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Dr Della Berhanu

Assistant Professor

United Kingdom

I am an epidemiologist based at the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, focusing on large-scale evaluations of public health programs related to maternal, newborn, and child health. My recent work has concentrated on leading implementation research aimed at improving care for women during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postnatal period. Central to my work is a commitment to both individual and institutional capacity building, with PhD and postdoctoral training integrated into the research activities I oversee.

Affiliations

Department of Disease Control
Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases

Research

I have professional experience in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nigeria, with a particular focus on enhancing the quality of services for women, newborns, and children at the primary healthcare level. Through implementation research, I design and test interventions to improve maternal and newborn care. I am also interested in improving the quality and utilization of routine data to monitor the coverage and quality of care effectively.

Capacity development is a core aspect of my work. I train PhD and postdoctoral fellows across six partner universities in Ethiopia, fostering research excellence and collaboration. Recently, our partnerships have expanded with a grant supporting longitudinal data analysis at health and demographic surveillance sites across 13 Ethiopian universities.

Research Area
Child health
Complex interventions
Evaluation
Health services research
Health systems
Health workers
Maternal health
Epidemiology
Implementation science
Disease and Health Conditions
Sepsis
Respiratory diseases
Country
Ethiopia
Nigeria
Kenya
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa (all income levels)
Sub-Saharan Africa (developing only)

Selected Publications

Coverage of antenatal, intrapartum, and newborn care in 104 districts of Ethiopia: A before and after study four years after the launch of the national Community-Based Newborn Care programme.
BERHANU, D; ALLEN, E; BEAUMONT, E; TOMLIN, K; Taddesse, N; Dinsa, G; Mekonnen, Y; Hailu, H; BALLIET, M; Lensink, N; SCHELLENBERG, J; Avan, BI;
2021
PloS one
Does a complex intervention targeting communities, health facilities and district health managers increase the utilisation of community-based child health services? A before and after study in intervention and comparison areas of Ethiopia.
BERHANU, D; OKWARAJI, YB; Defar, A; Bekele, A; Lemango, ET; Medhanyie, AA; Wordofa, MA; Yitayal, M; W/Gebriel, F; Desta, A; Gebregizabher, FA; Daka, DW; Hunduma, A; Beyene, H; Getahun, T; Getachew, T; Woldemariam, AT; Wolassa, D; Persson, LÅ; SCHELLENBERG, J;
2020
BMJ OPEN
Implementation of the 'Optimising the Health Extension Program' Intervention in Ethiopia: A Process Evaluation Using Mixed Methods.
OKWARAJI, YB; Hill, Z; Defar, A; BERHANU, D; Wolassa, D; Persson, LÅ; Gonfa, G; SCHELLENBERG, JA;
2020
International journal of environmental research and public health
Major gaps in child survival by ethnic group.
SCHELLENBERG, JR M A; BERHANU, D;
2020
LANCET GLOBAL HEALTH
Infant Feeding Practices in Ethiopia: Birth Cohort Study in Five Regions.
Tariku, A; Alemu, K; SCHELLENBERG, J; MARCHANT, T; BERHANU, D; Lemma, S; Defar, A; Getachew, T; Abdissa, Z; Guadu, T; Shiferaw, S; Taye, G; Zelalem, M; Persson, LÅ;
2025
Maternal & child nutrition
Geographical equity in Ethiopian infant feeding practices: a secondary analysis of a birth cohort study.
Tariku, A; PERSSON, L; SCHELLENBERG, J; MARCHANT, T; BERHANU, D; Lemma, S; Defar, A; Zemedu, TG; Denu, ZA; Delele, TG; Shiferaw, S; Zeleke, GT; Zelalem, M; Gelaye, KA;
2025
BMJ open
Decentralizing and task sharing within the primary health system improved access and quality of ANC services in Amhara and Oromia regions: pre-post health facility data.
Abebe, S; Girma, S; Ayele, A; Taye, T; Morrison, M; Teno, D; Asire, G; Worku, A; BERHANU, D;
2024
BMC primary care
Effective coverage of antenatal care services in Ethiopia: a population-based cross-sectional study.
Abdissa, Z; Alemu, K; Lemma, S; BERHANU, D; Defar, A; Getachew, T; SCHELLENBERG, J; MARCHANT, T; Shiferaw, S; Tariku, A; Guadu, T; Taye, G; Zelalem, M; PERSSON, LA;
2024
BMC pregnancy and childbirth
Evaluation of the feasibility, acceptability, and impact of Group Antenatal Care at the health post level on continuation in antenatal care and facility based delivery in Ethiopia using a cluster randomized stepped-wedge design: Study protocol
Yallew, WW; Fasil, R; BERHANU, D; Wolde, K; Teshite, D; Sethi, R; Yenokyan, G; Woldemariam, Y; Suhowatsky, S; Hyre, A; Noguchi, L; Worku, A;
2024
Gates Open Research
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