and HIV prevalence in ten Demographic and Health Surveys on three continents. The study was unable to support the hypothesis that IPV and HIV were associated cross-sectionally. This work was directed by Professor SV Subramanian.