Quarraisha Abdool Karim, PhD, associate scientific director of the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) and principal investigator of the CAPRISA Clinical Trials Unit in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, received the 2018 Ward Cates Spirit Award at the recent HPTN Annual Meeting in Washington, DC. Dr. Abdool Karim was acknowledged for her outstanding contributions to HPTN’s mission through public health advocacy, leadership and mentoring. The award honors the legacy of Willard (Ward) Cates Jr., MD, MPH. Dr. Cates was a dedicated steward of HPTN scientific and research programs, a respected scientist who contributed to groundbreaking contraceptive and HIV prevention research, a prolific writer who authored or co-authored more than 450 scientific publications and a committed mentor who helped several generations of young scientists produce and publish quality research.
Dr. Abdool Karim holds professorships in clinical epidemiology at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health in New York and in public health at the University of KwaZulu-Natal's Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. She is currently a member of the HPTN Leadership Group, Executive Committee, Performance Evaluation Committee and Manuscript Review Committee. Dr. Abdool Karim was HPTN co-principal investigator from 2006-2012.